12.+Sum+vs.+Form

=Formative and Summative evaluation: =  These two types of evaluations are critical to any learning experience where the instructor wants to evaluate the learning. The evaluation should serve a two-fold purpose; to evaluate what the learner was able to learn and to evaluate the quality of the instruction. The key difference in the two types is the purpose of the assessment; specifically, how you will use the data collected. 

Formative evaluation:
 The purpose of a formative assessment is to inform the instructor about how the learners are progressing. This is particularly critical in teaching and is, in my opinion, frequently over-looked. If formative assessments are used regularly then the instructor knows whether or not the instruction is working and the learners are learning the content or skill needed. In addition to telling the instructor that a group is not learning something, it also tells an instructor if the learners already have a strong understanding of a concept and that further instruction on that topic is not only needles, but can be counterproductive as the learners may become bored and inattentive (and in middle school they can sometimes become disruptive).  Formative assessments do not need to be terribly complex; just well thought out. An occasional question can be enough to determine whether or not the group is “on-track.” These questions can require written, verbal, or physical responses (such as all who think that the answer is “magnetism” stand in this corner of the room and everyone who thinks the answer is “electricity” stand in this corner of the room and any “uncertain” students need to stand in the middle of the room). Formative assessments can be quick and easy to “grade” as long as they truly show whether or not the learners have a good grasp on the content. A formative assessment can also be a longer written quiz or skill demonstration, it just depends on the information that the instructor needs.  The key result of a formative assessment, however, is that the information gathered is used to inform the learning process. The data collected can be used to show that a concept was not well understood and needs to be re-taught or it can show that most of the learners have full comprehension of the concept and only a few need remediation. Since the goal of formative assessment is to see whether or not the instruction is working, it is in the best interests of the instructor to make sure that the question(s) asked are simple, clear, and only test whether or not this specific content has been learned.  

Summative evaluation:
 The key difference for a summative evaluation is that the data is not being used to change the instruction for this group of learners. When a summative assessment is given, the instructional time for a particular concept should be complete. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Negative results from a summative assessment can be the result of three things; the learners did not successfully learn enough of the content, the delivery of the content was poor and/or incomplete, or both. Regardless of the outcome, the instruction of this specific content for this specific groups of learners is over. The results can be used to revise the instruction, but that will be for the next group of learners. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">A summative assessment can take a variety of forms depending on the needs of the instructor. For an upcoming summative assessment, I may ask my students a multiple choice question that gauges whether or not they know what a closed electrical circuit does or I may give them the materials they need to make a closed electrical circuit and score them on whether or not they are able to complete the task (or may have them do both!). The difference between summative and formative is what I will do with the results. If this was formative, I would re-teach the concept to those students who show that they do not have understanding of the concept. With a summative assessment, I will not re-teach the concept to any students in this group of students. I may revise my lessons for next year’s group, but this group will be done with electricity and on to weather. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">I feel that summative assessment is seen as the more important form of assessment, but I think that the opposite is true. If you have conducted numerous formative assessments as you have worked through the content and re-taught ideas and skills that the formative assessments show were not fully learned then the summative assessment should be a simple task. At this point, the learners should have demonstrated mastery of the content on the formative assessments so the learners should be very successful on the summative assessment. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">I have seen two schools of thought on this process. A negative view would say that this is teaching to the test. I feel that is simplistic and incorrect. If you base your summative assessment on the standards that the students are expected to learn and then teach your students according to those standards, re-teaching when your formative assessments tell you that you need to, then why shouldn’t your students do very well on the summative assessment especially if it is a criterion referenced assessment? <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Types of assessments:
<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Objective tests can be difficult to write, but are very simple to give and, typically, to score. The difficulty in writing a good objective test is in creating test items that are of high quality. Many test items that are poorly written are either confusing or they test more that one concept. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">A constructed response test might take less overall time to create, but is much more challenging to grade due to the possibility of more than one correct response. Another challenging aspect of grading essay-type response is the use of language and organization of thought element. A response may correctly explain the concept but be so poorly organized that the response receives a low rating despite the correct demonstration of knowledge. This is where a rubric can be very handy. If the learners know that the organization of their response will account for a significant portion of their rating, then he or she will be more likely to pay close attention to that aspect of their writing. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">A performance assessment is critical if you are teaching a skill. A multiple choice test about replacing brake shoes is not sufficient; the learner must demonstrate the physical ability to correctly remove, replace, and reassemble all of the necessary components. This type of assessment is most suitable to testing a skill as opposed to retention of knowledge. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">A portfolio can be the best of both worlds. Learners need to include pieces that show that they have mastered certain content or skills. A drawback to a portfolio is that it is best as a summative assessment as this is a method for the learner to show their mastery of the instruction. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Problems with assessments:
<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">No assessment is without fail, but it is up to the designer to remove as many obstacles as possible so the truest data can be collected. A second language student may have complete knowledge of a concept but be unable to convey that knowledge acceptably in an essay. A student with a learning disability may not be able to understand a printed test, but be able to show his or her true mastery if a concept when the test is read aloud. <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">It is up to the designer to evaluate the needs of the learners when creating any type of assessment and to provide modifications to those learners who would otherwise be at a disadvantage. This does not include the student who does not work, but it certainly can include providing a distraction free environment so the student with ADD/ADHD can focus on the test just like everyone else.

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Survey:
<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive"> <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive">Here is a link to a [|survey] that I made to give to my students regarding our recent unit on electricity and magnetism.