Voices from the Classroom: Exploring the Secondary School Teachers’ Perception Towards Formative Assessment Practices

Abstract

The present study focuses on exploring the teacher’s perception about formative assessment practices at secondary school. For this study investigator purposively selected 39 participants for study form 23 secondary schools of Mayurbhanj district. The study employed semi-structured interviews schedule for data collection. Collected data were analysed by content analysis and presented by thick descriptions. The study revealed that most of teachers have been four categories of formative assessment strategies have been used by the teachers such as Periodic Paper-Pencil Test, Multiple Assessment Practice, Portfolio Assessment and Subject Enrichment Activities. Further study found most of the teachers were satisfy with the infrastructural facilities of the school. Most of the teachers perceive that students are benefited in their achievements, actively participating in classroom discussion, aroused their interest for better understanding of the concept, able to know their strengths and weakness, fearless for exam and get opportunity to learn again by formative assessment. However most of them not satisfy with in-service training and parent supports for conducting formative assessment practices. Most of the teachers face problems like; absence of remedial teaching, student’s absenteeism in test or classroom, managing time to complete course, language barrier, low economic background of students, and lack of in-service training to teachers. It is suggested that, short term courses, workshops, seminars and, other necessary in-service training activities should be organized by the concern authority for professional development of teachers in formative assessment strategies. Therefore teachers will effectively implement the formative assessment practices in secondary schools.