Fostering High Frequency Formative Assessment

1. Formative assessment occurs during the learning process and it emplasizes the quality of student work, gives advice instead of grades, and provides feedback and motivation.

2. The central purpose of formative assessment is student learning. A formative assessment just helps the teacher see what and if the student is learning. This then helps the teacher identify what they can do to help the students or what may need changed in the future.

3. The teacher may set objectives in order for the students to be able to see the specific goals that the teacher wants them to accomplish. Providing feedback is another great research based strategy practiced in formative assessment.

4. A rubric may be used during a lesson so that the students know what is expected and then used at the end (or summatively) so that the students can be graded on the lesson.

5. When reading with my students in my placement, when they come across a word they should know because it is one of their high frequency words that they have been learning, I don't tell them the word right away. I let them sit and think about it because most of the time they know it but they just want me to give up and do the work for them but when we come across a word that was introduced earlier that week, I give them a minute, ask them if they remember it from the day before, and then go over it with them.

6. When giving feedback, a teacher must also idenitfy strengths as well as weaknesses. A student does not like to look at a paper all marked up in that dreaded red ink. It makes their hearts sink a little bit. I know I have felt this way many times! First identify the strengths and then write the weaknesses in a more positive way.

7. High quality assessment can help the students gain a sense of confidence and control in their work. Also, they are more likely to transfer learning from one class to another because they understand the given area thoroughly and can relate new learning to what they already know.

8. Its a challenge to distinguish between high quality formative assessment and assessment that is under-conceptualized or not fully developed. It is also a challenge to get parents to see that high quality assessments are good and not just the teachers being lazy.