Empowering students to take charge of their own learning is a crucial aspect of education. When students feel in control of their educational journey, they become more engaged, develop critical thinking skills, build self-confidence, and achieve academic success. Mary Saylor, an English Language Arts teacher, has mastered the art of empowering her students using a simple tool: Google Tasks.
Saylor’s strategy revolves around using Google Tasks to help students set, monitor, and reflect on their educational goals. By engaging students in this process, she helps them identify their strengths and weaknesses, boosting their confidence and promoting independence. This approach creates a reflective learning environment where students can track their progress and understand the impact of their actions.
To implement Saylor’s hack in the classroom, teachers need to ensure that students have access to a computer with a Google account. Students can then log into their Google Calendar, create tasks that serve as learning objectives, and set clear deadlines in student-friendly language. After the deadline passes, students review their tasks, reflecting on whether they achieved their goals and adding details in the task’s notes section. If the objective is met, students can check off the task and archive it; if not, it remains active until completed.
One of the key benefits of using Google Tasks is that it enhances student engagement by involving them in goal-setting and accountability. It also promotes reflective learning, helping students recognize their learning patterns and facilitating academic growth. Additionally, regular achievement of set goals boosts students’ confidence and positive feelings toward school, as evidenced by Saylor’s research findings.
Saylor recommends starting small with just one task to allow students to become comfortable with the technology. By walking them through the process step-by-step and emphasizing the importance of reflection, teachers can help students understand the value of continuous improvement. This hack is adaptable to any grade or subject and can be incorporated into lessons throughout the school year to promote reflection and accountability.
By integrating technology with self-assessment, Saylor’s Google Tasks hack for student accountability teaches responsibility and reflection at every learning target. This approach not only increases student engagement but also positively shifts their attitudes toward education. Teachers looking to shake up their classroom dynamics can benefit from implementing this hack to empower their students and enhance their learning experience.
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