Setting up CENTURY in the Further Education classroom

Our very own Taryn Davison, a former primary school teacher and now a member of our Customer Success team, went back into the classroom last year to see what it was like to integrate CENTURY into her teaching practice. She wrote up her findings in a series of blogs entitled ‘Confessions of a CENTURY Teacher’. 

Her insights, especially around how to train learners to use the platform effectively, have been real game changers for how we talk to our schools and colleges for preparing their learners to get the most out of the CENTURY. In this post, Lily McIntosh, one of our Senior Account Managers, writes how FE colleges can make sure colleges have the best set-up to use CENTURY.

Implementing CENTURY in a further education setting can significantly enhance personalised learning, improve student engagement, and provide educators with valuable insights through data-driven teaching. Here’s how to make the most of CENTURY with your learners.

Classroom Resources

To effectively use CENTURY in a further education classroom, consider the following resources:

• 1-2-1 Devices (including mobiles): Ideal for individual work, but if devices are limited, CENTURY can still be used effectively for group activities, targeted interventions, or as a teaching tool.
• Headphones: Essential for students engaging with video content without distractions.
• Calculator: Particularly useful for learners working on maths-based nuggets.
• Notebook or Digital Note-Taking Tools: Encourage students to take notes whilst watching the learning material and answering the nugget questions
• QR Code Poster: Enables easy login to CENTURY when using mobile devices.
• Spelling Codes: If students are sitting their IA and don’t have access to headphones for the spelling questions. Please contact your Account Manager for a copy of the codes. 

Using CENTURY for Teaching

To integrate CENTURY effectively into your teaching practice, consider the following approaches:

• Book Computer Rooms on Rotation: If 1-2-1 devices aren’t available in the classroom, schedule sessions in computer labs to ensure all students can access CENTURY.
• Complete Diagnostics Early: Ensure students complete diagnostics at the start of the academic year to establish a baseline for their learning. 
• Set Specific Nuggets: Align CENTURY nuggets with your curriculum by using Assignments to set specific nuggets as homework or for independent study. 
• Use CENTURY as a Teaching Tool: Leverage CENTURY’s videos and slides from your My Courses tab to introduce or reinforce key concepts during lessons.
• My Courses tab: Complete nuggets as a class using hands down questioning. You can then assign learners additional topic nuggets for independent study or homework.
• Recommended Path for Personalised Learning: Encourage students to work through their personalised learning pathways during tutorial sessions or independent study time.

Using CENTURY for Intervention

CENTURY’s data can help educators identify and support students who need additional assistance.

• Targeted Interventions: Use diagnostic data to pinpoint specific areas where your class requires extra support and plan your lessons accordingly.
• Live Interventions: Utilise real-time nugget performance data to address misconceptions and provide timely feedback. The Interventions graph allows you to track students who need additional stretch as well as those who need to put in more effort. 

Using CENTURY for Assessment

CENTURY provides valuable insights to support teacher assessment and allows learners to track their own progress via their Student Dashboard. 

• Reset Diagnostics in January: Assess improvement and adapt students’ learning pathways in preparation for exams.
• Formative Assessments: Assign specific nuggets to students to gauge understanding and inform your teaching.
• Baseline Knowledge: Set nuggets as homework before introducing new topics to gauge prior knowledge.
• Plenary Activities: Use nugget questions for whole-class discussions to reinforce learning at the end of a session and to help prepare for the following lesson.

Takeaways

By integrating some of the suggestions into your teaching practice, FE colleges can use CENTURY effectively to enhance student learning experiences, enhance personalised learning experiences, and provide valuable insights to drive student progress.

Look out for our next post on ‘Teaching good learning habits on CENTURY in FE’. To learn more about how to embed CENTURY in your college, book a demo here. If you are already an existing CENTURY customer, get in touch with your Account Manager or email fesupport@century.tech