Formative vs. Summative Assessment: A Teacher鈥檚 Guide
Tests are a common occurrence in most classrooms. Though some students dread them, tests and quizzes are a great baseline for determining what students know about a subject.
There are two types of testing styles to be aware of: formative and summative assessments. Understanding how to apply these different forms of testing is a critical part of becoming a teacher.
If you鈥檙e considering getting a bachelor鈥檚 or master鈥檚 degree in education, mastering these testing styles is critical for improving your skills and helping your future students.听
This blog explores how each assessment type works, how to balance them so they support student progress, and how to start using assessments to develop as a teacher.听
Key Takeaways听
Formative assessments measure how well students understand material mid-course.听
Summative assessments grade听how well students understand material after completing the major milestones of a course.听
These assessments are a teacher鈥檚 best way of understanding how to steer a course鈥檚 instruction so students can succeed.听听听
The term assessments can be misleading. Don鈥檛 assume that assessments always refer to highly standardized tests.听
Whether it鈥檚 through a pop quiz or a hefty project, understanding how your class thinks about course material is the best way for you to help students improve.听
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What Are Formative and Summative Assessments?听听
Defining Formative Assessment听
Formative assessments are often short quizzes used to assess student understanding. Their purpose isn鈥檛 to grade a student on what they know but rather to reveal what the student knows to the teacher. Especially today, when information is easy to access online, this type of testing helps students retain information instead of passively learning. 听
Formative assessments are an important step in identifying gaps in student learning. Often, a teacher can inherently sense that their classroom is struggling, but without asking students specific questions鈥攍ike in a quiz鈥攖he instructor can do nothing. Whether you鈥檙e student teaching, working as a paraprofessional, or preparing for your first classroom, the ability to effectively use these assessments will be very helpful for both you and your students.听
Formative assessments can be done anytime and often become part of managing classrooms and discussions.听 If you鈥檝e worked as a classroom aide, a substitute teacher, or a corporate trainer, you鈥檝e likely seen examples like these:听
Exit Tickets听
Polls听听
Quick checks听
Friendly questions听
In-class discussions听
Prompts听听
In-class observations听
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Defining Summative Assessment听
Typically, summative assessments are final exams or other significant end-of-term projects. These tests heavily impact student grades and act as benchmarks to grade student performance. Their overall purpose is to show how much a student learned from a unit or course.听
Summative assessments aren鈥檛 any less important for instructors than formative. They inform teachers on how to change their assessment strategy, which is an important element of most teacher preparation programs, which influences everything from lesson planning to student outcomes. Important milestones like yearly finals help both students and teachers understand where they can improve.听听
You should regularly review the results of these assessments to better understand how to guide your rubric. That will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses as a teacher, which will help you further develop your assessment strategies.听听
Summative assessments come at the end of a unit or course. They don鈥檛 need to be traditional proctored tests to be successful. Some options may include:听
Unit test听
Final exam听听
End-of-unit project听
Major presentation听
Group project听
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Comparison Overview: Formative vs. Summative Assessment听听
Formative assessments:
Typically short quizzes to gain visibility into students鈥� understanding.听
- Are short, simple, to the point听
- Won't threaten a student鈥檚 grade听
- Often seen as checkpoints through a unit, signposting progress in a course听
- Provide an important way to address student concerns before students bring them up听
Summative assessments:
Final exams or end-of-term projects to evaluate student achievement听
- Often require a heavy amount of prep from both teachers and students听
- Determine a heavy part of a student鈥檚 grade and often cannot be made up for听
- Measure student merit and prove to teachers that they鈥檙e learning through the coursework听
- Mimic real-life deadlines and business demands, which makes the exams valuable to students hoping to join the workforce听
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How Formative and Summative Assessments Work Together听
Formative and summative assessments aren鈥檛 competing strategies. The strongest classrooms use both.听
A teacher might begin a unit with informal questions and short quizzes to engage students and understand where learners are at. As the unit progresses, those formative assessments help guide instruction and address misconceptions. At the end of the unit, a summative assessment measures what students learned and gauges whether learning goals were met.听
Using both assessment types creates a cycle of feedback and improvement that helps both you and your students.听
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How to Decide Which Assessment to Use听
It can be easy to assign dates to quizzes and finals long in advance. But sometimes you may need to adjust your curriculum to fit your class. Set a goal now to be flexible as you prepare to teach.听
In the future, if you feel a class is struggling, you might want to use an assessment to learn how to help your students. But sometimes a formal quiz isn鈥檛 the right solution. Before choosing to use either type of assessment, you first need to determine what you need to find out.听听听
When deciding which assessment to use:听听
If you鈥檙e not sure what subjects the class is struggling with, a simple formative assessment can tell you.听
If only part of the class grasps a topic, you can consider a low-stakes summative assessment like an essay or graded quiz to test understanding, not just passive knowledge.听
If you feel your class continues to struggle with one subject, you can review previous assessments to find new patterns.听
If you already understand what your class is missing, then you might need to adjust something else, such as accounting for differences in learning ability.听听听听
Choosing the right type of assessment for your classroom depends heavily on how well you know your student's needs. Both methods are equally important. Be sure to use both to continuously understand what you need to teach next.听
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How to Start Using Formative and Summative Assessments听
The skills needed to create good tests and write better questions takes time. The more you work with students, the more you鈥檒l realize how certain tests can better help them. In fact, as you prepare to become a teacher, you鈥檒l see how assessments can help you better evaluate student learning.听听听
If you鈥檙e balancing work while preparing for a teaching career, an education degree can help you start with confidence by helping you develop your assessment skills. 麻豆原创 offers multiple online degree programs with flexible schedules for working adults, including bachelor鈥檚 degrees for both elementary education and special education.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Formative assessments act as signposts to help teachers track learning and understanding in their students. Summative assessments grade students on how well they understood the material听of the course.听
Examples include a short quiz, an impromptu class discussion, or a quick conversation after class.听
Examples include finals, an end-of-unit test, or a significant group project.听
They can but often don鈥檛. Some in-class quizzes may have scores attached, but even in this case, the points earned are usually low.听听听
Sometimes. For example, a group project may lead to verbal feedback during class and a final grade when completed.听听听
Teachers should use formative assessments to discover student needs and deepen student relationships throughout a unit or course. Summative assessments should be used to challenge students and to improve coursework after a unit or course.听听听
