If you walked into a typical classroom, what might you expect to see?
A teacher asking a series of questions about a concept they’ve just taught, with students answering on mini whiteboards? Maybe students clustered in groups, explaining and reviewing the methods each of them has used to solve a recent homework assignment? Or perhaps each student would have their head down working silently to complete a set of questions, or even a test paper?
Each of these is a form of assessment, and arguably a significant minority, if not the majority, of activities our learners do within our classrooms are assessments in one form or another. So why do we carry out these activities?
In this blog, James Beadle, Senior Professional Development Manager at The Assessment Network, answers this question by delving into the contrasting purposes of assessment—summative (assessment of learning), formative (assessment for learning), and assessment as learning—to explore why these activities are integral to our classrooms.
What is summative assessment (assessment of learning)?
Summative assessment, often characterised as assessment of learning [i], refers to the purpose of using the evidence gathered by assessment to form an overall judgement, such as a grade, or gaining a particular qualification, and usually occurs at the end of sequences of learning. Within a classroom, we might use summative assessments to award grades at the end of a course, or to evaluate the overall effectiveness of a programme of teaching.
What is formative assessment (assessment for learning)?
Formative assessment, often characterised as assessment for learning, refers to the purpose of using the evidence gathered by assessment to inform, and if necessary, modify teaching and learning activities: either by teachers, or by students themselves. Within a classroom, this might be asking our class a series of questions, perhaps using an interactive quiz app, or by using a series of peer or self-assessment activities. If, through these activities, a misconception or lack of understanding becomes apparent, then action needs to be taken (by either teacher or student) to address this, for the assessment to be truly formative.
What is the purpose of assessment in a classroom?
In both these purposes, it is not the assessment itself that dictates whether it is formative or summative, but rather the use we make of the information it gives us. It is often said that any assessment can be both formative or summative: an assessment taken at the end of the course could be used for the summative purpose of awarding a grade, or for the formative purpose of identifying what topics a learner needs to review and revisit before starting a follow-on programme of study. Having said that, some questions and assessments are more suited to some purposes than others.
Consider the following two questions:
Question A
Describe and explain the conditions which lead to the development of a coral reef. [7 marks]
Question B
Which one of the following is a required condition for coral reefs to form?
a) A minimum water temperature above 30°C
b) A clean supply of freshwater
c) Abundant nutrients, such as plankton
d) Ample light for the coral to photosynthesise
Question A is likely better suited for summative purposes, as we could likely expect a range of responses, allowing us to differentiate between different levels of student understanding and ability. It could also be used for formative purposes but is perhaps not as well suited. With a class of 30 students, the range of responses you might potentially receive can make it challenging to anticipate what future modifications to teaching and learning activities might be necessary. Moreover, a significant amount of time can be involved in using a question, both in the time needed for students to answer it, and also for responses to be assessed. Strategies such as peer and self-assessment can help with this, but ultimately, this is probably an inefficient way of checking for understanding within a lesson.
Question B is well suited for formative purposes. As a multiple-choice question, it is quick for students to answer, and could be used on an e-quizzing platform, or simply with mini-whiteboards. Moreover, each distractor (incorrect answer) highlights a potential misconception.
- Response a) is incorrect: most corals require a temperature below 30°C (hence the issues with climate change).
- Response b) is also incorrect: Corals do indeed need clean water, but most only form in salt water, not fresh water.
- Response c) is the correct answer.
- Response d) is a particularly ‘mean’ distractor. Most corals do indeed need ample light; however, it is not the corals themselves that photosynthesise, but rather an algae that they have a symbiotic relationship with.
Distractors such as these allow us to identify misconceptions and help spark meaningful classroom talk that furthers student understanding. However, we may not want to use a question like this in a summative manner. Practically speaking, many questions such as this would likely be needed to differentiate between different levels of student performance, and some skills are challenging to assess with multiple-choice questions. Furthermore, some of the distractors would likely be viewed as unfair within a high-stakes assessment environment.
What is assessment as learning?
Another purpose of assessment that we have yet to address is the concept of ‘assessment as learning’. In this, (Ruth Dann, 2014) argues that assessment and learning are ‘inextricably interlinked’, and that for either of these to be successful, pupils need to be actively involved – in other words, the acts of assessment are acts of learning. This emphasises the importance of metacognition, and receptivity of feedback, on behalf of students.
Supporting this is the concept of ‘retrieval practice’. Replicated in a large number of studies, research has shown when we try to actively retrieve information from our memories, such as by answering a question, we are more likely to remember the associated knowledge (particularly over time) than if we engage in more passive learning, such as reading notes or watching a video.
This purpose, of helping students engage in retrieval practice and improve retention, is neither summative (as we are not trying to form an overall judgement), nor formative (as we are not necessarily using this information to inform future teaching or learning activities). However, it is still very much a form of assessment – even if no feedback is given, by trying to answer a question, learners are engaging in an act of self-assessment and trying to gauge if they can recall the associated knowledge. Furthermore, this is very much an act of learning, supporting a change in long-term memory (Kirschner, Sweller and Clark, 2006).
Final thoughts
To conclude, there are multiple reasons why we use assessments within our classrooms. Purpose is key, and different questions, and different assessments, are likely better suited for some than others. This is important for not only ourselves to consider as teachers, but also for our students: if they are to meaningfully engage in independent learning, this will require appropriate self-assessment. Do they appreciate the difference between summative and formative assessments, and why some learning materials may be better suited for one than the other? Do they realise that whilst revising, activities that involve a form of assessment, and hence retrieval practice, are likely to lead to greater retention than more passive forms of learning?
By empowering students with assessment literacy, we ultimately increase their own agency to independently learn, outside of our classrooms.
If you're interested in exploring these concepts further, or diving into other essential aspects of classroom assessment, such as metacognition or receptivity to feedback, I highly recommend our assessment course for teachers, which I helped author.
Footnote
[i] Although summative assessment is often viewed as synonymous with assessment of learning (and formative assessment with assessment for learning), this is not necessarily the case – although for the sake of simplicity, this blog post does treat them as such. A detailed discussion of this is given by Dylan Wiliam in this article here: Wiliam 2011.