Formative Assessment Essay

1056 Words5 Pages
Abstract The purpose of this paper is to translate my course learning into a reflective response paper on the topic of Formative Assessments inside the classroom. This paper will also seek to describe a formative assessment for a class that I am currently teaching, explain the role psychometric models would play in the creation of the identified assessment, explain the use of observational situations inside the formative assessment, and discuss expected challenges in carrying out the assessment and how they would be addressed. Formative Assessment The use of formative assessments has mainly been used to monitor and update classroom instruction. Formative assessments are informal and can also be used to provide feedback or guide the instruction based on the needs of the student, therefore it is vital to develop a system when using them. According to Sue Swaffield (2008), effective feedback should: • Focus on student learning • Focus on the task rather than the learner • Focus on process rather than the product • Focus on progress • Focus on particular qualities of the work • Advise how to improve • Encourage the student to think • Require action that is challenging yet achievable • Be specific • Avoid comparison with others • Be understandable to the student Formative assessments can vary from worksheets, quizzes, journals, diagnostic tests, and informal observation. I feel that one of the greatest strengths I possess as a teacher is the ability to differentiate lessons to meet the needs of every child. The use of various types of formative assessments aids in the monitoring of the students strengths. Taking the time to know each student personally helps me to find out what is interesting and important to them. It has been suggested that these types of assessments are not graded nor used in the computation of the final
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