In education today, assessments are fundamental tools for guiding teaching, enhancing learning, and supporting data-driven decision-making. Within the realm of educational assessment, two core concepts stand out: assessment for learning and assessment of learning.
Both types of assessment play crucial, distinct roles in the educational process. Understanding their differences and how they complement each other is essential for educators aiming to improve instruction, implement effective interventions, and ultimately boost student achievement.
Assessment of Learning: Measuring Student Achievement
Assessment of learning, often termed summative assessment, typically occurs at the conclusion of a learning unit, course, or grading period. Its primary purpose is to evaluate a student’s overall understanding and mastery of the material. As the Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University points out, these assessments measure student achievement against established benchmarks or standards, whether at the class, district, or national level.
Alt: Students in a classroom setting are focused on completing a standardized test, highlighting the formal nature of summative assessment.
Examples of assessments of learning include:
- Benchmark assessments: Administered periodically (e.g., three times a year) to screen students and identify those who may need additional support.
- End-of-unit exams: Comprehensive tests covering the material taught within a specific unit of study.
- Final exams or projects: Evaluations designed to assess learning outcomes for an entire course.
- Standardized tests: Large-scale assessments used to compare student performance across different schools or districts.
The data from assessments of learning is valuable for:
- Reporting student grades: Providing a summary of student achievement to parents and stakeholders.
- Evaluating program effectiveness: Assessing the overall success of curriculum and instructional approaches.
- Making accountability decisions: Meeting external reporting requirements and demonstrating student progress over time.
Assessment for Learning: Guiding Instruction and Progress
Assessment for learning, also known as formative assessment or sometimes assessment as learning, is fundamentally different. It focuses on gauging student understanding during the learning process itself. This type of assessment is designed to provide ongoing feedback to both teachers and students, enabling adjustments to teaching and learning in real-time.
According to the Eberly Center at Carnegie Mellon, assessment for learning offers educators continuous insights that allow them to:
- Identify struggling learners early: Pinpoint students who are not grasping concepts as they are being taught.
- Adapt instruction responsively: Modify teaching strategies and approaches immediately based on student needs.
- Monitor learning progress closely: Track student development and understanding throughout a lesson or unit.
Alt: A teacher leans in to provide personalized feedback to a student working at their desk, illustrating the interactive and supportive nature of formative assessment.
Examples of assessments for learning include:
- Classroom discussions and questioning: Engaging students in dialogue to check for understanding.
- Quick quizzes and polls: Brief assessments to gauge comprehension of key concepts.
- Observations of student work: Monitoring students as they engage in activities and tasks.
- Exit tickets: Short prompts at the end of a lesson to assess what students have learned.
- Progress monitoring: Regular assessments conducted between benchmark assessments to track student growth and the effectiveness of interventions.
The insights gained from assessments for learning are crucial for:
- Informing instructional decisions: Guiding teachers in adjusting their teaching methods and materials to better meet student needs.
- Providing timely feedback to students: Helping students understand their strengths and areas for improvement, and guiding their learning.
- Personalizing learning experiences: Tailoring instruction to address individual student learning styles and paces.
Integrating Assessment for and of Learning: A Balanced Approach
Both assessment for learning and assessment of learning are valuable and necessary components of a comprehensive educational strategy. When used in conjunction, they create a powerful assessment system that provides a holistic view of student learning and progress.
As Catherine Garrison and Michael Ehringhaus, PhD, authors of Formative and Summative Assessments in the Classroom, emphasize, the more information educators gather about students throughout the learning journey, the better equipped they are to make informed decisions about instruction and interventions. This ultimately supports every student in making continuous progress in their education.
A balanced assessment strategy incorporating both formative and summative approaches provides a detailed picture of:
- Student progress on foundational skills: Tracking development in key academic areas over time.
- Student achievement relative to standards: Understanding how students are performing in relation to learning goals and benchmarks.
Data-Driven Assessment: Fueling Student Success
“If assessment is to be a positive force in education, it must be implemented properly. It cannot be used to merely sort students or to criticize education. Its goals must be to improve education. Rather than ‘teach to the test,’ we must ‘test what we teach.'”
-Lockwood and McLean, authors of Why We Assess Students — And How: The Competing Measures of Student Performance
To maximize the positive impact of assessment for learning and assessment of learning, educators should consider whether they are utilizing the most effective assessments and technologies. Asking critical questions about the quality and utility of assessment data is crucial.
Specifically, educators should evaluate if their assessment processes:
- Provide reliable and actionable data: Is the data generated easy to understand and truly informative for instructional decisions?
- Effectively drive instructional improvements: Does the data lead to tangible changes in teaching practices and student outcomes?
- Promote student progress: Does the assessment system contribute to accelerated student learning and achievement?
A robust, data-driven assessment process empowers educators to:
- Early identification of learning needs: Proactively pinpoint students who require additional support.
- Targeted instructional adjustments: Modify teaching and set appropriate learning goals to address specific learning gaps.
- Monitor intervention effectiveness: Track the impact of interventions and instructional changes on student progress.
- Report on student responsiveness to intervention: Document student progress and outcomes for accountability and program evaluation.
- Predict performance on key indicators: Use data to anticipate student performance on future assessments and milestones.
By establishing a seamless and well-integrated assessment for and of learning process, schools and educators can significantly enhance learning outcomes and ensure that all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential. This balanced approach to assessment is not just about measuring learning; it’s about actively fostering growth and success for every student.
Resources:
- Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University. “What is the difference between formative and summative assessment?” Accessed May 3, 2017. https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/assessment/basics/formative-summative.html.
- Ehringhaus, Michael Ph. D., Garrison, Catherine. NYC Department of Education. “Formative and Summative Assessments in the Classroom.” Accessed May 4, 2017.
- Lockwood, Robert E., McLean, James E. “Why We Assess Students — And How: The Competing Measures of Student Performance.” Accessed May 4, 2017. https://books.google.com/books/about/Why_We_Assess_Students_And_How.html?id=WFGdAAAAMAAJ.
