Formative Assessment

Formative Assessment is a process used by teachers and students during instruction that provides feedback to adjust ongoing teaching and learning to improve students' achievement of intended instructional outcomes.  (CCSSO, 2008)  By using evidence from formative assessment processes, teachers can quickly make decisions to adjust instruction to meet student needs while the learning is still in progress.  Students benefit from this because they can use the results to make decisions to adjust and improve their own learning. During the formative assessment process, feedback from the teacher should be descriptive, telling the student what was done well and what steps to take to do better.  Research shows descriptive feedback to be the most significant instructional strategy to move students forward in their learning. 

 

Examples of Formative Assessment

 

Formative Assessment Links:

Black and Wiliam:  Inside the Black Box: Raising Standards through Classroom Assessment

http://weaeducation.typepad.co.uk/files/blackbox-1.pdf

Formative Assessment and Next-Generation Assessment Systems:  Are We Losing an Opportunity? - Heritage
http://www.edweek.org/media/formative_assessment_next_generation_heritage.pdf

Formative Assessment:  An Enabler of Learning - Heritage
http://www.cse.ucla.edu/products/misc/bettermagazineheritage.pdf

W. James Popham on Formative and Summative Assessment (YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K8qbI_FzGE

Formative Assessment - A Process, Not a Test - Popham

http://216.78.200.159/Documents/RandD/Education%20Week/Formative%20Assessment%C2%AD%20-%20Popham.pdf

Formative and Summative Assessments in the Classroom

http://www.nmsa.org/Publications/WebExclusive/Assessment/tabid/1120/Default.aspx

The Concept of Formative Assessment

http://www.ericdigests.org/2003-3/concept.htm

The Difference Between Formative & Summative Assessments

http://www.ehow.com/about_6171219_difference-between-formative-summative-assessments.html

Linking Classroom Assessment with Student Learning

http://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/TOEFL_Institutional_Testing_Program/ELLM2002.pdf

 

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