Increasing Student Success Through Effective Task Management

Instructors attempting to address students’ workload and tasks from within a course alone can be challenging. While features like activity completion, due dates, and access restrictions offer some support, much of the responsibility for managing tasks and projects ultimately falls on the students themselves. However, we can guide and encourage students to better manage their tasks across multiple courses.
A significant part of this guidance involves introducing students to tools that are readily available to them. Resources such as Google Workspace, Google Tasks, and other free programs offer various options to help students organize their time and achieve greater success in their studies. This article serves as a guide for both instructors and students, providing essential information and tools to make project and task management easier.

Understanding Task Management and Project Management

When addressing the management of tasks and projects, it’s important to understand the difference between the two and know which tools best support each one. Task management is a broad term that refers to the organization and prioritization of all tasks an individual needs to complete. These tasks may come from different areas of life—personal, academic, or professional—and often need to be managed in one streamlined space to help maintain a balanced schedule.


Project management, on the other hand, involves overseeing a specific workflow for a defined project or goal. Unlike general task management, project management typically has a clear end date and a focused outcome. Students often benefit from task management tools to organize their day-to-day responsibilities across multiple areas of their lives. However, project management tools can be especially useful for tracking the progress of complex assignments or group projects. In a group project, for instance, project management allows each member to be assigned specific subtasks, which can then be organized and monitored collaboratively to ensure all parts contribute toward the final goal. Check out our teaching resources article Group Work In Google Apps for more information about managing group projects. Both Task management and project management are essential for organization and success in a student’s academic career. This article will outline further the differences between each and recommend tools that students can use to manage them effectively.

Task Management for Students

Effective task management goes beyond simply listing what needs to be done. It involves setting priorities, scheduling tasks, and regularly reviewing progress to ensure nothing is overlooked. Task management often includes breaking down larger responsibilities into smaller, manageable steps, which helps to reduce overwhelm and clarify the path to completion. By structuring tasks in an organized system, students can balance competing demands from various classes, extracurricular activities, and personal obligations. Additionally, incorporating deadlines and reminders into a task management tool helps students stay proactive rather than reactive, allowing them to manage their time more efficiently. There are also ways to organize or merge tasks with calendars so deadlines cannot be missed, and students can use things like widgets and apps to manage these tasks while on the go. 

Benefits of Task Management for Students:

  • Reduces Stress and Overwhelm: By organizing tasks and setting clear priorities, students can avoid last-minute scrambles, helping to reduce stress.
  • Improves Time Management Skills: Effective task management teaches students to allocate time wisely, which can lead to a better balance between academic, personal, and social activities.
  • Boosts Productivity and Focus: A well-structured task list helps students focus on one task at a time, reducing the tendency to multitask, which often leads to inefficiency.
  • Encourages Accountability and Follow-Through: Task management tools allow students to track their progress, fostering a sense of responsibility and satisfaction as they complete each task.
  • Enhances Goal Setting and Achievement: By breaking down larger goals into actionable tasks, students can more easily work toward long-term objectives, such as projects or exams, with greater confidence.
  • Develops Essential Life Skills: Learning to manage tasks effectively in school prepares students for the professional world, where these skills are crucial for success.

Project Management for Students

Project management is a structured approach to completing a specific, goal-oriented task or project. Unlike task management, which involves ongoing activities, project management focuses on a defined start and end point, with clear objectives to achieve along the way. In an academic setting, project management often involves setting up phases for research, planning, execution, and review. This approach helps students map out each step of a project, set achievable milestones, and manage resources effectively. Tools that support project management enable students to divide complex projects into smaller, interdependent tasks, assign roles if working in groups, and monitor progress regularly, which keeps the project on track and ensures deadlines are met.

Benefits of Project Management in Academic Settings:

  • Improves Planning and Organization Skills: Project management teaches students to outline each phase of a project in advance, leading to better organization and more thorough preparation.
  • Encourages Efficient Use of Resources: By setting clear goals and deadlines, students can better manage time, materials, and information, maximizing resources without wasting effort.
  • Promotes Collaboration in Group Work: For group projects, project management provides a system where each member can take on defined roles, track individual contributions, and communicate about progress, fostering accountability and teamwork.
  • Enhances Problem-Solving Abilities: Managing a project often involves troubleshooting obstacles, teaching students how to think critically and find solutions when unexpected challenges arise.
  • Builds Confidence and Independence: Successfully managing a project from start to finish builds students’ confidence in their ability to tackle complex assignments and become more self-directed learners.
  • Supports Long-Term Goal Achievement: By working with structured timelines and goals, students gain experience managing larger objectives, which is beneficial for academic, personal, and career skills.

Task Management with Digital Tools

Google Calendar

Google Calendar is a tool that helps users organize their time, schedule events, and manage tasks efficiently. It offers a user-friendly interface that allows students to set up daily, weekly, or monthly schedules, integrating seamlessly with other Google Workspace tools like Gmail and Google Tasks. Key features of Google Calendar include the ability to create events, set recurring appointments, and add detailed descriptions for each event. Students can also use Google Calendar to set reminders for upcoming tasks or deadlines, ensuring nothing is overlooked. Additionally, tasks from Google Tasks can be displayed alongside calendar events, providing a comprehensive view of both scheduled commitments and to-do lists.

Screenshot of a Google Calendar weekly view for November 2024. The calendar displays various events and tasks, including study sessions, classes, exams, and personal activities. A pop-up event editor is open, showing the creation of an event titled 'Study for History w/ Matt,' scheduled for Monday, November 11, from 8:00 to 9:00 AM. The event editor includes options to add Google Meet conferencing, invite guests, add a description, or attach files. The calendar provides a visual example of organized time management with color-coded events and tasks.
Screenshot of a Google Calendar weekly view for November 2024. The calendar displays various events and tasks, including study sessions, classes, exams, and personal activities. A pop-up event editor is open, showing the creation of an event titled 'Study for History w/ Matt,' scheduled for Monday, November 11, from 8:00 to 9:00 AM. The event editor includes options to add Google Meet conferencing, invite guests, add a description, or attach files. The calendar provides a visual example of organized time management with color-coded events and tasks.
Screenshot of a Google Calendar weekly view for November 2024. The calendar displays various events and tasks, including study sessions, classes, exams, and personal activities. A pop-up event editor is open, showing the creation of an event titled 'Study for History w/ Matt,' scheduled for Monday, November 11, from 8:00 to 9:00 AM. The event editor includes options to add Google Meet conferencing, invite guests, add a description, or attach files. The calendar provides a visual example of organized time management with color-coded events and tasks.

Using Google Calendar for Task Management

Google Calendar is an excellent tool for students to manage both their time and tasks effectively. Here are some tips on how students can make the most out of Google Calendar for task management:

  1. Set Recurring Events for Class Times: Students can add recurring events for their class schedules to ensure their calendar reflects their time commitments. This makes it easier to visually identify free time for studying, group meetings, or personal activities. By consistently blocking out these times, students can visually see their downtime and make more effective use of it.
  2. Block Study Times: Students can schedule dedicated study sessions by blocking out time on their calendar. This feature is called Focus Time which will allow you to block time to focus on specific tasks or study times. By setting specific time slots for different subjects or assignments, students can create a structured study plan and prevent procrastination. Recurring study sessions can also be set to automatically appear on the calendar, helping to establish a consistent routine.
  3. Set Up Reminders with Calendar Tasks: Google Calendar allows students to set reminders for specific tasks or deadlines. For example, reminders can be set for upcoming assignments, exams, or even smaller tasks like reviewing notes or preparing for presentations. Notifications will ensure that students are alerted ahead of time, keeping them on track. To do this click the “+ create” button in the top-left of the screen, and instead of “event” choose “task”. From there you can adjust when and how often you receive reminders about that calendar tasks. This will talk directly with Google Tasks but will also appear on your calendar.
  4. Review and Adjust: At the start of each week or day, students should review their calendar to ensure they are meeting deadlines and adjusting any tasks or study times as needed. Google Calendar provides a dynamic, easily adjustable system that allows students to stay flexible while maintaining organization.

Google Tasks

Google Tasks is a user-friendly task management tool designed to help users stay organized and on top of their to-do lists. Integrated directly with Gmail and Google Calendar, Google Tasks enables users to create, manage, and track tasks seamlessly across devices. Users can add tasks, set due dates, and create subtasks to break down larger responsibilities into smaller, actionable steps. The tool also allows for easy prioritization and reordering of tasks, so users can adjust their plans as new priorities arise.

Google Tasks is particularly useful for students who want a straightforward way to track assignments, deadlines, and personal reminders, all in one place. With mobile app compatibility, students can access their task lists anytime and receive notifications, helping them to stay on schedule and manage their workload effectively. The integration with other Google Workspace apps means tasks are visible alongside emails and calendar events, creating a centralized hub for task management.


In Google Tasks, users have the flexibility to organize their tasks into separate lists, which is ideal for keeping different areas of life or projects neatly categorized. To create and organize lists, open Google Tasks either from Google Calendar or the mobile app. At the top of the task panel, you’ll see an option to switch between lists or create a new one. This feature allows users to create distinct lists, such as “Personal,” “School,” “Work,” or specific project names, so that related tasks are grouped together and easily accessible. Within each list, you can add tasks, set due dates, and create subtasks as needed. This structure helps students and professionals alike keep track of tasks across various domains without overwhelming a single list. By organizing tasks into lists, users can focus on one area at a time, and switch between lists to review what needs attention in each category. Lists also help with prioritization, making it easier to see which areas require immediate action. With all tasks accessible from one centralized location, Google Tasks ensures that users stay organized and focused, regardless of how many projects or responsibilities they are managing.

Google Tasks can be easily accessed from within Google Calendar, making it convenient to manage tasks alongside scheduled events. To access Google Tasks in Google Calendar, open Google Calendar in a web browser and look for the toggle button at the top right of the page. There, you’ll see an icon for Tasks—a blue circle with a checkmark. By clicking this icon, you can open Google Tasks to a full-page view. This integration allows users to add, view, and manage tasks clearly, then if you want to navigate back to calendar view all users have to do is toggle the calendar icon back on.

This is a screenshot of a google task page. It also has an icon that points to the tab within the google calendar used to open all the tasks in one window. It has some sample tasks for personal tasks as well as individual tasks for classes.
This image highlights the toggle button between Google Calendar and Google Tasks.
This is a screenshot of a google task page. It also has an icon that points to the tab within the google calendar used to open all the tasks in one window. It has some sample tasks for personal tasks as well as individual tasks for classes.
This image highlights the toggle button between Google Calendar and Google Tasks.
This is a screenshot of a google task page. It also has an icon that points to the tab within the google calendar used to open all the tasks in one window. It has some sample tasks for personal tasks as well as individual tasks for classes.
This image highlights the toggle button between Google Calendar and Google Tasks.

How Students Can Use Google Tasks Effectively:

Google Tasks offers students an easy way to stay organized and manage their workload. By leveraging its features, students can keep track of assignments, deadlines, and other responsibilities in a way that helps them stay on top of their academic and personal tasks. Here are some practical ways students can use Google Tasks effectively:

  1. Organize Assignments by Lists: Students can create different lists for each class or type of task, such as “Math Assignments,” “Essay Deadlines,” or “Group Projects.” This helps to compartmentalize tasks and avoid confusion between different courses or areas of responsibility.
  2. Track Due Dates: Each task can be assigned a due date, making it easy to see what’s coming up and when. By using due dates effectively, students can visually map out when assignments are due in their Google Calendar, which can help them prioritize their time and meet deadlines.
  3. Break Tasks into Subtasks: For larger assignments or projects, students can break tasks down into smaller, manageable subtasks. For instance, an essay could have subtasks like “Research,” “Outline,” “Write Draft,” and “Revise.” This makes large tasks less overwhelming and gives students a clear roadmap to follow.
  4. Set Reminders: Google Tasks allows students to set reminders for tasks to ensure nothing gets overlooked. Reminders can be set at specific times or dates, prompting students to start tasks in advance and complete them on time. These reminders can also help avoid last-minute cramming or procrastination.
  5. Use Google Calendar Integration: By adding tasks with due dates directly into Google Calendar, students can see both their classes and assignments in one place. This integration ensures that students can balance class schedules, extracurriculars, and deadlines effectively, helping to visualize their workload and manage their time.
  6. Stay Consistent with Regular Reviews: Students can make it a habit to regularly review and update their Google Tasks lists, ensuring they stay on track. Checking off completed tasks provides a sense of accomplishment, and adjusting tasks as needed ensures that priorities remain clear and manageable.

Project Management Tools

Google Docs for Project Management and Collaboration

Google Workspace is a suite of cloud-based tools that offers a variety of features designed to support personal project management. It includes familiar apps like Google Docs, Sheets, and Calendar, all of which can be used to stay organized, prioritize tasks, and manage deadlines. Whether you’re tracking the progress of a long-term project or juggling multiple assignments, Google Workspace provides an efficient and streamlined way to keep everything in one place. From task tracking to detailed project planning, these tools offer customizable features that allow students to break down larger projects into smaller, manageable tasks. Below are some key features of Google Workspace that can help students stay organized and effectively manage their personal projects.

How Students Can Use Google Workspace Effectively:

Google Workspace offers powerful tools for managing personal projects, and helping students stay organized and on track. Here are some key features that can make personal project management more efficient:

  • Checklists & Task Assignment: Google Docs and Sheets provide a checklist feature that allows students to break down larger projects into smaller, actionable tasks. As students complete each task, they can check them off, providing a clear visual of progress and helping to maintain focus. If working on group projects, these checklists can also ensure that each person stays on top of their responsibilities and deadlines.
  • Smart Tools with @ Commands: Typing the @ symbol within a Google document reveals various interactive tools, such as customizable dropdowns, timers, and stopwatches. Students can use these tools to manage time, set deadlines, and even track progress with dates or other key milestones. These features also include templates and building blocks for personal project planning, such as product roadmaps or project trackers, that help structure tasks and keep them on schedule.
  • Actions Items: In Google Docs, students can assign action items directly within comments to clarify task ownership and responsibilities. This is particularly useful for personal projects where students want to stay accountable and keep track of tasks. Additionally, these action items can be integrated into Google Tasks, allowing students to seamlessly manage their to-do lists alongside their project.
  • Smart Chips & Building Blocks: New smart chips and building blocks in Google Docs enable students to create and manage detailed project plans. By using dropdown menus, students can quickly assign tasks or roles, set deadlines, and organize different stages of their project. Whether working independently or in groups, these tools help maintain organization and track progress over time.
  • Approval Feature: For personal projects, students can use the approval feature in Google Docs to mark key stages or important decisions as finalized. This tool helps students ensure they are on the right track and provides a clear record of completed milestones, making it easier to stay organized and prepared for final submissions.
Screenshot of a project management document titled "Sustainable Design Presentation," detailing a group project with tasks, deadlines, and statuses. Includes sections for task breakdown, action items, and a project roadmap. Side comments discuss research and slide deck outline responsibilities.
Group project management plan for a sustainable design presentation, outlining tasks, deadlines, and progress updates with team collaboration notes using Google Docs.
Screenshot of a project management document titled "Sustainable Design Presentation," detailing a group project with tasks, deadlines, and statuses. Includes sections for task breakdown, action items, and a project roadmap. Side comments discuss research and slide deck outline responsibilities.
Group project management plan for a sustainable design presentation, outlining tasks, deadlines, and progress updates with team collaboration notes using Google Docs.
Screenshot of a project management document titled "Sustainable Design Presentation," detailing a group project with tasks, deadlines, and statuses. Includes sections for task breakdown, action items, and a project roadmap. Side comments discuss research and slide deck outline responsibilities.
Group project management plan for a sustainable design presentation, outlining tasks, deadlines, and progress updates with team collaboration notes using Google Docs.

Non-Enterprise Recommendations

Monday.com

Monday.com is a flexible project management platform designed to streamline workflows and improve collaboration. While not an NC State enterprise tool, students can create a free account using their school email. With its intuitive, visually-driven interface, Monday.com enables users to organize tasks, track progress, and manage timelines effectively.

Features for Task Assignments, Progress Tracking, and Project Timelines
The platform offers features like customizable task boards, timeline views, and progress trackers. Students can create workflows tailored to their needs, assign tasks to themselves or others, and monitor project milestones in real-time. Additional features, such as color-coded labels and priority markers, help users stay organized and focused.

Using Monday.com for Student Projects
Students can use Monday.com to manage academic projects by setting up boards for individual or group assignments. The platform is particularly useful for tracking deadlines, breaking down complex tasks, and visualizing project workflows. For group projects, students can assign tasks to specific members, track completion rates, and share updates in one central location. Learn more and get started at Monday.com.

Trello

Trello is a visually oriented project management tool that uses boards, lists, and cards to help users organize tasks. Like Monday.com, it is not an NC State enterprise tool, but students can easily create an account using their school email. Trello’s drag-and-drop interface makes it simple to manage personal and group projects.

Visual Task Boards and Organizational Strategies
Trello’s task boards allow users to organize projects into lists such as “To-Do,” “In Progress,” and “Done.” Each task is represented as a card, which can include descriptions, due dates, checklists, attachments, and comments. Students can customize these boards to fit their specific workflows and priorities.

How Trello Can Enhance Student Projects
Trello is a great tool for breaking down assignments into smaller tasks, creating checklists for tracking progress, and prioritizing deadlines. For group projects, it offers collaboration features like task commenting and real-time updates, ensuring that team members stay on the same page. Explore Trello’s features and sign up at Trello.

Accessibility Features and Recommendations

When introducing students to digital tools for task and project management, it’s essential to consider accessibility to ensure all learners can fully engage with the resources. Tools like Google Workspace, Google Calendar, Google Tasks, Monday.com, and Trello are equipped with features to support users with diverse needs, including screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, and high-contrast options.

When presenting these tools to students, emphasize the availability of features like keyboard shortcuts, customizable layouts, and assistive technology compatibility. Encourage students to explore each tool’s accessibility settings and integrate them into their workflow. For instance, students with visual impairments can benefit from screen reader support in Google Calendar, while those with mobility challenges might use keyboard-only navigation in Trello. Additionally, instructors should model the use of accessible features, such as turning on live captions during presentations or ensuring project management boards are clear and well-organized.

Providing direct links to the accessibility statements for each tool ensures students have the resources they need to customize their learning experience. Be sure to review the accessibility of all tools before recommending tools to your students:

Resources

Google. (n.d.). Google Calendar. Retrieved from https://calendar.google.com

Google. (n.d.). Google Tasks. Retrieved from https://tasks.google.com

Google. (n.d.). Google Workspace. Retrieved from https://workspace.google.com

Trello. (n.d.). Trello: Manage any project. Retrieved from https://trello.com

Monday.com. (n.d.). Monday.com: Work OS. Retrieved from https://monday.com

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