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Characteristics of summative assessment
The importance of giving feedback to learners
Key elements of formative assessment and how it meets its principal purpose
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Recommended: Characteristics of summative assessment
Formative assessments are imperative to making adjustments when teaching, while summative assessments give educators information on how effective the curriculum is. However these assessments would be unavailing if data is not collected, analyzed, and presented correctly. Data plays an essential role in teaching, as it allows educators to apply the information they collect into their classroom, but not all teachers collect data or provide feedback effectively. However, after completing the class readings and receiving feedback from my peers, I now feel confident that I have developed an effective feedback and data plan for my assessments. The first step I took when creating a plan for my data was to determine how I would go about collecting …show more content…
For students, knowing how they can improve on their work is an incredible asset, as it allows them to understand that they can control their own advancement in their education. Additionally, However, feedback is more than simply returning student work. When student work is given back, some students will focus on only the grade they received rather than the feedback presented on the paper, and because of this, feedback should always be shared with to the class in a way that is engaging (Moss, 2009). When developing my feedback and data plan, I took this into account as I have decided to present student data to the class. For example, when it comes to my postcard assignment, I avoid giving feedback to my students by handing back each students graded postcard. Instead, I chose to make brief comments about each student’s postcard by returning their work the next day with a response postcard written by me. This response postcard will point out what they have done well in their writing, as well as what they could improve on, and by doing this I can ensure that my students are comprehending the feedback I provide, rather than focusing on their
Elwood, J. (2006). Formative assessment: possibilities, boundaries and limitations. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 215-232, doi:10.1080/09695940600708653
The district is now making all teachers use an assessment tool called iReady. It is a website that assesses students in math and reading. They are first tested on a kindergarten through fifth grade range to find out what they know. Then the program takes that score and determines the right level for the child and they are tested again on the level. Once all students have been assessed the program orders the students from highest to lowest and by average grade level skill they are on: early second grade, middle second grade, late second grade or any other grade. The teacher uses those scores to create her reading groups, math groups and the students she will give extra assistance to. They haven’t officially established how many times and when they will do this iReady assessment but for now they are doing it once a week for forty five minutes. The test also flags if they spent too long or too little time on a question. The ones that spent less than 15 seconds per problem are to go back and do the assessment again.
...teacher see what their students know, wonder about and techniques they use to make sense of the world and the classroom. This information can then be used by the teacher to differentiate instruction. The teacher can recover material, present alternative activities that students are more receptive in order to foster student responsiveness and engagement. In Page Keeley’s article An Introduction to Formative Assessment Classroom Techniques (FACTs) she articulates the purpose and power of a classroom that frequently uses formative assessments by saying, “it organizes the entire classroom around learning and informs ways teachers can provide more effective learning experiences based on how their own” (10). Formative assessments foster a supportive classroom community where students and even teacher thoughts are encouraged and in turn shape the future of that classroom.
Assessments have always been a tool for teachers to assess mastery and for a long time it was just to provide a grade and enter it into the grade book or report card. Through resources in and out of the course, there has been a breath of new life into the research on how to use assessments. They take many forms and fall within the summative or formative assessment category. Sloan (2016) addresses how formative assessments has traditionally been used by teachers to modify instruction, but when we focus on a classroom that is learner-centered “it becomes assessment for learning as opposed to assessment of learning” (slide 4). The fact is, the students are the ones that should be and are the ones using the data we collect through assessments, since it is our way of providing feedback in order
Regular use of formative assessment improves student learning as instruction can be adjusted based on students’ progress and teachers are able to modify instructions to cater to students’ individual needs (Black & Wiliam, 2010; Taylor-Cox, & Oberdorf, 2013). Various forms of informal and formal formative assessment methods are conducted as learning takes place, continuously through teacher observations, questioning through individual interactions, group discussions and open-ended tasks (McMillan, 2011). tests can tell us a lot about students and be used to inform and guide teaching, rather than simply to determine grades. Teachers can learn a lot from test results if they analyse the data generated to inform their teaching and learning programs (Perso, 2009). However, high stakes tests may result in students becoming stressed, leading to misreading questions, careless working and incomplete answers (Booker et al., 2010).
However, a formative assessment is ongoing and is used to check for students’ understanding throughout a lesson. Both work samples “matched learning objectives” and I was able to identify the students’ strength and weaknesses. I was also able to “analyze assessment data to understand patterns and gaps in learning” to guide my future instructions. In the word problem assessment, I recognized where the student was struggling and gave “effective and descriptive feedback” to address the area that she needs work in.
The best students realize that the returned papers and exams are a golden opportunity to take advantage of: these are the times when the professor is giving one-to-one, customized feedback on their assignments. Iinstead of tossing away graded papers and exams, sticking them in the back of your notebook, or forgetting to pick them up, these students read over the comments, and redo the missed problems, in the hopes to learn where they went wrong and how to do better the next time. Successful students are non-defensive and sincerely have an open frame of mind. This can be hard for most regular college students, but somehow, the successful ones’ manage to do
We all know how assessment data can be useful for teachers to improve and validate instruction. For James Popham, not all assessment data can be used this way. In his article “The Seductive Allure of Data,” he warns that there are wrong kinds of data to be using and gives examples of what instructionally useful tests and data are. He also gives and defines five attributes that he says make a test instructionally useful. The given attributes were significance, teachability, describability, reportability, and nonintrusiveness.
“By promoting the benefits of frequent formative assessment and enabling teachers to draw on assessment data to target their assistance, these principals played a key role in improving teaching and learning” (Stiggins & Dyke, 2008). The Instructional Leadership team will use formal and informal opportunities to create a dialogue about the school vision and strategies implemented to achieve the
In the 21st century, successful professional learning communities establish clear goals that guide all aspects of the school community. These goals must focus on student achievement; therefore, collecting and analyzing data from assessments in schools is one crucial requirement that all teachers must execute to increase students’ academic achievement. “Data is data that you are sort of gathering everyday based on what kids are actually doing and saying in your classroom and the products they are creating” (Laureate Education, 2008s). As educators, we must understand that in order for students to improve in their learnings, we need to be aware of their strengths and weaknesses. For this reason, teachers need to implement different type of assessments
For more than 20 years, formative assessment has been highly researched and even accredited as a critical part of a teacher’s pedagogy. In the last decade it (formative assessment has become something of a buzzword and in some cases a mandate in k-12 schools across the country. Formative assessment can be defined as a part of the instructional process intended to gather information and provide feedback for both students and teachers that allow for needed
Assessments Matter to Instruction So often in classroom environments teachers ask the age old question, “Does anyone have any questions” and so often the same response is given, “Silence”, which in turn the teacher moves on to the next topic. “Classrooms are in constant motion”, therefore, if teachers do not routinely and thoroughly check for clear understanding from their students, then not only are they not in sync with the student’s learning but also some students may be left behind unknowingly (Newman, 2013). Likewise, summative assessments are what most teachers are engrossed upon right now, which leaves many racing through curriculums. However, formative assessments are effective ways for checking for understanding.
“Teachers help students use assessment as a window into their own growth and identify as learners so, they develop the power and agency necessary to take charge of their learning (Tomlinson, 2010). Summative assessments are a mirror to student thinking. Summative assessments help teachers and students see a trajectory of their learning. Teachers can use them to identify which students are ready for other tasks; and which students need more time to develop specific concepts. The assessment that we administered asked students to answer a series of questions using information from a graph. It also prompted them to create a graph using the results of survey for our field trip. This assessment combined constructed response questions with a meaningful task. “The paper and pencil multiple choice test is not the only way to assess learning. It is a limited way to gain insight into what some students know and are able to do”(Berliner, 2010, p.113).
Through assessment students and teachers are able to determine the level of mastery a student has achieved with standards taught. Both formative and summative assessment should be purposeful and targeted to gain the most accurate data to drive further instruction (Ainsworth, 2010). While this syllabus does a good job of identifying the need for both formal and informal assessments, the way in which this is communicated does not provide enough detail for understanding. Simply listing assessment types does not give any insight into how these assessments fit in the learning process of this course. While some of the assessments mentioned could be common assessments chosen by the school or district to gain insight into the effectiveness of instruction, the inclusion of authentic assessments is most beneficial to students and demonstrates learning in a context closer to that of a work environment (Rovai, 2004). Unfortunately, this particular course, according to this syllabus, relies heavily on quizzes and traditional tests and essays to form the bulk of assessment opportunities. While other activities, such as formative assessments, journaling and discussions are mentioned as possible avenues for scoring, they are given a very low percentage of the overall grade. This shows that they are not valued for their ability to show progression and mastery. If this is indeed the case, this puts the students as a
As teachers, we have to monitor the progress our students make each day, week, quarter and year. Classroom assessments are one of the most crucial educational tools for teachers. When assessments are properly developed and interpreted, they can help teachers better understand their students learning progress and needs, by providing the resources to collect evidence that indicates what information their students know and what skills they can perform. Assessments help teachers to not only identify and monitor learners’ strengths, weaknesses, learning and progress but also help them to better plan and conduct instruction. For these reasons, ongoing classroom assessment is the glue that binds teaching and learning together and allows educators to monitor their efficacy and student learning.