My reflection on formative assessment

Formative assessment is generally carried out by students during a course of study to help them in the process of learning while Summative assessment is typically taken towards the end of the study to provide an objective scoring of the learning.

 Black and William operate an umbrella definition of "all those activities undertaken by teachers, and/or by students, which provide information to be used as feedback to modify the teaching and learning activities in which they are engaged."

Formative assessment helps them to improve their learning process rather than at the end of the course. Moreover, students take responsibility for their own learning. Students learn valuable lifelong skills such as self evaluation, self assessment. 

 When I observed the cookery class then I realized that the students are well motivated. Their teachers use various kind of assessment to assess their knowledge. Some of them is summative and formative too. No doubt, summative assessment is good to check their knowledge but they can assess it in the end of the course but in the formative assessment a teacher can assess their knowledge at the same point and they are doing well in this part of assessment.

One kind of formative assessment that I have observed during the teaching observation in cookery classes is written below:-

Formative is 'when the chef tastes the food. During the cookery classes Stephen suggested them how can they improve their dishes before serving them to guests. Firstly, he gave them tips such as taste the food and then think, that is it tasty and hygienic? He also suggested them to find out their answer quickly and do their job according to their answer. If yes then they did well. If no then do it again. He also kept an eye on their movements and tried to remove their errors at the same point.

In this way I think the teacher can get an idea who is doing well in his studies or who is very creative. He can suggest the slower learners to do work hard and try to learn. He can create the environment according to their needs.  He can polish their knowledge, their skills. On the other hand, students can boost up their confidence and can work freely.

This kind of assessment gives them positive influence to take part in further studies regarding their concept and also they can improve their confidence level in their lower section. They can get time to remove their errors and can work well before their final assessment.

A reflection on how can I use the formative assessment in my teaching style:-

I really appreciate the Stephen’s style of teaching and also like the effective use of formative assessment. I would like to use this kind of assessment in my teaching subject such as mathematics. I know that mathematics is quite tough subject for few students but after observing the cookery classes now I realized that if I can also use the formative assessment during my teaching session then I can get an idea about the slower learners who find that this topic is difficult and out of range of their mind.

 Moreover, I can know about that on which level they stand? To check their knowledge I can create a quiz competition on the basis of their subject matter that they have done then at the same point I can find the weak students who are slow learners and then I can do something for them such as I can manage some extra classes for them and can find out their difficulty in their concept. I think this idea will work if they want to learn. On the other hand the bright students can get appreciation from their teachers and classmates. This encouragement will work to increase their confidence level and learn more about their subject matter. Other students can also get attracted towards their study by using this method.

I think this kind of assessment give them time to think about their capability to learn. They can know about their result before entering in the exam. According to my point of view, I can say that this kind of assessment is not only useful for teachers but also for students because they learn unconsciously whatever they want or not. It is the best way to revise the subject matter. Moreover, during the quiz they can learn more about the concept and can clear their doubts.

References:-

   Peterson, E., & Siadat, M. V. (2009). Combination of formative and summative assessment instruments in         elementary algebra classes: A prescription for success. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, 16(2), 92-102. http://search.proquest.com/docview/214824385?accountid=39660

Kwan, F. (2011). Formative assessment: The one-minute paper vs. the daily quiz. Journal of Instructional Pedagogies, 5, 1-8. http://search.proquest.com/docview/863850443?accountid=39660