Summative assessment

If it is a summative assessment, you need to be clear about the assessment criteria, that is, the criteria against which the learners will be judged. You also need to be clear about the context and conduct of the assessment - is it in controlled conditions? Is it in an informal situation? These must be made explicit to the learner before the assessment takes place. It is also helpful to explain the purpose of the assessment and the conditions under which the assessment will take place.

Some examples

So for example, a summative assessment in year 7 English might be set out as follows:

Assessment focus:

• Reading for information
• Commenting on the structure of a text and its grammatical features
• Deduce and infer from a text
• Accuracy of written work - spelling, punctuation and grammar

Assessment purpose:

• Collect information to measure progress at the end of a term and chart against targets

Assessment instrument:

• A short story by D.H. Lawrence
• Ten short answer questions
• Two extended answer questions

Assessment context:

• Examination conditions in a classroom

Vocational assessment

A further example might be taken from a vocational course where learners are expected to produce and  programme an electronic toy for 6-9 year olds, as part of an assessment for engineering. There will be multiple assessment focuses, relating to the specific subject content, but also relating to transferable vocational skills. This could be set out as follows:

Assessment focus:

• Transferable vocational skills
• communicate better orally to others.
• communicate better on paper to others.
• demonstrate your knowledge better to others.
• apply your knowledge better in new situations.
• listen and question more effectively.
• clarify points more effectively.
• prioritise and summarise information.
• select and organise information effectively.
•  improvise effectively and innovate where necessary.
• plan and implement solutions to problems.
• evaluate and interpret results and outcomes.
• collaborate with others.
• lead others.
• become more aware of own strengths and weaknesses.
• understand better how you learn.
• understand better how others learn.

Assessment purpose:

• To elicit an understanding of a learner's strengths and weaknesses in vocational skills
• To highlight strengths and weaknesses in learning
• To highlight the effectiveness of teaching strategies
• To provide opportunities for summative assessment through observation
• To highlight opportunities for peer review
• To highlight opportunities for self-assessment

Assessment instrument

• Produce and programme an electronic toy for 6-9 year olds, using chip technology

Assessment context

• One term of teacher input and learner research, development, designing and making

• Carried out at the end of a unit of work December week 3

 

Formative assessment

Another example might be a formative assessment in year 9 science, which might be set out as follows:

Assessment focus:

• Sources of energy
• Their impact on the environment

Assessment purpose:

• To elicit an understanding of energy production and its impact on society and the environment
• To highlight strengths and weaknesses in learning
• To highlight the effectiveness of teaching strategies

Assessment instrument

• Write an article for a newspaper explaining which two sources should be used to provide energy for a new town.

Assessment context

• Two weeks of teacher input and pupil research
• Two weeks of homework assignments
• Peer review, including comments from three people
• Self-review in learning diary

 

Formative assessment in a primary school

Yet another example for a year two numeracy assessment might be as follows:

Assessment focus

• Present solutions to number problems and puzzles in an organised way
• Explain decisions, methodology and results in an agreed format - pictorial, written or spoken form
• Use mathematical language and number sentences
• Use the W.A.L.T acronym - We Are Learning To...
• Use the W.I.L.F acronym - What I am Looking For...

Assessment purpose

• Formative assessment to help in meeting a specific learning target
• Explain to others how I solved a problem

Assessment instrument

• How did you solve the problem?
• How did you decide which information to use?
• How did you know which calculations to do?
• Explain how you did your calculation. Could you draw something or use a number line to help us understand what you did?

Assessment context

• In lesson with peers

Add to the audit

By conducting this kind of work in each subject area, for each assessment, you will be in a position to add to your procedures, where you will highlight who will carry out the work and when.

Back to The Process