The problem in this study was students failing to meet state-mandated mathematics proficiency. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to examine teachers' experiences using formative assessment practices (FAP) in teaching mathematics in Grades 6 through 8. A gap in the literature related to teachers' use of FAP to increase mathematics…

This case study examined teachers' on-the-fly formative assessment conversations, that is, how teachers collect information from students' thinking and use that information to support their learning during teacher-student interactions. Previous studies have typically analysed whole-class discussions on the level of speaking turns, and have…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among middle school teachers' beliefs about collaboration, their rationale for using common formative assessments, and teacher characteristics that can explain these relationships. Seventy-six middle school teachers from two middle schools participated in the study. Findings indicate that…

Purpose: When using embedded, student-centered assessment tools for maker education, understanding the characteristics of a body of evidence can help teachers guide the assessment process. This study aims to examine assessment artifacts from a makerspace program and present a set of qualities that emerged, which researchers and maker educators can…

Continual assessment of student understanding is a crucial aspect of teaching. The adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) represents raised expectations for the level and depth of mathematical understanding that is expected of our students. But new standards also mean new tests. What those tests will be like is of…

This paper discusses issues arising in the design of questions to use in an on-line computer-based formative assessment system, focussing on how best to identify the stages of a learning hierarchy for reporting to teachers. Data from several hundred students is used to illustrate how design decisions have been made for a test on interpreting line…

The Berge et al. article in this volume presents the functional construct of writing that underlies summative and formative assessment of writing as a key competency in Norway. A functional construct implies that specific acts of writing and their purposes constrain what is a relevant selection among the semiotic resources that writing generally…

Performance-based accountability along with budget tightening has increased pressure on publicly funded organizations to develop and deliver programs that produce meaningful social benefits. As a result, there is increasing need to undertake formative evaluations that estimate preliminary program outcomes and identify promising program components…

This paper reports the results of a descriptive study on the use of a technology-enhanced formative assessment system called Accelerated Math (AM) for ELLs and their native-English-speaking (NES) peers. It was comprised of analyses of an extant database of 18,549 students, including 2,057 ELLs, from grades 1 through 8 across 30 U.S. states. These…

The purpose of this study was to describe secondary teachers' formative assessment practices and to examine the relationship of these practices to student motivation. The sample included 3,242 students and 161 grade 6-12 teachers. Teachers and students completed self-report questionnaires that focused on both formative assessment and motivation…

Two studies examined the effects of four types of teachers' evaluative feedback on Chinese students' self-efficacy in English vocabulary acquisition. In Study 1, a random sample of Grade 8 students (N = 79) learned prefixes and received either formative or summative feedback after failure in test. The results showed that students who received…

This paper presents the results of an experimental evaluation of a change in assessment practice in one comprehensive secondary school. The school divided 104 Year 7 pupils into four mixed-ability teaching groups. One of these was given enhanced formative feedback on their work for one year, but no marks or grades. The other three groups were…