Transparent Design: Task

Creating a list of tasks for students will help guide them through the process of completing their assignment.  You might think of it as a road map guiding them to a successful outcome.  This is especially important for novice learners who may be experiencing something for the first time.  The list of tasks will ensure students stay on course and have the opportunity to experience the nuances of your assignment.  This is your moment to not only map out the steps to success, but also to warn of any pitfalls that could steer them off course.  You might ask yourself, what are some common mistakes students have experienced in the past that have kept them from being successful? Then you can review your task list to minimize those mistakes.  This also ensures students are using their time efficiently and focusing on the content that will make them successful.

The authors of Transparent Design in Higher Education Teaching and Leadership discuss balancing student agency and creativity in their learning process due to the prescriptive nature of a task list.  This is especially true in creative disciplines such as art and design where figuring out the process is part of the learning experience.  The authors suggest adding extra verbiage to the purpose statement that explicitly states that one of the goals is to determine how to go about completing certain aspects of the assignment.  For example, “The purpose of this assignment is for you to struggle and feel confused while you invent your own process to address the problem” (38).  Being explicit about feelings of struggle and confusion protects the student’s confidence as they navigate, and even fail, at creating their own process as part of the task.

What are tasks?

The tasks for an assignment detail how a student will demonstrate one’s learning.  The tasks describe what students will do and how to do it.

When writing tasks, consider the following questions:

• What do you want the students to do?
• What steps can they follow to complete the task?
• What do you want the finished product to look like?
• Why is the assignment structured the way it is?
• Does your task list provide a clear rationale for the assignment?

Tips for creating a task list:

• Consider using backward design to create your tasks.
• Use student friendly language.
• Offer tips for avoiding roadblocks and mistakes.
• If figuring out the process is part of the learning experience, be explicit about it in your purpose statement.
• Use Bloom’s Critical Thinking Cue Questions for helpful language.
• Get feedback from a colleague in another discipline by asking them to describe the steps they would take to complete the assignment and compare that to your tasks.