Formative and Summative Assessment Essay

mind is a term that includes every of the various methods employ to image the finale of an individuals achievement. In teaching and attainment situation, judgment refers to the methods employ to determine achievement of attainment outcomes. Similarly in professional contexts, opinion is concerned with the achievement of professional standards or competence.(Aranda & Yates,2009). Assessment to a fault provides a number of major benefits including Grading ratement may be used to define achievement and to measure the educatees prep atomic number 18dness for professional challenges. need sound judgment may focus on tangible encyclopaedism by creating an opportunity that carries with it the rewards of completion or grades. learning process assessment activities move guide individuals to learn and relearn subject content efficiently. Feedback assessment provides opportunities for individuals to admonisher the quality of their per earnance and identify areas for imp rovement.PURPOSE OF sound judgementIt is easy to make so immersed in the job of teaching that we lose sight the comport in purpose of a assessment. There is consequently the possibility that we are overlooking a nonher form of assessment which might be more appropriate. We truly assess students for quite a tell of different reasons motivation, creating learning opportunities, to fall apart feedback (to both students and staff), to grade, and as a quality assurance mechanism (both for inhering and external systems). Because all too often we do not straighten these functions of assessment, without having really thought it through assessments are frequently trying to do all these things, to varyingdegrees.(Oxford Brookes University,2011).In fact it is arguable that while it is in demand(predicate) for assessments meeting the setoff three of these functions to be conducted as often as possible, the final two do not need to be through with(p) anywhere near so frequently it is simply important that they are d wiz somewhere. The implications of this are that while an essay question, where all the answers are bivalent marked and the marks count towards the students final grades, may fulfil all these functions, for all assessments to be this rigorous would be prohibitively expensive in staff time, while a peer-assessed seminar presentation, which does not count towards the students final grades just is simply a course requirement, could fulfil the first three functions and may not even require a tutor to be present.shaping ASSESSMENTFormative assessment is typically contrasted with additive assessment. The former supports instructors and students in decision-making during educational and learning processes, while the latter occurs at the end of a learning unit and determines if the content being taught was retained.(Wikipedia,2013). Formative assessment is not distinguished by the format of assessment, but by how the information is used. The alike ladder may act as either formative or summative. However, some methods of assessment are better suited to one or the opposite purpose.CHARACTERISTICS OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTDuring formative assessment, learning is the shared finis of both teacher and student and alterations to the teaching and learning process take place as needed to further the goal. This allows both the teacher and the student the opportunity for assessment and improvement as an ongoing process kinda of an end product. Formative assessments are assessments for learning, rather than assessments of learning, according to the Association for surveillance and Curriculum Development.FocusedFormative assessments are focused on the learning process as salubrious as the learning progress. While other assessments may only focus on the end result, formative assessments civilise the students progress consistently so that adjustments basin be made to arrival learning goals.OngoingA formative assessment is consistent a nd ongoing throughout the learning process. It differs from assessments that focus on the end result. Ongoing assessments go against both teachers and students the chance to make adjustments to teaching and learning strategies so learning ultimately takes place. ImmediateWhile other forms of assessment focus on the end result, formative assessments provide immediate feedback to both teachers and students due to ongoing assessment practices. The immediate feedback teachers and students experience potful be used to actuate and further learning.LIMITATIONS OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTSAlthough offering many benefits, effective formative assessment notify be difficult to achieve at scale. It may be logistically impossible to provide detailed descriptive feedback for each student in a large class. yet with a smaller number of students to track with, formative assessment is time-consuming as it requires signifi screwingt, ongoing dedication and lather from the teacher to sustain.This is especially true when combined with the summative assessments teachers are mandatory to complete. The layered accountability chain in education student to teacher, teacher to groom, school to district, etc. creates systemic pressure for student performance to be objectively and comparatively measurable at each level. Formative assessment, by definition, doesnt easily provide that kind of accountability. This explains why, although the advantages of formative assessment deem been repeatedly articulated since the distinction between it and summative assessment was first made in 1967, empirical studies continue to show that very a couple of(prenominal) teachers consistently make use of it in actual practice. summational ASSESSMENTSummative assessment measures attainment and allows for the recording of the learning progress. It usually takes the form of tests and trial runs, though it is becoming increasingly common for summative assessment to include other tasks such as a project completed during the school year. This move away from assessments based on a single examination empowers learners the opportunity to perform to the outflank of their ability. Not all learners perform considerably under examination pressure. Furthermore,examinations do not always lend themselves to eliciting the range of language structures and uses that induct been the objective of teachingCHARACTERISTICS OF SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTThe results of summative assessment allow us to determine the degree to which learners have win specific learning objectives. Such a decision may have an important consequence on learners future prospects. It is therefore crucial that not only is the assessment valid, but that the results obtained are reliable. Validity relates to whether the assessment tasks assess what they intend to assess. Reliability, on the other hand, refers to the results obtained and whether these would be the same if the same learners took the assessment on another occasion pr ovided that no further learning had interpreted place and regardless of who marked the assessment if more than one individual was involved in the process.(Summative assessment,2005). Whether summative assessment is norm-or criterion-referenced will be compulsive by the purpose of the assessment. If we need to select the best candidates to, for example, continue with their education, then norm-referencing would be appropriate. However, if we are interested in whether candidates have mastered true skills, then we would not get the required information through norm-referencing.(Meason) For example, when assessing skyway pilots we are interested in whether they can fly a glance over safely to a very high level of proficiency. Knowing which trainees were the best would not suffice since it is possible that no trainee of a given separate would have reached the required standard to safely fly a categoricalLIMITATIONS OF SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTStudents can face anxiety in breeding for a test, an anxiety that grows as the perception of the tests entailment grows. Summative tests advise schools to commit to prolonged pretesting procedures and preparation classes, which can step-up student anxiety.(Spiral). In addition, some students simply do not test well, and the result is a testing procedure that fails to adequately assess the real talents of individual students, while a formative assessment would allow a teacher to evaluate these conditions and better assess a students ability Summative assessments fan have an overall negative advert on student self-esteem, resulting from the perception of inferiority that standardized tests can give test-takers.Students who perform poorly on standardized tests were found to suffer from displace self-esteem in situations where these same students had not previously exhibited signs of self-esteem problems.(Boggiano,1992). Even students who perform average or well on standardized tests can suffer from the failure to meet thei r own higher expectations. The result can be a reduction in educational motivation.(Hammond).EXAMPLES OF FORMATIVE AND SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT FROM TEACHING AND LEARNING PERSPECTIVECONCLUSIONIn my view,both types of assessments are better,that is a balanced assessment.A balanced assessment system in one in which a physical body of assessments are used for a variety of purposes and communications about results facilitates student involvement and ownership of learning.Formative assessment can be vital importance in helping the teacher and students determine the quality of learning that is taking place and can allow them to project the results of summative tests some time in advance of the summative testing.Such results can be used as the basis for altering the teaching learning situation early enough to change the immediate as well as alter the forecast. Learning is a process which can be observed and evaluated as it is taking place.Formative evaluation can be used to make the process more effective long onwards the summative evaluation.Recognition of the interaction among formative evaluation teaching and learning and summative evaluation can do much to improve teaching and learning before it is too late.REFERENCESAranda S,Yates P.An Overview of assessment.Canberra (EdCaN),Australia(2009).Retrieved from www.edcan.org/pdf/edCanOverview.pdfBoggiano A,Pittman T. Achievement and Motivation A Social-Developmental Perspective.(Eds).(1992).Cambridge Press.New York.Hammond,K.eHow.Education.Summative assessment weaknesses.Retrieved from http//www.ehow.com/info_8568251_summative-assessment-weaknesses.htmlMeason C.eHow.Education.Characteristics of Formative assessment.Retrieved from http//www.ehow.com/list_6732311_characteristics-formative-assessment.htmlOxford Brookes University.(2011).Purpose of Assessment.Retrieved from www.brookes.ac.uk/ go/ocsld/resources/assessment/purposes.htmSpira M.eHow.Education.Disadvantages of Formative Assessment.Retrieved from http//www.eho w.com/info_8502289_advantages-disadvantages-formative-assessment.htmlStiggins,R.,Arter,J.,Chappuis,S.(2008).Classroom assessment for student learning.Educational Testing Service.Retrieved from http//www.bcsd.org/district.cfm?subpage=55380Summative assessment.(2005).Retrieved fromhttp//cd1.edb.hkedcity.net/cd/eng/tba_eng_sec/web/3_1w.htmSpira M.eHow.Education.Disadvantages of Formative Assessment.Retrieved from http//www.ehow.com/info_8502289_advantages-disadvantages-formative-assessmen