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FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTFORMATIVE ASSESSMENTIN ACTIONIN ACTION
W. James PophamUniversity of California, Los Angeles
Oakland Schools—in Partnership with the Michigan Assessment Consortium:
NATIONAL SPEAKER SERIES
Waterford, MichiganFebruary 6, 2015
Today’s Foci: Four Understandings Today’s Foci: Four Understandings about Formative Assessmentabout Formative Assessment
• What It Is and What It Isn’t• What It Can Do and What It Can’t• One Cut of Formative Assessment’s Cake• Why Learning Progressions Must Lurk
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment:What It IsWhat It Is
Formative assessment is a planned process in which assessment-elicited evidence of students’ status is used by teachers to adjust their ongoing instructional procedures or by students to adjust their current learning-tactics.
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment: What It Isn’tWhat It Isn’t
• It is not a test.
• It is not an interim test (also referred to as a benchmark or periodic test) administered every few months by schools or districts.
• It is not the unplanned, serendipitous use of student cues to adjust teaching.
A Turn & Talk TaskA Turn & Talk Task
Please turn to one or two nearby Please turn to one or two nearby neighbors, if possible, selecting those neighbors, if possible, selecting those who seem fairly bright. Assume they who seem fairly bright. Assume they are not educators but, rather, laypeople are not educators but, rather, laypeople who are concerned about our schools. who are concerned about our schools. They have asked you to tell them what They have asked you to tell them what is meant by this “formative assessment is meant by this “formative assessment stuff.” Alternately, describe to each stuff.” Alternately, describe to each other what this label means.other what this label means.
FORMATIVE FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTASSESSMENT
A PlannedA PlannedProcess to Base Process to Base
Adjustment Adjustment Decisions on Decisions on Assessment Assessment
EvidenceEvidence
=
Why Michigan Teachers Should Why Michigan Teachers Should Routinely Employ Formative AssessmentRoutinely Employ Formative Assessment
• School AccountabilitySchool Accountability:: Because Because students’ performances on students’ performances on accountability tests will play a key role accountability tests will play a key role in determining a school’s success.in determining a school’s success.
• Teacher EvaluationTeacher Evaluation: Because the best : Because the best evidence of student growth in teacher evidence of student growth in teacher evaluation is apt to be students’ pre-evaluation is apt to be students’ pre-post performance on classroom tests.post performance on classroom tests.
A Turn & Talk TaskA Turn & Talk Task
Please turn to one or two nearby Please turn to one or two nearby colleagues, then take turns trying to colleagues, then take turns trying to persuade each other that teachers persuade each other that teachers should use formative assessment on the should use formative assessment on the basis of basis of eithereither (1) school accountability (1) school accountability oror (2) teacher evaluation. Thereafter, (2) teacher evaluation. Thereafter, choose the choose the otherother reason and, once more, reason and, once more, trot out your persuasion ploys.trot out your persuasion ploys.
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment:What It Can DoWhat It Can Do
In a research review based on 250 empirical studies of classroom assessment that had been drawn from more than 680 published investigations, Paul Black and Dylan Wiliam concluded:
“The research reported here shows conclusively that formative assessment does improve learning.” (Assessment in Education, 1998)
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment:What It Can DoWhat It Can Do
Two Other Quotes from the Research Review:
• The student gains in learning triggered by formative assessment were “amongst the largest ever reported for educational interventions.”
• “Significant gains can be achieved by many different routes, and initiatives here are not likely to fail through neglect of delicate and subtle features.”
And More Recently:And More Recently:
“Five reviews of the research in this area synthesized a total of more than 4,000 research studies undertaken during the last 40 years. The conclusion was clear: When implemented well, formative assessment can effectively double the speed of student learning.” (Wiliam, Educational Leadership, 2007-2008)
And Even More Recently:And Even More Recently:
“There is now a strong body of There is now a strong body of theoretical and empirical work that theoretical and empirical work that suggests that integrating assessment suggests that integrating assessment with instruction may well have with instruction may well have unprecedented power to increase unprecedented power to increase student engagement and to improve student engagement and to improve learning outcomes.” (Wiliam, D., 2011,learning outcomes.” (Wiliam, D., 2011, Studies in Educational Evaluation)Studies in Educational Evaluation)
On October 13, 2009, I received an e-mail from a colleague in Ohio, Dr. Saundra Brennan, who relayed to me an invitation she had received from the Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators. It was to take part in:
A FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT WORSHIP
Besides Analytical and Empirical Besides Analytical and Empirical Undergirding, Here’s Spiritual Support:Undergirding, Here’s Spiritual Support:
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment: What It Can’t DoWhat It Can’t Do
It cannot raise scores sufficiently on instructionally insensitive accountability tests such as those so widely used these days to satisfy the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act.
A Definition of Instructional Sensitivity A Definition of Instructional Sensitivity
The degree to which students’ The degree to which students’ performances on a test accurately performances on a test accurately reflect the quality of instruction reflect the quality of instruction specifically provided to promote specifically provided to promote students’ mastery of what is being students’ mastery of what is being assessed.assessed.
Why Might a Test Item be Instructionally Why Might a Test Item be Instructionally Insensitive?Insensitive?
• Alignment LeniencyAlignment Leniency
• Excessive EasinessExcessive Easiness
• Excessive DifficultyExcessive Difficulty
• Confusion-Engendering Item FlawsConfusion-Engendering Item Flaws
• Socioeconomic Status (SES) LinksSocioeconomic Status (SES) Links
• Academic Aptitude LinksAcademic Aptitude Links
Socioeconomic Status (SES) LinksSocioeconomic Status (SES) Links
If an item gives a meaningful advantage If an item gives a meaningful advantage to students from higher SES families, to students from higher SES families, then the item will tend to measure what then the item will tend to measure what students bring to school rather than students bring to school rather than how well they are taught once they get how well they are taught once they get there.there.
• In which of the sentences below does the word field mean the same thing as in the sentence above?A. The shortstop knew how to field his
position.B. We prepared the field by plowing it.C. What field do you plan to enter when you
graduate?D. The nurse examined my field of vision.
A 4th-Grade Reading Item:
My father’s field is computer graphics.
Academic Aptitude LinksAcademic Aptitude Links
If an item gives a meaningful advantage If an item gives a meaningful advantage to students who possess greater to students who possess greater inheritedinherited quantitative, verbal, or spatial quantitative, verbal, or spatial aptitudes, then the item will tend to aptitudes, then the item will tend to measure what students bring to school measure what students bring to school rather than how well they are taught rather than how well they are taught once they get there.once they get there.
A 4A 4thth-Grade Mathematics Item-Grade Mathematics Item:
• Which of the letters below, when Which of the letters below, when folded in half, will have two parts folded in half, will have two parts that match exactly?that match exactly?
FF(A)(A)
ZZ(B)(B)
SS(C)(C)
BB(D)(D)
A Turn & Talk TaskA Turn & Talk Task
Turning to a colleague (If you seem to be Turning to a colleague (If you seem to be running out of bright neighbors, you running out of bright neighbors, you might move to another group.), assume might move to another group.), assume that your colleague is not familiar with that your colleague is not familiar with instructional sensitivity. instructional sensitivity. Thus, please Thus, please explain to your colleague what explain to your colleague what instructional sensitivity is, and how it can instructional sensitivity is, and how it can reduce the accurate evaluation of reduce the accurate evaluation of teachers or schools. Then switch roles.teachers or schools. Then switch roles.
Why Partitioning It Can Pay OffWhy Partitioning It Can Pay Off
We will now consider a partitioning We will now consider a partitioning proposal, that is, a four-level view of proposal, that is, a four-level view of formative assessment. Although this formative assessment. Although this and other partitioning schemes should and other partitioning schemes should cleave to the essence of research-cleave to the essence of research-ratified formative assessment, they ratified formative assessment, they often help teachers clamber aboard the often help teachers clamber aboard the formative-assessment flotilla.formative-assessment flotilla.
Four Levels of the Formative-Four Levels of the Formative-Assessment ProcessAssessment Process
• Level 1: Teachers’ Instructional Level 1: Teachers’ Instructional AdjustmentsAdjustments
• Level 2: Students’ Learning-Tactic Level 2: Students’ Learning-Tactic AdjustmentsAdjustments
• Level 3: Classroom Climate ShiftLevel 3: Classroom Climate Shift
• Level 4: Schoolwide ImplementationLevel 4: Schoolwide Implementation
Four Levels of Formative Assessment Level 4: Schoolwide Implementation
Level 3: Classroom-Climate Shift
Level 2: Students’ Learning-Tactic Adjustments
Level 1: Teachers’ Instructional Adjustments
Students’ Level 2 Steps
1. Consider adjustment occasions.
2. Consider assessments.
3. Consider adjustment triggers.
4. Adjust learning-tactics?
Teachers’ Level 1 Steps
1. Identify adjustment occasions.
2. Select assessments.
3. Establish adjustment triggers.
4. Make instructional adjustments?
Level 4 Strategies
1. Professional Development
2. Teacher Learning Communities
Level 3 Shifts
1. Learning Expectations
2. Responsibility for learning
3. Role of classroom assessment
Learning Progressions
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment:Why Learning Progressions Why Learning Progressions MustMust Lurk Lurk
(What a learning progression is:)
A learning progression is a sequenced set of building blocks (that is, subskills and/or bodies of enabling knowledge) it is thought students must master en route to mastering a more remote, target curricular aim.
Two Learning Progressions:Both Useful to Educators
Upper-case LEARNING PROGRESSIONS
Lower-case Learning Progressions
Target Curriculum
Aim X
Enabling Knowledge
B
Enabling Knowledge
A
SubskillA
SubskillB
An Illustrative Learning
Progression
A Horizontally Represented Learning Progression
Enabling Knowledge
X
Enabling Knowledge
Y
SubskillZ
TargetCurriculum
Aim Q
Formative Assessment:Formative Assessment:What a Learning Progression is What a Learning Progression is notnot
• A learning progression isn’t unerringly accurate.
• A particular learning progression isn’t going to work for all students.
• A learning progression isn’t necessarily better because it’s more complicated.
A Final Turn & Talk TaskA Final Turn & Talk Task
Why, despite substantial empirical Why, despite substantial empirical evidence to support formative evidence to support formative assessment, are most Michigan assessment, are most Michigan teachers not actually teachers not actually using using it in their it in their own classes? Please explore this own classes? Please explore this question with a neighbor or with your question with a neighbor or with your entire small group. Can you come up entire small group. Can you come up with any ameliorative fixes?with any ameliorative fixes?
To travel more suavely along the To travel more suavely along the formative-assessment trail, read one or formative-assessment trail, read one or
more of these encapsulations of wisdom: more of these encapsulations of wisdom:
• Heritage, M., Heritage, M., Formative Assessment: Making Formative Assessment: Making It Happen in the ClassroomIt Happen in the Classroom, 2010, Corwin, 2010, Corwin
• Popham, W.J., Popham, W.J., Transformative AssessmentTransformative Assessment, , 2008, ASCD2008, ASCD
• Popham, W. J., Popham, W. J., Transformative Assessment Transformative Assessment in Actionin Action, 2011, ASCD, 2011, ASCD
• Wiliam, D., Wiliam, D., Embedded Formative Embedded Formative AssessmentAssessment, 2011, Solution Tree, 2011, Solution Tree
