Used as an explicit evaluation tool, group discussion could encourage ongoing reflection on the program and on individual and group learning. Learner interests are thus interwoven into ongoing process evaluation. (SK)

Describes some outcomes of a project in which teachers from six schools developed formative assessment in their science classrooms. Discusses three main areas of work: (1) questioning in classroom dialogue; (2) quality of such questions; and (3) feedback on homework. Indicates that teachers saw that the changes were transferring more of the…

Discusses the findings of a two-year research project on formative assessment in New Zealand among science teachers. The characteristics of formative assessment include responsiveness, sources of evidence, a tacit process, use of professional knowledge and experiences, and an integral part of teaching and learning. (Author/MM)

Examines the effects of a formative assessment with detailed feedback on students' science learning achievement and attitudes regarding formative assessment. Involves (n=133) ninth grade students from Seoul and administers pre- and post-tests for learning achievement and attitude regarding formative assessment. (Contains 16 references.)…

Peer assessments are recommended for overcoming the difficulties that teachers have with providing individual feedback and assessing student progress in physical education classes. A peer assessment can be used as a learning task (in a progression) or a formative assessment. A peer assessment is a variation of peer teaching, an instructional…

Seventh-grade science teacher Sonia Mangano stared at the results of her district's mid-year science assessment and asked herself, "Why is it my students seem to have trouble with matter-related ideas? Our district's spiral science curriculum builds on previous concepts from year to year. Yet these results show my students have difficulty with…

Technical problem solving as a model for instructional design (ID) has its strengths, and it has done much to provide designers strategies for their work, but it has substantial limitations as well. For one, it does not do a good job in describing how designers actually think. Slavish adherence to its methods can also be considered responsible for…

From March 1999 to August 2000, the authors were involved in simultaneous internal and external evaluations of the social civic and political education (SCaPE) project in Northern Ireland. This project was a major initiative established by the Citizenship Foundation, the Northern Ireland Council for the Curriculum, Examination and Assessment…

The author's experiences, both researcher and primary administrator of the Bahamian cohort, led to a reflection on the lessons learned from embarking on this kind of international collaboration. The most obvious caveat, for those interested in such work, centers on faculty capacity. While the Educational Administration program at Kent State…

This study explores teachers' informal formative assessment practices in three middle school science classrooms. We present a model for examining these practices based on three components of formative assessment (eliciting, recognizing, and using information) and the three domains linked to scientific inquiry (epistemic frameworks, conceptual…

A set of design patterns for digital item types has been developed in response to challenges identified in various projects by teachers in higher education. The goal of the projects in question was to design and develop formative and summative tests, and to develop interactive learning material in the form of quizzes. The subject domains involved…

This article describes Espace (Electronic System for Peer Assessment and Coaching Efficiency), a student peer-feedback tool that enhances the educational quality of assignments without overburdening faculty or adding administrative costs. Developed and tested by four universities in the Netherlands, Espace focuses on qualitative feedback and…

This paper provides an account of the methodological approach of a study designed to address some fundamental questions relating to formative assessment. The paper reports on the use of a critically quasi-ethnographic approach and describes the practicalities of adopting such an approach. The validity of the study is also considered, reflecting on…

This paper discusses the method, results, and implications of a study of undergraduate student writing at a large, diverse research university, and makes the case for grounding substantive writing assessment in local stakeholders and formative design. Data were collected from multiple sources: writing samples obtained from courses across…

This article describes the 1st-year evaluation of a community-wide parent and family involvement program initiated in a midsized Southeast community and school district. The program consists of three major components: community-wide efforts, school-home communication, and home involvement. Formative and summative evaluation data were gathered…