Formative Assessment Practices Research Articles

POSSIBILITY OF INTEGRATION OF SUMMATIVE AND FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN TEACHING MATHEMATICS

The factor that ensures the effectiveness of educational assessment is the integration of its formative and summative assessment practices. The article presents the results of a survey of school teachers, the analysis of which confirms the need for teachers in detailed, theoretically substantiated recommendations that will improve the effectiveness of assessment activities. The purpose of this article is to present the author's point of view on the possibility of integrating the practices of summative and formative assessment of teaching mathematics to schoolchildren. Along with methodological recommendations reflecting possible ways of integrating formative and summative assessment, the article shows an example of the active participation of students in the development of descriptors. It is especially noted that the summative assessment should not be perceived by either the student or the teacher as the end of a certain stage of education, it should become the basis for formative assessment.

Formative Assessment of Physical Education Teachers and Self-Concept Level of Primary School Children

This study aimed to analyse the relationship between the formative assessment (FA) of Physical Education teachers and the level of self-concept of primary school students. In this descriptive cross-sectional study of 122 schoolchildren, self-concept was assessed using the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale and the teacher's formative assessment practices through the teacher performance questionnaire associated with formative assessment practices whose scores were validated. The analysis of bivariate correlations showed that higher values in proactive FA correlated with lower values in physical self-concept and higher values in behavioural, intellectual, and social self-concept (p < .05, for all) and interactive FA with higher values in social self-concept (p < .05). The simple analysis of variance detected statistically significant differences in proactive and interactive FA (p < .05, for all) in favour of those who had a higher level of self-concept. In turn, the linear regression test indicated that higher values in retroactive FA are associated with higher values in social self-concept (p < .039) and, that higher values in proactive FA are associated with lower values in physical self-concept (p < .023). It can be concluded that the FA of the Physical Education teacher can be a differentiating element in the development of self-concept.

Effect of No-Zero Grading Policy on Achievement, Self-Efficacy and Attitude towards Physics in Secondary Schools in Benue North-East Senatorial District, Benue State

In recent years, the debate surrounding grading policies in secondary education has gained substantial momentum, as educators and researchers explore innovative approaches to foster student learning, motivation, and overall academic success. One of the noteworthy evolutions in this discourse is the adoption of a “No-Zero Grading Policy” in various educational settings. The study investigated the effect of No-Zero Grading Policy on students’ achievement, self-efficacy and attitudes towards Physics in secondary schools in Benue North-East Senatorial District, Benue State, Nigeria. Three specific objectives with corresponding research questions guided the study and three hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted a pretest post-test control group design. The population for this study was 14,822 Senior Secondary Two Students (SS II) in the 119 public secondary schools in Benue North-East Senatorial District of Benue State. The sample size for the study was 216 Senior Secondary Two (SSII) Physics Students in four schools. The sample size was selected using simple random and purposive sampling techniques. Three instruments, namely, Physics Achievement Test (PAT), Physics Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ) and Physics Attitude Scale (PAS) were used for data collection. The instruments were validated by experts and the reliability was established using Kudar-Richardson Formular (KR20) and Cronbch Alpha method. Reliability coefficients of 0.86, 0.77 and 0.72 for PAT, PAEQ and PAS were obtained. Data collected were analyzed using Means and Standard Deviation to answer the research questions and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Findings of the study revealed that the mean achievement scores of secondary school students in Physics exposed to No-Zero Grading Policy and those exposed to Zero-Grading Policy significantly differ in favor of the experimental group. The findings also revealed that the mean self-efficacy and attitude ratings of secondary school students in Physics exposed to No-Zero Grading Policy and those exposed to Zero-Grading Policy significantly differ in favour of the experimental group. The study concluded that making the No-Zero Grading an integral part of classroom formative assessment practice will not only improve students’ achievement in Physics but also their self-efficacy and attitudes towards the study of Physics. Recommendations were made that that for improved academic achievement in Physics, the No-Zero Grading Policy should be implemented in schools and Physics teachers should be encouraged to adopt the policy; the No-Zero Grading Policy should be implemented in schools for enhancing the self-efficacy level of students in Physics, reason being that the policy has raised confidence in students that they can do well in Physics and there is need for school administrators to stress the importance of No-Zero Grading policy particularly in formative assessment practice and continuously monitor its implementation among Physics classroom teachers in order to enhance students’ attitudes towards Physics.

When a machine detects student reasoning: a review of machine learning-based formative assessment of mechanistic reasoning

In chemistry, reasoning about the underlying mechanisms of observed phenomena lies at the core of scientific practices. The process of uncovering, analyzing, and interpreting mechanisms for explanations and predictions requires a specific kind of reasoning: mechanistic reasoning. Several frameworks have already been developed that capture the aspects of mechanistic reasoning to support its formative assessment. However, evaluating mechanistic reasoning in students’ open responses is a time- and resource-intense, complex, and challenging task when performed by hand. Emerging technologies like machine learning (ML) can automate and advance the formative assessment of mechanistic reasoning. Due to its usefulness, ML has already been applied to assess mechanistic reasoning in several research projects. This review focuses on 20 studies dealing with ML in chemistry education research capturing mechanistic reasoning. We developed a six-category framework based on the evidence-centered design (ECD) approach to evaluate these studies in terms of pedagogical purpose, rubric design, construct assessment, validation approaches, prompt structure, and sample heterogeneity. Contemporary effective practices of ML-based formative assessment of mechanistic reasoning in chemistry education are emphasized to guide future projects by these practices and to overcome challenges. Ultimately, we conclude that ML has advanced replicating, automating, and scaling human scoring, while it has not yet transformed the quality of evidence drawn from formative assessments.

Importance of online self-assisted assessments for medical students in knowledge acquisition.

Assessment is an important aspect of teaching and learning in medical education. Regular early assessments create scope for improvement in students, and this digital era technology should be utilized for ease of administration. E-assessment involves the usage of technology to create, deliver, collect, and provide feedback to the students. The present study aims to understand the importance of online assessment and the preference of students with difficulties faced and the methods of improvement. This study was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted among fifty-six undergraduate medical students, where forty-five objective structured practical questions (OSPEs) were administered to the students in anatomy. After the assessment, feedback was collected in the form of a fifteen-item questionnaire. The responses were graded using a five-point Likert scale and represented in the graphs using Microsoft Excel software. The feedback collected has the following responses. The prosected specimen pictures used in the exam, with pointers and markers, were clear and oriented for which 77% agreed, the pointers and markers were clear and easy to identify for which 79% agreed, and 66% preferred the traditional method of assessment over the online mode of assessment and 48% were neutral on the question of whether E-assessment improves knowledge and skills. Most of the students preferred the traditional method of assessment over the online method of assessment. Traditional methods of teaching or assessment cannot be replaced by online methods, but technology can be utilized as an addition to regular mode to improve the outcome. Regular early formative assessments help teachers to understand areas of deficiency and help students in improvement. E-assessment can be adapted for formative assessment and regular practice because of their ease of administering and providing feedback simultaneously.

The Practice of Formative Assessment in College English Teaching

With the increasing demand for a higher level of college English teaching, a proper way of evaluation, which is a vital part for the whole process of teaching, is in great need. As an effective method of teaching evaluation, formative assessment has attract great concern among professors and scholars and is now extensively being applied to college English teaching, contributing to the effective implementation of college English teaching evaluation. Based on the present situation of college English teaching, this paper analyzes the challenges and problems that college English teaching is facing and tries to put forward some practical paths to integrate formative assessment into present college English teaching.

Формирующее оценивание как компонент внутренних систем оценки качества образования

The article presents the results of research on the practices of formative assessment in modern conditions of development of internal systems for assessing the quality of education. The relevance of the article is related to the consideration of formative assessment in conjunction with the problem of subjectivity as a special result of learning. The purpose of the article is to present formative assessment in terms of its impact on the cognitive competence of students and the promotion of educational content to interdisciplinary technologies. The author's scientific and theoretical conclusions are confirmed by the results of observation of a group of high school students in Moscow schools, for whom the principles and techniques of formative assessment were tested. The empirical experience of involving students in the educational discourse of formative assessment is represented by quantitative values processed using the statistical model χ2. The novelty of the research consists in clarifying the concept of formative assessment and substantiating the corresponding component of internal systems for assessing the quality of General education as a priority direction in the implementation of General education programs. The practical significance of the study is related to the confirmation of the effectiveness of formative assessment for the cognitive development of students.

Formative Assessment Conceptions and Practices of Junior High School Social Studies Teachers in the Techiman Municipality of Ghana

The study investigated formative assessment conceptions and practices among the teachers of social studies in the Techiman Municipality of the Bono East Region of Ghana. The research was undertaken with the view of finding answers and making suggestions that could help improve the formative assessment practices specifically in social studies. A census was conducted in the eighty-four (84) public Junior High Schools in the Techiman Municipality in the Bono East Region. All the ninety-five (95) Social Studies teachers in the public Junior High Schools in the Municipality were selected for the study. A 50-item questionnaire including 2 open-ended questions was developed for the teachers. The data collected were analysed by using frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviation. The study revealed that, the teachers had correct conception of formative assessment and saw its relevance in the classroom, however, their assessment practices were not formative enough. The teachers’ assessment practices were influenced by external factors. It is recommended that pressures such as demand for continuous assessment marks to grade students ought to be reduced to allow the teachers practice assessment as professionals.

Assessment of ESP students’ learning outcomes in a digital learning environment

Problem statement. The description of a pedagogic research in the field of formative assessment theory and practice is presented. The goal of the study is to define pedagogic and methodological conditions for effective evaluation of ESP students’ learning outcomes in a digital learning environment. Methodology. On the basis of key theoretical provisions of formative assessment and interdisciplinary approaches LSPCLIL, a complete set of criteria-based ESP evaluation tasks and assessment schemes were developed for Business English course delivered in the groups of BMSTU masters students majoring in economics. The approach to grading that correlates with BMSTU point-rating system was substantiated. The comparative analysis of modern platforms allowed to select the domestic service pruff.me, which was used as a ground for a digital assessment space (DAS), a part of BMSTU digital learning environment needed for implementing formative assessment of ESP learning outcomes. Results. The developed evaluation materials integrated in the DAS were tested by ESP students in a distant format. Conclusion. The research showed that creating DAS as an essential component of a university digital learning environment can contribute to effective assessment of ESP students’ competence-based learning outcomes provided that underlying methodology is taken into account and formative assessment technology is implemented in full volume.

Feedback and formative assessment in Competency by Design The experience of residents and supervisors within a urology training program.

Competency by Design (CBD) is a form of competency-based medical education implemented in Canadian urology programs since 2018. Regular, multimethod assessments and formative feedback via Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) are the cornerstones of CBD. Personalized and regular feedback are the top perceived benefits of CBD by both residents and supervisors; however, evidence shows that in practice, constant feedback-seeking is burdensome, and increased quantity of feedback does not equal increased quality. The experience of CBD implementation has not yet been studied in surgical programs. Our aim was to examine how supervisors and residents have experienced the integration of formative assessment and feedback since the implementation of CBD in a surgical training program. Using data from focus groups, a qualitative phenomenological analysis based on the experiences of the residents and supervisors in a urology residency program was performed. Residents and supervisors felt that CBD allowed for better tracking of resident performance and increased quantity of feedback; however, increased workload, delayed completion of EPA assessments, lack of direct observation in non-surgical activities, variable supervisor guidance, and lack of understanding of CBD were cited as barriers to providing proper feedback and formative assessment. The participants experienced a lukewarm transition in feedback and formative assessment practices with CBD. As with every process of change, these growing pains may eventually result in meaningful practice improvements and incorporation of a CBD culture into everyday learning activities.

Life Sciences teachers’ practices of informal formative assessment in inquiry-based teaching

ABSTRACT This study explored five Life Sciences teachers’ practices of formative assessment when enacting an inquiry-based pedagogy. The ESRU cycle (teacher Elicits a response; the Student responds; the teacher Recognises the student’s response; and then Uses the information collected to support student learning) was used as a coding system in the analysis of speaking turns involving exchanges between the teachers and learners. By tracking the strategies teachers used in terms of ESRU cycles, we were able to capture differences in assessment practices across the five teachers during inquiry science lessons. The findings of the analysis revealed patterns of teacher–learner interaction described as IRE (Initiation, Response, Evaluation) that are suggestive of ‘incomplete’ ESRU cycles. In the assessment conversations, there was absence of the crucial step of Using information about student learning in order to support students in the construction of knowledge. The findings of his study signal the need for professional development in supporting teachers in their formative assessment practices. This development can be in the form of workshops that focus on strategies for formative assessment such as those that are encapsulated in the ESRU framework. It is also recommended that best practices in formative assessment be modelled to teachers.

Formative assessment strategies for students' conceptions—The potential of learning analytics

AbstractFormative assessment is considered to be helpful in students' learning support and teaching design. Following Aufschnaiter's and Alonzo's framework, formative assessment practices of teachers can be subdivided into three practices: eliciting evidence, interpreting evidence and responding. Since students' conceptions are judged to be important for meaningful learning across disciplines, teachers are required to assess their students' conceptions. The focus of this article lies on the discussion of learning analytics for supporting the assessment of students' conceptions in class. The existing and potential contributions of learning analytics are discussed related to the named formative assessment framework in order to enhance the teachers' options to consider individual students' conceptions. We refer to findings from biology and computer science education on existing assessment tools and identify limitations and potentials with respect to the assessment of students' conceptions. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Students' conceptions are considered to be important for learning processes, but interpreting evidence for learning with respect to students' conceptions is challenging for teachers. Assessment tools have been developed in different educational domains for teaching practice. Techniques from artificial intelligence and machine learning have been applied for automated assessment of specific aspects of learning. What does the paper add Findings on existing assessment tools from two educational domains are summarised and limitations with respect to assessment of students' conceptions are identified. Relevent data that needs to be analysed for insights into students' conceptions is identified from an educational perspective. Potential contributions of learning analytics to support the challenging task to elicit students' conceptions are discussed. Implications for practice and/or policy Learning analytics can enhance the eliciting of students' conceptions. Based on the analysis of existing works, further exploration and developments of analysis techniques for unstructured text and multimodal data are desirable to support the eliciting of students' conceptions.

Towards a Framework to Support the Implementation of Digital Formative Assessment in Higher Education

This paper proposes a framework to support the use of digital formative assessment in higher education. The framework is informed by key principles and approaches underpinning effective formative assessment and, more specifically, by approaches to formative assessment that leverage the functionalities of technology. The overall aim is to provide a structured conceptualisation of digital formative assessment that supports the planning of lectures and other teaching and learning activities in higher education classrooms. At the heart of the framework, as presented in this paper, is a 12-cell grid comprising 4 key formative assessment strategies (sharing learning intentions and success criteria, questioning and discussion, feedback, and peer- and self-assessment) crossed with 3 functionalities of technology (sending and displaying, processing and analysing, and interactive environments). These functionalities of technologies are used as the basis to integrate digital tools into formative assessment for effective teaching and learning processes. For each cell in the grid, an exemplary digital formative assessment practice is described. This paper highlights the framework’s potential for enhancing the practice of digital formative assessment and its significance in light of the ongoing digital transformation. This paper concludes with suggesting a programme of research that might be undertaken to evaluate its utility and impact in higher education contexts.

Filling Gap in EFL Teachers’ Informal Formative Assessment: Insights from Higher Education Level

This study presents the informal formative assessment practice embedded in teacher-students interaction in daily teaching activities. Although many previous studies claimed as informal formative assessment, the adequate information on how informal formative assessment integrated in EFL classroom interaction in the higher education level was not acquired yet. A case study design on ESRU Model was used with 59 Indonesian EFL teachers in higher education level. Online Survey questionnaire was used to determine participants to be involved for further investigation in classroom observation and interview. This research highlighted clarifying learning goal as prerequisite activity before conducting the ESRU model activities. Interestingly, of the four activities in ESRU model, the use information gained was potentially support students’ learning compared to other three activities; Elicits information, the student responds, and the teacher recognizes students’ responses. Hence, this study can contribute insight for the teachers to reflect their own teaching practice.

More is not always better: the nonlinear relationship between formative assessment strategies and reading achievement

ABSTRACT This study investigated the relationship between formative assessment and reading achievement in Hong Kong, a Confucian Heritage Culture (CHC) society. 4,837 Hong Kong students were surveyed in a nine-item questionnaire that was used as indicator variable of formative assessment strategies. The study used multi-group structural equation modelling (MG-SEM) to examine the effects of formative assessment strategies on reading achievement across low-, medium-, and high-achievers controlling for gender and social economic status (SES) effects. The result showed that after controlling for SES and gender effects, there was significant effect of formative assessment strategies with low- and medium-reading achievers but not with high-reading achievers. Implications are drawn to inform formative assessment research and practice relevant to students’ reading achievement in CHC societies and other educational contexts.

TEACHERS' AND LEARNERS' PERCEPTIONS OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT PRACTICE IN ENHANCING LEARNING IN EFL COURSES

Assessment is inevitable in education. Formative assessment plays a crucial role in enhancing students' learning and performance. With the growing understanding of the role of formative assessment, many countries in the world have considered formative assessment as the primary mechanism of assessment reform in education. In Cambodia, a shift in focus to formative assessment as its assessment reform aimed at enhancing students has been noticed. The present study employed a quantitative method to examine teachers' and learners' perceptions of formative assessment practices in enhancing learning in Cambodian EFL courses. The participants of this study were 30 teachers (3 females) and 50 students ( 22 males). They are teaching and learning English as a Foreign Language. The results revealed that the respondents have a more positive perception of formative assessment. It highlighted a better understanding of formative assessment concepts, purposes, and development strategies. The results also indicated that participants' perceptions about formative assessment enhance learning in EFL courses through various roles of feedback. The results showed that respondents perceived that it is demanded of assessors or teachers to have higher knowledge about formative assessment to assess students in formative ways. Time-consuming was also perceived as a challenge in formative assessment practice. The findings also revealed that participants were more likely to use formative assessment in their EFL courses in the future. Future studies with many participants, mixed method approaches, and cross-disciplinary research in Cambodia should be conducted in either private or public HEIs.

Online Formative Assessment Practices Among Academics of Tertiary Education in Sokoto State, Nigeria

Purpose: This study examines the effect of two main factors, that is, lack of knowledge of ICT, and the availability of ICT facilities such as hardware, software, and internet access, which identified to be the common barriers towards practicing online formative assessment. Theoretical framework: Many educational institutions have been urged to adopt online learning due to the development of communications and digital device technology as well as the COVID-19 pandemic that ravaged the world in the previous two years. The shift from offline to online mode affects how formative assessment should be conducted during teaching and learning. The lack of knowledge of information and communication technology (ICT) and ICT facilities are prevalent in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach: This study employed a survey design to examine online assessment feedback practice as well as factors contributing to the practices among 256 academics in one tertiary education in Sokoto. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used. Findings: Online formative assessment feedback practice is at low level due to lack of knowledge of software applications and facilities. Research, Practical & Social implications: Government needs to invest more on educational technology by providing adequate ICT facilities in tertiary institutions in Sokoto, as well as offering suitable trainings on ICT literacy for academics. Originality/value: Online formative assessment contributes to enhancement in educational attainment and efficiency in learning and teaching.

The Role of Senior Leader Team on The Formative Assessment Practices among Primary School Teachers in Petaling

Formative assessment has become a most discussed topic when many countries recognized the importance of assessment for learning in enhancing students’ holistic development. Most of the times, teachers are not quite clear with the differences between assessment of learning and assessment for learning. In Malaysia, teachers still feel uncomfortable with the implementation of formative assessment compared to summative assessment due to the heavy workload to prepare the tests by themselves. Hence, this study was conducted to examine the role of leaders and how the leader’s role was associated with teachers’ formative assessment practices in schools. An online questionnaire was administered to a total of 198 randomly selected teachers from 25 public primary schools in Petaling. A descriptive correlational research design was employed to identify the relationship between these two variables. The findings indicated that there was a moderately strong linear relationship between the role of the leaders and teachers’ formative assessment practices in schools. The study also revealed that the role of leaders has significantly predicted the teachers’ formative assessment practices with 20.4% of contribution. The findings showed that teachers’ practices in formative assessment process still far from much desired, and leaders still need to further enhance their implementation of formative assessment in school. Overall, this study has its contribution for the enrichment of the body of knowledge of formative assessment and provided insights for the improvement of the implementation of formative assessment in schools.

Investigating high school science teachers’ readiness for implementing formative assessment practices

Formative assessment is used to link teaching and learning in the classroom. It provides feedback on ways to improve student performance by matching educational goals with instructional practices. The purpose of this study was to investigate Saudi science teachers’ readiness to implement formative assessment. The participants included 11 male high school science teachers. This study involved a qualitative, phenomenological research design. Science teachers were shown examples of teachers using formative assessment techniques in the form of vignettes and were asked if they have used or will use such techniques in their classrooms. The findings provide information on the readiness of science teachers to adopt formative assessment. Results show that only three had used formative assessment, indicating that teachers need more preparation for using formative assessment. The findings of this study are helpful for Arabic language countries and countries that tend to have rigid curricula.

Technological, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) of Teachers and Their Formative assessment practices in Social Studies Lessons in The Junior High Schools in Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem (K.E.E.A) Municipality of Ghana

The purpose of the study was to examine technological pedagogical content knowledge of teachers and their formative assessment practices in Social Studies lessons in the Junior High Schools in the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem (K.E.E.A) Municipality of Ghana. With a mixed method approach, the study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The population for the study included all Social Studies teachers at the public junior high schools in the in the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem Municipality. Purposive sampling technique was used to select all the seventy-four (74) public Junior High Schools and the Social Studies teachers for the study. The purposive sampling technique was used to sample the respondents because they constitute expert knowledge in the subject area and having the same characteristics. The two main instruments used to gather data for the study were questionnaire and observation. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study indicated that the assessment practices of teachers during Social Studies lessons were on the average. There was disparity between theory and practice as far as the dictates of the profile dimensions are concerned. Teachers mostly assess the cognitive aspect of the child with little attention to the affective domain. The study also concluded that there was a significant positive relationship between TPACK of teachers and their formative assessment practices at 0.05 level of significance. It is recommended that Ministry of Education, National Teaching Council, Ghana Education Service should organize professional development workshop for teachers on their formative classroom assessment practices in Social Studies lessons. It is also recommended that, in order to ensure effective formative assessment practices, Ghana Education Service should collaborate with Colleges of Education and Universities training teachers to develop appropriate TPACK for teachers to improve on their formative assessment practices in the classroom.