Padlet

Padlet lets you create an online digital wall where students can post comments and notes, including images, links, and videos. Padlet can be used for individual, group, or class collaboration, reflection, and brainstorming. Examples include:

  • Collaborative brainstorming
  • Discussion boards
  • Interactive schedules or timelines
  • Resource sharing
  • Group project and peer reviews
  • Student portfolios
  • Virtual class bulletin board

Padlet can be used synchronously or asynchronously. 

How do I access Padlet?

To provision a free account, go to padlet.com/northwestern Links to an external site. and select the option to sign in with Northwestern SSO. Enter your Northwestern email address and complete the single-sign-on and DUO authentication process. 

Student and Teacher Accounts

All accounts are initially provisioned as student accounts. Both student and teacher accounts allow for unlimited padlets which can be shared with other collaborators at Northwestern.

To invite your students to sign up for a free Padlet account, share this student signup link Links to an external site. with them.

There are a limited number of teacher accounts available. Teacher accounts should only be used when an instructor wishes to use Padlet's grade pass back feature with Canvas assignments. To request a teacher license, contact canvas@northwestern.edu.

Multiple Padlet Accounts

If you have a personal Padlet account registered to your Northwestern email address, you can navigate between your accounts Links to an external site. by clicking on the account icon in the upper right hand corner of Padlet. There you will see your name, which links to your personal account, and Northwestern University, which links to your Northwestern account. 

How do I use Padlet?

Padlet also offers a wide range of resources, including: 

Sharing and Privacy

In a padlet, the sharing and permissions panel offers options for how to share, how to assign permissions to collaborators, and how to determine the appropriate privacy settings. Padlets used for classes should be shared only with students in the class. It is recommended that Padlets not be accessible outside of Northwestern University. 

Padlet offers options for permissions and sharing.

Canvas Integration

Padlet is available in Canvas through Assignments and Modules. When used with Assignments, students can collaborate on a padlet, or work on an individual padlet. Instructors can enter grades and feedback in Padlet and then sync their work with the Canvas gradebook. 

Modules

  1. Click the + button in the title line of the Module.
  2. Click on the dropdown list and select External Tool.
  3. Select Padlet.
  4. Create a new padlet or select an existing padlet for this Module. There is also an option to create a copy of the padlet for each student if the students are not intended to collaborate and see each other's work. 
  5. Click Add item.
  6. Click Publish

Select an existing Padlet or create a new Padlet.

Assignments

  1. Go to the Assignments tab in Canvas and click the blue + Assignment button.
  2. Add a name, instructions, points value, and due date. 
  3. Under Submission Type, select External Tool.
  4. Select Padlet.
  5. Create a new padlet or select an existing padlet for this Module. There is also an option to create a copy of the padlet for each student if the students are not intended to collaborate and see each other's work. 
  6. Click Select and then Save & Publish.

Grading and Syncing Grades with Canvas

For detailed instructions and screenshots, review Sync grade passback on Padlet to your LMS Links to an external site.

  1.  After students have completed their work for the assignment, go to the Padlet board and click the three-dot ellipsis (...) button found on the right side.
  2. Select Gradebook.
  3. Enter the number of points to match the assignment in Canvas.
  4. Decide if the grade calculation should be set to highest or average.
    • When Padlet filters student activity, it only includes posts, not comments. Each post will have a box for a grade to be entered. After you enter a score for each post, Padlet will either average the scores or take the highest score depending on your preference.  
  5. Decide if you want grades to automatically sync with Canvas (toggle on) or if you wish to sync grades after all grading is complete (toggle off until grading is finished, then toggle on).
  6. There will be a dropdown with a list of all students who have made a post under Grades.
  7. Enter grades and feedback if desired for each student. 
  8. Once you've filled out the Gradebook menu and it has been completed and finalized, you can head back to 'Sync grades to LMS' and turn the setting ON and click on Submit. This will sync grades to the LMS.

Accessibility and Support

For accessibility information on Padlet, please review Padlet Accessibility Information.

For technical issues with Padlet, visit the Padlet Knowledge Base and Support page Links to an external site.. This page includes an option to contact Padlet for support.

For questions about using Padlet in Canvas, or to request a teacher license, contact canvas@northwestern.edu.

For sign-in issues, please open a support request by contacting servicedesk@northwestern.edu. Please include a description of the issue and screenshots.