I love to measure my student's engagement and learning on a regular basis. Giving the students a voice to give feedback on how they felt the lesson went and what they would change is invaluable information for me as a teacher when planning and redesigning lessons. One of the quick ways I like to do this is through a ticket-out-the-door. Normally I will give out notecards or have the students use a half sheet of paper and tell me what they learned, questions they may have, what they enjoyed most from the lesson, and any suggestions on ways to improve the lesson or activity. While I enjoy reading through the notecards, that means I have 135 notecards to take home and read if I am unable to read them at school before leaving.
In an attempt to go more paperless, I have found another solution using a Web 2.0 tool: Padlet. Padlet is a great tool that allows any user to post anonymously on a board that has already been created, or if the user has an account, create their own boards to post on. This is a great solution for my ticket-out-the-door issue because students can post their feedback and it is all saved in one place. I can save that board with the date or lesson title and go back to view it at any point.
Padlet is also a friendly Web 2.0 tool that can mesh with other Web 2.0 tools because it will give you an embed code. This works great with websites, blogs, or learning management systems that allow you to embed code. When you embed the code it shows up on the new site exactly as it would if you logged in straight to Padlet. This is a great feature when you are trying to train students how to use different Web 2.0 tools because if you embed the page there are fewer clicks and fewer opportunities for something to go wrong.
Padlet would also be a great tool for students who are working to collaborate on a project because they can upload any file, picture, video, or link that they want to share with group members. I appreciate that users can only edit boxes they add to the Padlet, but that could also be tricky if group members are working together trying to get something worded just right. I also wish that Padlet had a search feature. For my original idea of ticket-out-the-door, I would end up with a large amount of boxes to search through and it would be great to be able to look for key words. Maybe that will come in the future.
Thinking ahead to professional use with the other teachers at my school I see Padlet being used as a great collaboration site where teachers could upload files or links to useful resources based on topics or units. I am hoping to create a Padlet of useful Web 2.0 tools with a short blurb and link to each tool so teachers can view and add to the list at any point.
I was introduced to padlet this year. I see limitless opportunities with it as well. I think that I would eventually like to see this used as a lesson plan option in schools. It is both collaborative and available anywhere via any platform. One of the ways you could manage your ticket out the door padlet is to give it a bit more structure at first. I have found if you put headings for class periods or major opinions from the lesson it's easier to find students' work and see where you need to pick up the next day. Have you considered using a different type of structure to aid in your assessment?