


It's no surprise that getting and staying organized is one of the biggest challenges young people face in and out of school. A student arriving without pens, paper or books is a common occurrence. Disorganization accounts for missing assignments, incomplete homework, and a lack of preparation that often leads to a student not experiencing success relative to their abilities.
One teacher gathered data around an assignment given to their junior high school students. The student's mission was simply to complete a task begun in class. After providing three days of in-class time to work on the assignment and after assuring that each student understood the requirements and had achieved the necessary outcomes to complete the assignment, the teacher requested the task be completed for homework. Sixty percent of the students did not complete the assignment in the given time period, even after repeated reminders.
Finally, the teacher, who had a phone in their office, made each of the students who were non-complying phone home and explain to their parents why the assignment hadn't been completed. Here's a few of the results: