Formative Assessments

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Formative Assessments
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Pretest
Turn to page 24 in your booklet. Take a moment
and complete the pre-test.
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Why do we assess students?

• Motivate students
• Inform instruction
• Pass ticket to next class/grade
• Notice gaps in student learning
• Identify instructional challenges
• Objectively record grades

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Analogy Driving a car

• New drivers license process
• Go to the DMV.
• You have to drive a car on five different
  occasions.
• Each time you drive you receive a grade.
• At the end of the course you receive a final
  grade.
• If it isnt an A, you dont get a license.
• Read the following situation..

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• Leslie started out in the car with no knowledge
  of what a blinker is, which pedal to push, or how
  to turn her your lights on (F). By the third
  lesson she is doing much better (C). On the
  fifth lesson she finally got it right. (A).
• F C A
• If I average these grades together will she a
  license?

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NO
Is this an accurate process? Why or why not?

• Think about how this applies to the mathematical
  processes in your class.

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How do I get an accurate picture of learning?
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Balancing assessments for students

• Formative
• not usually grade accountable
• Student involvement
• Part of instruction
• Forms direction of daily instruction
• Assess teaching

• Summative
• Classroom Tests
• State Tests
• District Tests
• High accountability
• Assessment of students

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Ideas about formative assessment

• Occur while still time for action before
  grading occurs.
• Allows teachers to adapt instruction
  immediately while learning is still in progress.
• Allows students to know exactly where they
  dont understand.
• Part of daily instruction

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Teacher Actions

• Monitoring of student work.
• Monitoring classroom (group) discussion.
• Good questioning.
• Give opportunities for students to work (not
  just take notes/listen to lecture/watch teacher
• work problems).

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Student Actions

• Working in pairs, groups, or individually.
• Sharing work/explaining work to others.
• Answering
• In formative assessments, students should be able
  to answer the following three questions about
  their learning
• 1) Where am I going? (What do I need to know
  about this particular SPI?)
• 2) Where am I right now? (What part do I
  understand? What do I not know?)
• 3) How do I close this gap? (What do I need and
  what does my teacher need to do to help
  me?)/asking questions

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Application

• Checks for understanding are imbedded in the new
  curriculum.
• These checks tell what the student should be
  producing in his/her individual work or
  discussion.

Take a look at some examples..
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Self and peer assessments

• Students can reflect on work.
• Students can set goals based on assessments.
• With peer evaluation students see each other as
  resources for understanding.

Invite students to discuss their thinking about
problems with remainders in pairs or small
groups, then ask a representative to share the
thinking with the larger group (sometimes called
think-pair-share). 
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Student record keeping

• Helps students
• better understand their own learning as evidenced
  by their classroom work.
• to see where they started and the progress they
  are making toward the learning goal. Beyond the
  grade.

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• 0506.1.8 Use patterns, models, and relationships
  as contexts for writing inequalities and simple
  equations.
• 0506.3.2 Use variables appropriately to represent
  numbers whose values are not yet known.
• 0506.3.3 Solve single-step linear inequalities
  and graph solutions on a number line.

Have students write their understanding of
vocabulary or concepts before and after
instruction.  Have students complete a few
problems or questions at the end of instruction
and check answers.   
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Criteria and goal setting

• Do this with students. Similar to creating
  classroom norms.
• Set clear criteria to define quality work.
• Use exemplars of student work to help them
  understand where they are, and where they need to
  be.

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Observations

• Gather evidence of learning.
• Should inform instructional planning.
• Could be recorded and shared with students.

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• 0406.4.20 Draw lines of symmetry in 2-
  dimensional figures.
• Present several possible answers to a question,
  then ask students to vote on them. 

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• 0506.4.2 Find the area of a convex polygon by
  decomposing it into triangles/rectangles.

• Interview students individually or in groups
  about their thinking as they solve problems. 

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Questioning strategies

• Embedded in lesson/unit planning.
• Raise the degree and depth of understanding.
• Engage students in classroom dialogue that both
  uncovers and expands learning.
• Help students ask better questions

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• 0506.1.5 Solve problems in more than one way and
  explain why one process may be more effective
  than another.

• How would you describe the problem in your own
  words?
• What do you know that is not stated in the
  problem?
• What about putting things in order?
• What ideas have we learned before that helped you
  solve this problem?
• What if you started with instead of --?
• Would it help to draw a picture? Create a
  diagram? Make a talble?

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Pre-test Answers

• FORMATIVE

• SUMMATIVE

• Quizzes
• Essays
• Diagnostic Tests
• Lab Reports
• Rubric for a Project

• Quizzes
• Final Exams
• ACT or SAT
• Essays
• Lab Reports
• Gateway Exams

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Card Sort Answers

• SUMMATIVE

• FORMATIVE

• Teachers, students, parents are primary users
• During learning
• Used to provide information on what and how to
  improve achievement
• Used by teachers to identify and respond to
  student needs
• Purpose improve learning
• Primary motivator belief that success is
  achievable
• Continuous
• Examples peer assessment, using rubrics with
  students, descriptive feedback

• Teachers, principals, supervisors, program
  planners, and policy makers are the primary users
  
• After learning
• Used to certify student competence
• Used to rank and sort students
• Purpose document achievement of standards
• Primary motivator threat of punishment, promise
  of reward
• Periodic
• Examples final exams, placement tests, state
  assessments, unit tests

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References

• Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B.,
  Wiliam, D. (2003) Assessment for Learning
  Putting it into practice. Berkshire, England
  Open University Press.
• Boston, Carol (2002). The concept of formative
  assessment. Practical Assessment, Research
  Evaluation, 8(9). Retrieved May 11, 2009 from
  http//PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v8n9 .
• Butler, D.L. Winnie, P.H. (1995) Feedback and
  self-regulated l earning a theoretical
  synthesis. Review of Educational Research,
  65(3), 245-281.
• Delivering professional development online.
  http/www.pbs.org/ teacherline.
• Sadler, D.R. (1998) Formative assessment
  revisiting the territory. Assessment in
  Education, 5(1), 77-84.