Working in FE

When you are applying for teaching posts, you should demonstrate not only that you are familiar with different theories of learning, but also that you understand the implications of them for teaching.

Gaining high quality on-the-job experience is vital for students as it enables them to enhance and progress their skills and conform to a constantly developing environment.

Findings from recent Ofsted research (2018) have found that teachers are highly stressed and anxious. Stress in teaching is not new, indeed research into teacher stress dates back to the 1970s. More recently, issues of teacher recruitment and retention are associated with stress.

An article in TES reported on a survey carried out in 2018 which found that almost two-thirds of students in FE feel very or extremely stressed about exams

As with any other resource, its use needs to be based on how it can enhance the learning of your students. Technology can be used to personalise learning as well as support collaborative learning.

Questioning is one of the most important skills in teaching, but there is evidence to suggest that learners at all levels find many teachers are poor users of questions.

Learning styles theories are now largely discredited, mainly because of the lack of any empirical evidence to support them but also because of the dangers of labelling students as specific ‘types’ of learners.

Differentiation is integral to the principle of inclusion – it is about ensuring that all learners can access the curriculum. However, whilst a principled intention of education, it is a complex and often confusing term. The pursuit of accommodating the differences, and resultant needs, of every ...

We have all engaged in reflection, whether as part of our teacher training, or as part of our ongoing professional development once in the job.

Successive government policy reforms over the past two decades have changed the conditions in which teachers teach. These conditions have increased workload pressure on teachers and is a major contributing factor to the current recruitment and retention crisis in the profession.

As teachers we know how much is at stake for young people, so what can we do to help learners cope with the stress and the feelings of pressure that they may be experiencing?

I am responsible for the day to day running of the training restaurant in a large FE college.

There is so much software readily and freely available now that we really have no excuse to avoid it in our teaching.

A classroom can be a scary place. Walking into a new classroom, with a new teacher and a new group of peers can be daunting for even a confident individual. Equally, I always get butterflies before meeting a new group of students.

Dr Chris Dows continue to champion CBHE and its unique aspects in his latest article reflecting on this year's TEF results.

Scheduled for launch by May 2018, the AoC Scholarship Project framework will consist of a comprehensive suite of materials for HE providers of any size or maturity. All well and good, but why would an FEC sign up to it?

Art lecturer and potter, Bruce Chivers, gives us a sneak peak in to a typical day teaching Art in FE and finding a balance between teaching and being an artist yourself.

As the new term gets underway, it is well worth making yourself a few “new academic year resolutions” in order to get off to a good start.

If you want to teach in Further Education (FE) but have no formal teaching qualifications, don’t give up. FE is one of the few education sectors where you can gain your qualifications after you get your first teaching job.