Teacher Practical Guidance:

Formative Assessments

Category: Assessment & Planning

Rank Order

60

Effect Size

0.39

Achievement Gain %

15

How-To Strategies

Steps to Create Formative Assessments:  Perplexity (2024)

1. Set Clear Learning Objectives:

  • Define specific and measurable goals aligned with the curriculum.

 

  • Ensure that assessments directly relate to these objectives to measure progress effectively.

 

2. Diversify Assessment Methods:

  • Incorporate a variety of assessment techniques to cater to different learning styles. This can include:

 

  • Quizzes and Polls: Quick checks for understanding.

 

  • Exit Tickets: Questions at the end of a lesson to assess comprehension.

 

  •  Think-Pair-Share: Students discuss concepts with peers before sharing with the class.

 

  •  Utilize Technology: Use digital tools and platforms (like Google Forms or specialized assessment software) to create interactive quizzes and gather real-time data on student performance.

 

3. Encourage Self-Assessment:

  • Include opportunities for students to reflect on their own learning through self-assessments or journals, prompting them to identify strengths and areas for improvement.

 

4. Provide Timely Feedback:

  • Offer constructive feedback immediately after assessments to guide students on how to improve, reinforcing learning objectives. Reeves (2007)

 

 

Examples of Formative Assessment Strategies: Perplexity (2024)

  • Quizzes: Short, low-stakes quizzes can identify misconceptions and gauge mastery of content.

 

  • Jigsaw Activities: Students research different subtopics and then come together to share their findings, promoting collaborative learning.

 

  • Exit Tickets: Students write down what they learned or questions they still have at the end of a lesson.

 

  • Peer Review: Students evaluate each other’s work based on clear criteria, fostering critical thinking and collaboration.

 

  • Reflection Journals: Regular entries where students summarize their learning can help them internalize concepts and track their growth over time. Heritage (2013)

 

Why Formative Assessments?

  • to inform teachers on individual student needs and strengths

 

  • to inform teachers of next steps

 

  • to inform teachers where students are struggling

 

  • Key for determining if curriculum is taught with fidelity

 

  • Helps teachers in trying new strategies and looking for help

 

  • Provides timely and consistent feedback

 

  • Can lead to greater student achievement and changes in teacher behavior. Moss (2009)

 

 

Common Formative Assessment Mistakes:

  • Use formative assessments developed by publishers, test makers, coaches and principals – and not the teachers

 

  • Principal uses formative assessments for teacher evaluation

 

  • Formative assessments that measure too many things. Stiggins (2005)

 

How-To Resources

Link – ARTICLE (AI for Education) Create formative assessment with AI

 

Link – ARTICLE (Edmentum) Designing successful formative assessments

 

Link – ARTICLE (Newsela) 15 formative assessment examples

 

Link – ARTICLE (EducWeek) Creating Rubrics

 

Link – ARTICLES (EducWeek) Grading & Assessment

 

Link – ARTICLE (NWEA) 27 Formative Assessment Strategies

 

Link – ARTICLE (OK) 60 Formative assessment strategies

 

Link – ARTICLE (We Grow) 50 Formative Assessment Strategies

 

Link – WEBSITE (UbD) Understanding by Design

 

Link – GUIDE (Fullan) Deep Learning (sample assessments)

 

Link – POWERPOINT (SURN) Designing formative assessments

 

Link – GUIDE (Hanover Research Brief) Formative Assessment

 

Link – GUIDE (Stiggins) The perfect assessment system

 

Link – GUIDE (Structural Learning) Formative Assessment

 

Link – VIDEO (Stiggins) Formative Assessment

 

Link – VIDEO (You Tube) 5 Formative Assessment strategies

References

Bennett, R. E. (2011). Formative Assessment: A Critical Review. Assess. Educ. Principles, Pol. Pract. 18 (1), 5–25.

 

Black, P., & William, D. (2003). ‘In praise of educational research’: Formative assessment. British Educational Research Journal, 29(5), 623-637.

 

Chappuis, S., & Stiggins, R. J. (2002). Classroom assessment for learning. Educational Leadership, 60(1), 40-43.

 

DeLuca, C., Klinger, D., Pyper, J., & Woods, J. (2015). Instructional rounds as a professional learning model for systemic implementation of Assessment for Learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 22(1), 122–139. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0969594X.2014.967168

 

DeLuca, C., Klinger, D., Pyper, J., & Woods, J. (2015). Instructional rounds as a professional learning model for systemic implementation of Assessment for Learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 22(1), 122–139.

 

Dunn, K., & Mulvenson, S. (2009). A Critical Review of Research on Formative Assessment: The Limited Scientific Evidence of the Impact of Formative Assessment in Education. Practical Assessment Research & Evaluation, 14(7).

 

Elmore, R. et al (2009). Instructional rounds in education: A network approach to improving teaching and learning. Harvard Press. Link

 

Fuch, L. S., & Fuch, D. (1986). Effects of systematic formative evaluation: A meta-analysis. Exceptional Children, 53, 199-208.

 

Fullan, M., et al (2017). New pedagogies for deep learning. Link

 

Heritage, M. (2013). Formative assessment practice: A process of inquiry and action. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

 

Kingston & Nash (2011). Formative assessment: A meta-analysis and a call for research. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice.

 

Marsh CJ. A critical analysis of the use of formative assessment in schools. Educational research for policy and practice. 2007;6(1):25–29.

 

McMillan, J. H., Venable, J. C., & Varier, D. (2013). Studies of the effect of formative assessment on student achievement: So much more is needed. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 18(2), 1–15.

 

Moss, C. M., & Brookhart, S. M. (2009). Advancing formative assessment in every classroom: A guide for instructional leaders. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

 

Perplexity (2024). *Perplexity.ai* (AI chatbot). https: //www.perplexity.ai/

 

Pinchok N, Brandt WC. Connecting formative assessment research to practice: An introductory guide for educators. Learning point; 2009.

 

Reeves, D. (2015) Elements of grading: A guide to effective practice. Solution Tree.

 

Reeves, D. (2007). Ahead of the curve: The power of assessment to transform teaching and learning. Solution Tree

 

Sornson, B. (2012). Fanatically Formative: Successful learning during the crucial K-3 years. Corwin

 

Stiggins, R. J. (2005). From formative assessment to assessment FOR learning: A path to success in standards-based schools. Phi Delta Kappan, 87(4).

 

Stiggins, R. J. (2014b). Improve assessment literacy outside of school too. Phi Delta Kappan, 96(2), 67–72.

 

Stiggins, R. J. (2014c). Revolutionize assessment: Empower students, inspire learning. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

 

Stiggins, R. J., & Chappuis, J. (2017). An introduction to student-involved assessment FOR learning (7th ed.). Columbus, OH: Pearson Education.

 

Stiggins, R. J., & Conklin, N. (1992). In teachers’ hands: Investigating the practice of classroom assessment. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.

 

Tahir, M., Tariq, H., Mubashira, K., & Rabbia, A. (2012). Impact of formative assessment on academic achievement of secondary school students. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(17)

 

Wiggins, G. (2205). Understanding by Design. ASCD

 

Wiliam, D. (2011). Embedded formative assessment. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

 

Xuan, Cheung, & Sun. (2022). The effectiveness of formative assessment for enhancing reading achievement in K-12 classrooms: A meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology.

Formative Assessment

DEFINITION

This involves providing instruction or feedback during the lesson rather than at the end (summative) of a lesson or series of lessons. As Bob Stake noted, when the cook tastes the soup, it is formative evaluation; when the guests taste the soup, it is summative evaluation. It can also be a way for teachers to determine if the strategies they are using to teach are effective or need, changed, or a need to reteach.

Formative assessments are essential tools in education that help teachers gauge student understanding and inform instruction. Formative assessments are frequent, interactive assessments of student progress and understanding to identify learning needs and adjust teaching appropriately. Formative assessment is not a specific test; it is a process that uses multiple indicators of student learning. It is not something that can be purchased, it is a skill educators must master. Its purpose is to improve professional practice and increase student learning. link

DATA

  • 8 meta-analysis reviews

  • 331 research studies

  • 234,000 students in studies

  • 4 Confidence level. Hattie (2023) p. 333

 

 

QUOTES

“When the cook tastes the soup, it is formative; when the guests taste the soup, it is summative.” John Hattie (2023)

“Formative assessment is NOT a set of techniques you adopt or add. Formative assessment is a philosophy of teaching that holds that the purpose of assessing is to inform learning, not merely audit it.” Moss & Brookhart, 2009, p. 14

 

“When a teacher teaches, no matter how well he or she might design a lesson, what a child learns is unpredictable. Children do not always learn what we teach. That is why the most important assessment does not happen at the end of learning – it happens during the learning, when there is still time to do something with the information”  Dylan William (2011)

 

“The more you teach without finding out who understands the concepts and who doesn’t, the greater the likelihood that only already-proficient students will succeed” Wiggins (2005)

 

“For teachers, getting annual test scores several months after taking the test… sends a message: ‘Here’s the data that would have helped you improve your teaching based on the needs of these students if you would have had it in time.”  Doug Reeves (2007)

 

 

“A formative assessment does not look backwards but focuses on the present of where the student is right now; it looks to the future.” Wiggins (2005)

 

 

“Classroom assessment typically encourages superficial and rote learning, concentrating on recall of isolated details, usually items of knowledge students soon forget…teachers do not generally review the assessment questions that they use and do not discuss them critically with peers, so there is little reflection on what is being assessed.” Black & Wiliam (2003)