Formative Assessment

The more I read about formative assessment the more I realize it is the most important assessment practice.  It is the most powerful means to improve student learning and therefore must be part of the instructional process.  Formative assessment is a dynamic on-going process that provides the information needed to adjust teaching and learning while they are happening.  These adjustments help to ensure students achieve learning goals within a set time frame.  The more information we have about students, the clearer the picture we have about achievement and/or where the gaps occur.

Student involvement is key component of formative assessment.  If students are not involved in the assessment process, formative assessment is not practice to its full effectiveness.  Students need to be involved both as assessors of their own learning and as resources to other students.  Formative assessments communicate clear and specific learning goals, and allow students to become self-reflective.  When students provide feedback to each other, they identify the learning intentions through someone else’s work.  When students use feedback from the teacher to learn how to self-assess and set goals, they increase ownership of their own success.  Formative assessment requires students to become responsible for their own learning.  According to Wiliam, “the most effective learners are self-regulating.” We certainly want students to become owners of their own learning.