"Formative assessment--the process of interpretating data on student performance to adapt instruction to individual needs--is perhaps the single most powerful tool available to teachers to help every student succeed to their full potential." With that bold statement, Michael W. Connell sets out to unpack formative assessment--what it is, how it works, and why it is so essential for learner growth. He shows how to incorporate it into different teaching methods and settings, such as flipped classrooms, programmed instruction, and more. The goal: to provide the benefits of individualized instruction even in group settings.

There is convincing evidence that carefully applied classroom assessments can promote student learning and academic self-regulation. These assessments include, but are not limited to, conversations with students, diagnostic test items, and co-created rubrics used to guide feedback for students themselves and their peers. Writing with the practical constraints of teaching in mind, Andrade and Heritage present a concise resource to help pre- and in-service teachers maximize the positive impacts of classroom assessment on teaching. Using Formative Assessment to Enhance Learning, Achievement, and Academic Self-Regulation translates work from leading specialists and explains how to use assessment to improve learning by linking learning theory to formative assessment processes. Sections on goal setting, progress monitoring, interpreting feedback, and revision of goal setting make this a timely addition to assessment courses.

This user-friendly guide shows school leaders how to use formative assessment to improve both student and teacher achievement. With step-by-step information and practical examples, this book will help you develop better assessments that will transform your school. You will learn: The advantages of formative assessment When and why to use formative assessment How to develop valid and reliable assessments How to mimic the state assessment schedule How to organize and use data effectively How to use data to develop teacher leaders The appendix features more than ten pages of handy reproducibles that will help you implement formative assessments immediately (also available as free downloads www.routledge.com/9781596672468). A curriculum pacing guide A presentation template to explain formative assessment to your staff A non-mastery report A class item analysis graph A class profile graph A student questionnaire, and more!

Testing expert W. James Popham provides the definitive nuts-and-bolts introduction to formative assessment, a process with the power to transform teaching and learning.

Formative assessment has recently become a focus of renewed research as state and federal policy-makers realize that summative assessments have reached a point of diminishing returns as a tool for increasing student achievement. Consequently, supporters of large-scale testing programs are now beginning to consider the potential of formative assessments to improve student achievement. The mission of this handbook is to comprehensively profile this burgeoning field of study. Written by leading international scholars and practitioners, each chapter includes a discussion of key issues that dominate formative assessment policy and practice today, as well as those that are likely to affect research and practice in the coming years. Key features include: Comprehensive – nineteen chapters cover all aspects of formative assessment including classroom assessment, large-scale applications, technological applications, applications for special needs students, K-12 and post-secondary applications, psychometric considerations, case studies, and discussion of alternative assessment formats such as portfolios and performance assessments. Integrative – thoughtful attention is given to the integration of large-scale and classroom assessments. Practical – provides practical guidance on how to conduct formative assessments that generate credible information to guide instruction. Global – provides perspectives from leading international scholars and practitioners whose expertise spans diverse settings, student populations, and educational systems. Accessible Style – although grounded in the latest research, the book’s style and tone has been carefully crafted to make it accessible to both the textbook and professional markets. It will also be a critical reference book for researchers in teacher preparation, educational administration, and educational policy studies.

Supercharge your formative assessment skills and watch student learning soar! Teachers routinely ask and answer a series of three questions with and for students: Where are my students headed? Where are they right now? How can I close the gap between where they are and where I want them to be? This text suggests that teachers also ask these parallel questions of themselves: Where am I going? What can formative assessment practice look like? Where am I currently in my formative assessment practice? How do I close the gap? Readers are then encouraged to select a specific aspect of formative assessment to investigate, explore relevant personal practice relevant to that aspect, implement necessary changes, reflect on those changes, and continue the change process. This practical guide can be used by individual teachers or collaboratively as a study guide for a learning community. The authors describe an effective four-step process for improving teachers′ formative assessment practices that provides opportunities to reflect, consider alternative instructional approaches, and apply what they have learned. Case studies provide examples of formative assessment in practice, along with examples of teacher-implemented changes. A companion website includes an array of tools and templates for organizing, gathering, and systematically using information to strengthen formative assessment skills. This practical guide can be used by individual teachers or collaboratively as a study guide for a learning community. Case studies provide examples of formative assessment in practice, along with examples of teachers implementing changes in their practice. A companion website includes an array of tools and templates for organizing, gathering, and systematically using information to strengthen formative assessment skills.

Formative assessment is one of the best ways to increase student learning and enhance teacher quality. But effective formative assessment is not part of most classrooms, largely because teachers misunderstand what it is and don't have the necessary skills to implement it. In the updated 2nd edition of this practical guide for school leaders, authors Connie M. Moss and Susan M. Brookhart define formative assessment as an active, continual process in which teachers and students work together—every day, every minute—to gather evidence of learning, always keeping in mind three guiding questions: Where am I going? Where am I now? What strategy or strategies can help me get to where I need to go? Chapters focus on the six interrelated elements of formative assessment: (1) shared learning targets and criteria for success, (2) feedback that feeds learning forward, (3) student self-assessment and peer assessment, (4) student goal setting, (5) strategic teacher questioning, and (6) student engagement in asking effective questions. Using specific examples based on their extensive work with teachers, the authors provide - Strategic talking points and conversation starters to address common misconceptions about formative assessment; - Practical classroom strategies to share with teachers that cultivate students as self-regulated, assessment-capable learners; - Ways to model the elements of formative assessment in conversations with teachers about their professional learning; - "What if" scenarios and advice for how to deal with them; and - Questions for reflection to gauge understanding and progress. As Moss and Brookhart emphasize, the goal is not to "do" formative assessment, but to embrace a major cultural change that moves away from teacher-led instruction to a partnership of intentional inquiry between student and teacher, with better teaching and learning as the outcome.