Technology-enhanced formative assessment
Updated: Apr 21, 2021
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What is assessment for learning?
Assessment for learning (AFL) is an approach to teaching and learning that creates feedback which is then used to improve students’ performance. Students become more involved in the learning process and from this gain confidence in what they are expected to learn and to what standard.
One way of thinking about AFL is that it aims to ‘close the gap’ between a learner’s current situation and where they want to be in their learning and achievement. Skilled teachers plan tasks which help learners to do this.
AFL involves students becoming more active in their learning and starting to ‘think like a teacher’. They think more actively about where they are now, where they are going and how to get there.
AFL and the relationship with formative and summative assessment
Traditionally, AFL has been closely associated with formative assessment because practices such as questioning and providing feedback help ‘form’ or ‘shape’ student learning.
This differs from summative assessment which typically is an attempt to measure student attainment at the end of a period of learning.
In AFL, it is the purpose of assessment, rather than the nature of it, that is important.
There are five main processes that take place in assessment for learning:
Questioning enables a student, with the help of their teacher, to find out what level they are at.
The teacher provides feedback to each student about how to improve their learning.
Students understand what successful work looks like for each task they are doing.
Students become more independent in their learning, taking part in peer assessment and self-assessment (micro-teaching, peer feedback, reflection, further improvement in our class)
Summative assessments (e.g. the student’s exam or portfolio submission) are also used formatively to help them improve.
To sum up ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓
Assessment for learning is assessment that takes place while the learner is still engaged in the learning process. It’s what we also call formative assessment.
Assessment for learning (formative assessment) operates in opposition to summative assessment, which as the term implies, is assessment which sums up what the learner has just achieved (e.g., qualifications, exams, tests, etc.).
So, a really important element to assessment for learning, is that it enables the learner to get feedback while they’re still engaged in the learning process.
Six misconceptions about AFL
1. 'Assessment and testing are the same thing’ There are lots of different ways to assess a learner. This includes formal testing. However, a teacher will use a variety of formal and informal assessment activities throughout the learning process. Any activity which checks how well a student is learning is assessing that student’s learning. Information from these assessment activities is used to adapt teaching and learning approaches, which leads to improvements in learner outcomes.
2.‘Teachers using AFL will lose control of their class’ AFL requires teachers to allow learners to discuss work between themselves in class. This will naturally involve some talking and, therefore, some noise. However, the teacher remains in control. The teacher decides when to let the class talk and when to ask them to be quiet. It is also often the case that behaviour usually improves when learners’ understanding improves.
3.‘Peer feedback means students chatting to each other’ rather than working on a task’ Peer feedback can only take place when learners have a clear idea about what they are discussing and the areas that they should (and should not) be giving feedback about. Learners should also think about, and understand, how they are judging each other’s work. The more learners engage with, and think deeply about, the success criteria, the more they are able to give useful feedback to their peers.
4.‘Examinations are the only type of assessment that matter’ Learners need to take formal exams to get qualifications to progress through their education. Assessment for learning gives teachers more information throughout the year. One of the results of an AFL approach is that it helps students to do better in summative assessment. The two are linked and both inform future learning.
5.‘Assessment is a one-way process: teachers give students feedback about their work’ The most effective feedback is a dialogue. Teachers can learn more about their learners’ progress when their learners take a more active role in assessing their own performance. For example, through self-assessment learners can identify what they need help with and then discuss this with their teacher.
6.‘Work should always be given a grade or mark’ In some circumstances, a grade will be given as part of teacher feedback. However, research suggests that learners will often just read the grade and ignore the comments. Where teachers want to give a grade, it is often more effective for learners to read feedback and comments first, and then edit their work before they see a grade.
Assessment for learning --- Five approaches/ strategies
1.Questioning Questions are a quick and important way of finding out what your learner understands about a subject. You can use this information to plan their teaching.
- Questions: closed and open.
2. Feedback Feedback is the process in which learners come together with their teachers to discuss where they are in their learning, where they want to be in their learning, and how they are going to get there. It usually involves looking at a particular piece of work done by the learner. Feedback can be described as the ‘bridge’ between teaching and learning.
The aims and objectives of any assignment must be clearly understood by both the teacher and the learner.
3. Peer assessment or peer feedback Peer feedback, or peer assessment, is the process by which learners assess each other’s work and give each other feedback. This feedback is based on an understanding of what makes a successful piece of work. The teacher is vital to this process, as teachers know their learners and can help them to develop their critical and reflective thinking skills.
4. Self-assessment In self-assessment a learner evaluates their own work, and thinks about their own learning. This helps them to make sense of what the teacher says, relate it to previous learning and use this for new learning. Ultimately, self-assessment enables learners to set their own learning goals and be responsible for their own learning. However, be aware that learners cannot become reflective learners overnight. It takes time and practice to develop these skills, and the role of the teacher is crucial in encouraging this.
5. The formative use of school tests and exams Learners often have to take summative school tests such as end-of-year exams or final exams. Return marked test or exam papers to learners, so that they can spend time understanding where they earned most marks and where they had misunderstandings. After the exam or test, find out which questions were answered less well by most learners.
This will give you important information about what subjects, ideas and skills your learners need to work on. You can then focus on explaining the areas of the syllabus that gave problems to most learners. Your learners could also re-work exam questions in class in pairs or groups as a peer-learning activity.
AFL checklist (for your reflection)
How effectively am I using questioning?
How effective is my use of feedback?
How effective is my use of peer feedback?
How much do I use self-assessment in my practice?
Am I helping my students learn effectively from summative assessments?
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