Students’ thoughts on their CENTURY lessons

CENTURY is an AI-powered online learning platform that personalises learning and provides teachers with actionable insights to support their teaching. Taryn Davison, a former primary teacher now on our Customer Success team, leads training on how best to use the platform. Wanting to see how to better incorporate our data insights, she taught a CENTURY maths lesson weekly for half a term to a Year 4 class at St. John’s C of E Primary School, Abram. Part of Quest Academy Trust, St. John’s has been using CENTURY for the past six years. This blog series shares her findings.

One of my key learnings from my time in the classroom was the importance of showing the students how to use CENTURY effectively. Students need clear guidance on how to maximise their learning experience with the platform, something we hadn’t previously gone into depth with when we train new schools. Each lesson, I focused on different aspects to help students engage more meaningfully with the content both online and offline. The chart shows how the students perceived they learned best:

By signalling to students effective ways to learn on CENTURY, they value these elements. When I asked students at the beginning of the second lesson how they thought CENTURY helped them to learn, they told me that answering questions helped them to learn. However, after repeatedly reinforcing the importance of videos and reattempts, their perception shifted, as evidenced by a class survey conducted after the unit of work.

Optimal number of nuggets

Another key takeaway from my experience was understanding the optimal amount of work to assign in a lesson. My survey revealed that most students felt they could handle about two nuggets before their attention waned, equating to approximately 30 minutes of focused work. However, based on classroom observations, I found that students were more engaged when they were only required to complete one nugget during class time (about 20 minutes).

For younger students, I recommend limiting assignments to no more than two or three nuggets at a time, with the possibility of more for those who need additional challenges. This approach also has implications for homework assignments, suggesting that less can indeed be more when it comes to maintaining student engagement.

Student feedback on learning methods

This chart asked students which part(s) of the lessons they enjoyed and which part(s) helped them. Interestingly, while students acknowledged the value of the learning they received through CENTURY, they didn’t necessarily enjoy it as much as other parts of the lesson. Group learning and manipulatives were more enjoyable, but students didn’t perceive them as being as beneficial to their learning as the direct instructional components on CENTURY.

This feedback is crucial for understanding how to balance different teaching methods in the classroom. While hands-on activities are enjoyable and important, structured and independent learning via CENTURY is also valued by students for its effectiveness.

Takeaways

• Structured guidance is essential: Students need to be shown how to use any technology effectively. Without clear instructions and expectations, they are unlikely to engage with the platform in a meaningful way. This means planning how you want them to interact with the content, whether it’s rewatching videos, reattempting nuggets, or participating in interactive elements.
• Incentivise engagement: Incentives can be a powerful motivator. Whether it’s something small like CENTURY-branded chocolates or another reward, encouraging students to engage fully with the platform can lead to better outcomes.
• Limit nugget assignments: Don’t overwhelm students with too many nuggets at once. Focusing on fewer nuggets allows for deeper engagement and better comprehension, which is especially important for younger students.
• Plan CENTURY use as part of a broader strategy: CENTURY is a valuable tool, but it’s not a substitute for teaching. It should be integrated into your overall teaching strategy, with careful consideration of how it complements other classroom activities.

By following these strategies, you can ensure that CENTURY becomes a powerful tool in your teaching arsenal, helping you to deliver targeted, effective instruction that meets the needs of all your students.

Tune in next week for the final instalment and to read Taryn’s reflections on returning to the classroom using CENTURY. Click here to book a demo of CENTURY.