Formative Assessment

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment is an integral part of effective science education, acting as a dynamic process that informs both teaching and learning. Unlike summative assessments that evaluate learning at the end of a unit, formative assessments are woven into the fabric of instruction, providing ongoing feedback that allows teachers to adjust their approaches and students to refine their understanding.

Continuous Formative Assessment

Continuous Formative Assessment (CFA) using Cloud-Based Collaborative Resources

 What makes formative assessment ‘formative’ is that it is immediately used to adapt instruction to meet the needs of the learners in real-time.  Continuous Formative Assessment (CFA) employs cloud-based collaborative document technology to instantly collect responses from multiple students, groups, and class sections. . As instructors analyze student responses, instruction adjustments can be made to meet immediate student needs. 

References

Herr, N.; Tippens, M.; Rivas, M.; Vandergon, V., d'Alessio, M., & Reveles, J. (2016). Continuous Formative Assessment (CFA) - A cloud-based pedagogy for evaluating student understanding to optimize STEM teaching and learning. In Chao, L.,  Cloud-Based STEM Education for Improved Learning Outcomes to be published by IGI Global, Hershey, PA: IGI-Global Publishing. 

Vandergon, V., Herr, N.; Tippens, M.; Rivas, M.; d'Alessio, M., & Reveles, J. (2015). Collaborative data analysis. In Chao, L., Cloud-Based STEM Education for Improved Learning Outcomes to be published by IGI Global, Hershey, PA: IGI-Global Publishing. 

Herr, N., Rivas, M., Chang, T., Tippens, M., Vandergon, V., d'Alessio, M., & Nguyen-Graff, D. (2015) . Continuous formative assessment (CFA) during blended and online instruction using cloud-based collaborative documents. In Koç, S., Wachira, P., & Liu, X. (Eds.), Assessment in Online and Blended Learning Environments. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Formative Assessment Tools - Collaborative Docs

Quickwrite

• Formative Assessment

  • Forms 

    • example: Mitosis

    • example: Memory

• Spreadsheets / Databases

  • example: Cognates

  • example: Calculations with Spreadsheets

    • example: Density & Buoyancy

    • example: Quickwrites

  • Presentations

    • example: Periodic Table

    • example: Powers of Ten

    • example: Collaborative Presentations

  • Docs

    • example: Significance of Chemistry

  • Maps

    • example: Volcanos & Earthquakes

    • example: Sands (Arenology)

  • Photo albums

    • example: video microscopy

  • collaborative photo album

Formative Assessment Tools - Dedicated apps

There are many apps that can be used as formative assessment tools: Socrative, Kahoot!, Plickers, Google Forms, Formative, Edpuzzle, Nearpod, Padlet, AnswerGarden, Labster, Arduino Science Journal, Quizizz, Blooket, Gimkit, Mentimeter, Poll Everywhere, Peardeck, Seesaw, Flipgrid, Buncee, BookWidgets, Quizlet Live, Flinn Scientific's Student Lab Notebook (digital version), PhET Interactive Simulations (with associated activities), BioInteractive (HHMI), Concord Consortium's educational resources.

• • EdPuzzle - Interactive video 

  • Kahoot - quiz

  • NearPod - interactive presentation and assessment tool 

  • Padlet (collaborative bulletin boards)

  • Quizlet- live - collaborative quizzes (in Beta… search on Internet for access)

  • Plickers - scan audience cards - multiple choice

  • Poll Everywhere - text message polling

  • Socrative -student response system that empowers teachers to collect data

Traditional Formative Assessment Techniques

Think-pair-share activities encourage collaborative learning and allow teachers to circulate and listen to student discussions, identifying misconceptions in real-time. Exit tickets, simple slips of paper where students answer a key question or summarize learning, provide a quick snapshot of comprehension at the end of a lesson. Whiteboards or mini-whiteboards offer a visible platform for students to share their thinking, allowing teachers to quickly scan the room for understanding. Hand signals, such as thumbs up/down or numbered cards, offer a quick and non-disruptive way to gauge student comprehension. Teacher questioning, when carefully planned and implemented, can probe student understanding and encourage deeper thinking. Finally, observations of student work during activities, labs, or projects provide valuable insights into their process and understanding of key concepts. These traditional techniques, while not technology-driven, remain powerful tools for formative assessment in any classroom.