Examples Of Formative And Summative Assessment

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Assessment plays an integral part of the teaching and learning process by providing teachers with information on students’ developing mathematical capabilities (Booker, Bond, Sparrow, & Swan, 2010; Reys et al., 2012). Assessment is a daily requirement within the primary school context and when properly developed and interpreted can be used positively to encourage students, provide information to direct and modify teaching and learning activities, provide feedback to students about progress and contribute to reporting (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development [DEECD], 2009; Junpeng, 2012; New South Wales Department of Education and Communities, 2011). This essay will examine formative and summative assessment strategies teachers Teachers use a range of formative assessment tools and teaching approaches to gather evidence for the purposes of: monitoring and measuring student learning; providing students with feedback; and providing feedback to inform teaching and modifying instructional strategies to enhance students’ knowledge and performance in mathematics (ACARA, 2015; DEECD, 2009; McMillan, 2011; Taylor-Cox, & Oberdorf, 2013). Regular use of formative assessment improves student learning as instruction can be adjusted based on students’ progress and teachers are able to modify instructions to cater to students’ individual needs (Black & Wiliam, 2010; Taylor-Cox, & Oberdorf, 2013). Various forms of informal and formal formative assessment methods are conducted as learning takes place, continuously through teacher observations, questioning through individual interactions, group discussions and open-ended tasks (McMillan, The data gained from standardised test can be used as evidence to compare mathematical achievement at a state, school or class level but could also be used to diagnose students’ strengths and weakness to refine teaching programs (Reys et al., 2012). Saubern (2010) maintains standardised tests provides teachers with relevant and useable feedback on student achievement and learning, but the timing of the tests and reporting schedule don’t always meet the classroom teacher’s need for timely and current knowledge. One of the main criticisms of standardised tests is they emphasise recalling facts and teachers encourage rote and superficial learning instead of thinking and problem solving skills (Black & Wiliam, 2010;Woolfolk & Margetts, 2010). Standardised tests do not require students to demonstrate their thinking, the grading function are overemphasized, while the giving of useful advice and the learning function are underemphasized (Black & Wiliam, 2010; Booker et a., 2010). Perso (2009) argues many Australian students may struggle to read and interpret questions on the NAPLAN numeracy test because they are not taught the literacy skills in their mathematics learning

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