1. Race to the Top~November Session
Formative Assessment

2. Understanding of individual students Types of assessment
In-depth understanding of individual students

3. What is formative assessment?
Sharing learning intentions and criteria for success.
Crafting discussions, questions, and learning tasks.
Providing feedback that moves learning forward.
Activation students as the owners of their own learning.
Encouraging students to be instructional resources for one another.

4. Formative assessment model
Where are you now? (assessment goal)
Where are you trying to go? (instructional goal)
How can you get there? (what is needed to reach instructional goal)

5. Soup analogy
When the cook tastes the soup, that’s formative; when the guests taste the soup, that’s summative.

6. Formative assessment process
Before beginning a lesson, unit, or course:
What are the standards the students need to know?
What curricular tools will be used?
What summative assessments will measure student learning at the end?
What formative assessment strategies will be used to gauge learning during the lesson, unit, or course?
What formative strategies will be used to help students learn?

7. Assessment as instructional feedback
FROM:
Teach
Test
Grade
Move On
TO:
Assess
Assess
Assess
Teach
Adjust instruction

8. Assessment for learning
Sharing Learning Expectations
Questioning
Feedback
Self-assessment
Peer Assessment
Using evidence of learning to adapt instruction to meet students’ immediate learning needs
Five Key Strategies
Sharing exemplars
30-second share
Share rubrics
ABCDE cards
Colleague-generated questions
Think/Pair/Share
Comment-only marking
Plus, minus, equals
Find and correct errors
Traffic lighting
Learning logs
Students reflections
Peer assessment with rubric
Homework helpboard

9. Descriptive Feedback Questioning Tactics Success Criteria
Independent Learning (Students Taking Responsibility)
Self Assessment Modeling by Teacher
Success Criteria
Questioning Tactics
Descriptive Feedback
Self Reflection
Peer partners
Clear understanding of intended learning by educator
Climate for learning in classroom

10. Success criteria
Is the culture in your classroom one where students feel safe to ask questions or insert discussion?
What do you expect from your students?
Do they know what you expect?
Are you monitoring their progress on in-class assignments?
Have you shared your rubric for performance based assessments?

11. Questioning Techniques
Formative or summative?
Closed or open?
Can engage students in dialogue to extend learning
Can be used to check for learning
Wait time
***See handout

12. Using feedback to enhance achievement
“The most powerful single modification that enhances achievement is feedback. The simplest prescription for improving education must be ‘dollops of feedback’”
John Hattie (1992)

13. Descriptive feedback
Evaluative feedback: Tells learners how they compare to others or provides a judgment summarizing the quality of the learning. Descriptive feedback: Specific information in the form of written comments or conversations that helps the learner understand what he or she needs to do to improve.

14. Descriptive feedback Identify what is done correctly.
Acknowledging Student Success
Guiding future thinking
Identify what is done correctly.
Describe an aspect of quality present in the work.
Point out effective use of strategy or process.
Identify a (need for) correction.
Describe an aspect of quality needing work.
Point out a problem with strategy or process.
Offer a reminder.
Make a specific suggestion.
Ask a question.
Descriptive feedback

15. Self Reflection
“Formative assessment requires that pupils have a central part in it……unless they come to understand their strengths and weaknesses, and how they might deal with them, they will not make progress.” Harlen & James, 1997
See handout on Student Self-Assessment

16. Peer partners
Using the “Chalk Talk” protocol, participants at each table will work together to answer this question:
“What are the characteristics of a good evidence
gathering technique or tool?”

17. Questions????????????