Formative Assessment

Debbie Owens Kathy Strunk

AMSP AMSP
University of Kentucky University of Tennessee

1
 Traffic Light

• Read the Formative Assessment Target Goals posted

on the easel sheets throughout the room.

• Place a green dot on the left side of the easel sheet

for any goals that you feel you have already mastered.

• Place a yellow dot on the left side of the easel sheet

for any goals that you know something about but have
not yet mastered.

• Place a red dot on the left side of the easel sheet for
any goals that you have either never heard of or that
you know virtually nothing about.
2
 Session Target Goals
Participants will:
• articulate the differences between formative &
summative assessment

• recognize the impact of effective formative

assessment

• describe and provide examples of how to

effectively use the five keys to quality
assessment

• use three guiding questions to ensure that

students are informed and involved in the
assessment process 3
 Why assess students?

•To gather evidence of student

learning

•To inform instruction

•To motivate students and

increase student achievement

4
 Brainstorm
Formative Assessment Strategies

• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________

5
How do we assess students?

Formative Assessment

Summative Assessment

6
 Card Sort
• Use the large label cards to create
the headings for two columns - one for
“Formative Assessment” and one for
“Summative Assessment”

• Sort the cards and place each one

under the most appropriate heading in
your chart

7
8
Assessment for Learning

Assessment of Learning

9
Teachers, students and parents are Teachers, principals, supervisors,
the primary users program planners, and policy makers
are the primary users
During learning After learning

Used to provide information on what Used to certify student competence

and how to improve achievement

Used by teachers to identify and Used to rank and sort students

respond to student needs

Purpose: improve learning Purpose: document achievement of

standards
Primary motivator: belief that Primary motivator: threat of
success is achievable punishment, promise of reward

Continuous Periodic
Examples: peer assessment, using Examples: final exams, placement
rubrics with students, descriptive tests, state assessments, unit tests
feedback

10
 Shifts in Assessment
From assessing to To assessing to learn
learn what students what students
do not know understand

From using results to To using results to

calculate grades inform instruction

From end-of-term To students engaged in

assessments by ongoing assessment of
teachers their work and others

From judgmental To descriptive

feedback that may feedback that
harm student empowers and
motivation motivates students

11
 Why these shifts in
assessment?

A change in the mission of schools:

– A shift from a focus on sorting and
ranking students to a focus on leaving
no child behind.

A strong research base:

– Evidence of the substantial impact on
student achievement

12
The 5 Keys to Quality
Assessment

Identify the Purpose

Clarify the Targets

Use a Sound Design

Provide Effective Feedback

Involve Students

13
Assessment Key #1:
Identify the Purpose

Who will use it?

How will it be used?

14
 Assessment Key #2:
Clarify the Targets

Deconstruct the standards.

Are they clear to the students?

15
What do I want them to know?

16
Assessment Key #3:
Use Sound Design
Method?
Sample?
Quality?
Bias?

17
18
 Assessment Key #4:
Provide Effective Feedback
The best feedback is:
Descriptive
Specific
Relevant
Timely
Empowering

19
Assessment Key #5:
Involve Students
Peer Assessment
Self Assessment
Goal Setting

20
 PART ONE
Engage
KWL chart, Brainstorming, Concept map,
Questionnaire, Prediction

Explore
“Think, pair, share”,
Drawing Activity

Explain
Exit ticket, Make a model,
Letter to the teacher

21
 Magnet Activity

• Work in groups of 4

• Three people are students and

will complete the activity.

• One person (the teacher) is

responsible for assessing student
learning.
22
 Magnet Activity Instructions
• Agree on the purpose and the targets - record them on an easel sheet.
• Set up the materials as shown.

• Take a minute to plan your actions.

• Determine the relationship between the number of weights and the number of
magnets.
• Record assessment feedback on easel sheet.

23
 Teachers

• What do your students know?

• How did you find out what they

know?

• What’s your evidence?

24
 Students
• What did you learn?

• How do you know?

• What feedback would you like

from the teacher?

25
Round Robin Reporting

26
27
Demonstration

28
The Formative Assessment
Framework

29
 Seven Strategies of Formative Assessment
Where am I going? 1. Provide a clear and understandable
version of the learning targets.

2. Use examples of strong and weak

work.

Where am I now? 3. Offer regular descriptive feedback.

4. Teach students to self-assess and

set goals.

How can I close the 5. Design lessons to focus on one

gap? aspect of quality at a time.
6. Teach students focused revision.

7. Engage students in self-reflection

and let them document and share
their learning. 30
Mark each example of descriptive feedback with a D and each
example of evaluative feedback with an E. If you believe it is neither,
mark it with an X.

Good job!

Sloppy work

How did you reach that conclusion? Where’s your data

Proficient

Your calculations are accurate. Take another look at
appropriate units for density.

C-

Excellent!

You need to try harder next time. You can do it!

The students at station two are ready for the lab, they
have their books cleared and their safety glasses on.

You need to label the x-axis, include units with your
label, choose an appropriate scale, show the points you
plotted, and give the graph a title.

81%
31
32
Mark each example of descriptive feedback with a D and each
example of evaluative feedback with an E. If you believe it is neither,
mark it with an X.

E Good job!

E Sloppy work

D How did you reach that conclusion? Where’s your data?

E Proficient
E 
D Your calculations are accurate. Take another look at
appropriate units for density.

E C-

E Excellent!

E You need to try harder next time. You can do it!

D The students at station two are ready for the lab, they
have their books cleared and their safety glasses on.
E  

X You need to label the x-axis, include units with your

label, choose an appropriate scale, show the points you
plotted, and give the graph a title.

E or D 81% 33
I did these really well:
1.
2.

I could have:
1.
2.

Next time I need to focus on:

1.
2.

34
 PART TWO

Elaborate / Extend
Application problem, Design activity,
Data table and graph

Evaluate
Poster, Comparison essay, Presentation,
Self-evaluation, Constructed response

35
 Temperature Activity

• Discuss Activity
• Clarify Targets
• Prediction
• Demonstration
• Feedback
• Corrections

36
You did these really well:
1.
2.

You could have:

1.
2.

Next time you need to focus on:

1.
2.

37
 Think/Pair/Share
• How effective were you at giving
feedback?

• What could you do differently to

make it more effective?

38
 Five Keys
to
Quality
Assessment

Identify Clarify Use Provide

Involve
the the Sound Effective
Students
Purpose Targets Design Feedback

How Do I
Where Am Where Am
Close the
I Going? I Now?
Gap?

39
40
Does the density of a solid object change when you change
its shape or size?

Prediction:

Object Dimensions Mass Volume Density

(sketch) (cm) (g) (cm³) (g/cm³)

Conclusion:
41
 COMPARING CUBES

Sofia has two solid cubes made of the

same material. One cube is very large,
and the other cube is very small. Put an
X next to all the statements you think
are true about the two cubes.

___ A. The larger cube has more mass than the smaller cube.
___ B. The larger cube has less mass than the smaller cube.
___ C. The volume of the larger cube is greater than the volume of the
smaller cube.
___ D. The volume of the larger cube is less than the volume of the smaller
cube.
___ E. The density of the larger cube is greater than the density of the
smaller cube.
___ F. The density of the larger cube is less than the density of the smaller
cube.
___ G. The larger cube is more likely to float in water than the smaller
cube.
___ H. The larger cube is less likely to float in water than the smaller cube.

Explain your thinking. Describe the “rule” or reasoning you used to compare
the cubes. 42
 Complete the Drawing

Summative
Assessment

5 Keys
to
Quality
Assessment

? ? ? ? ?

3
Guiding ? ? ?
Questions

43
 Traffic
Drawing Light
Card Sort
Completion

Assessment
Brainstorm
Probe

Reflection Round Robin

Survey Reporting

Strategies

Concept Map Predictions

Think
Performance
Pair
Assessment
Share
Highlight /
Peer
Green Light
Assessment Self Corrections
Assessment

44
 ??? to ask before
assessing
• Why am I assessing?
• What do I want my students to know?
• How will I find out if they know it?
• How will I communicate the results of
my assessment?
• Who should be involved?
45
 In Other Words …
• Clarify your purpose.
• Define your target goals.
• Design your plan - what tool(s) will
I use to determine if students
have met the goals?
• Provide feedback to encourage
learning (Do No Harm!)
• Involve students in their own
assessment. 46
 SELF-EVALUATION
• Follow the directions on the handout
“Determining Where I am Now”
• Record your Ratings for #1-9 on the
separate answer sheet
• Wait for directions from a facilitator

Sample Student Surveys are included

in your notebook

47
 Traffic Light

• Read the Formative Assessment Target Goals posted

on the easel sheets throughout the room.

• Place a green dot on the right side of the easel sheet

for any goals that you feel you have already mastered.

• Place a yellow dot on the right side of the easel sheet

for any goals that you know something about but have
not yet mastered.

• Place a red dot on the right side of the easel sheet

for any goals that you have either never heard of or
that you know virtually nothing about.
48