What are Formative and Summative Assessments?
Assessments are activities that students complete to show what they have learned. In my classes, there are two types of assessment: formative and summative. Both types help me understand each student's progress and how to support their growth, but only one counts towards their course mark.
Formative Assessments
Formative assessments take place during the learning process when students are learning new information or practicing their skills. They are assessment for learning, which means they help both teachers and students see what is going well and what still needs work. These types of assessments:
Examples of Formative Assessments: class discussions, exit slips, drafts, one-on-one check-ins, peer editing
- Take place frequently
- Give students a chance to practice skills before a summative assessment
- Focus on a specific concept or skill
- Help me identify who needs more help and practice
- Provide targeted feedback to help students improve
Examples of Formative Assessments: class discussions, exit slips, drafts, one-on-one check-ins, peer editing
Summative Assessments
Summative assessments take place at the end of a learning period, like a unit or a semester. They are an assessment of learning, which means they help both teachers and students understand how well key skills and concepts have been developed over time. These types of assessments:
Examples of Summative Assessments: projects, tests, essays, presentations
- Take place less frequently
- Evaluate students' ability to apply multiple skills and make connections across topics
- Determine who is ready to move on, who needs extra support, and who might benefit from some re-teaching and re-assessment
- Provide general feedback on strengths and areas for growth, so students can set goals for future learning
Examples of Summative Assessments: projects, tests, essays, presentations
The Role of Formative and Summative Assessments in Overall Marks:
Formative assessments are practice opportunities. They let students try new skills, make mistakes, and improve. Because they don't usually reflect a student's best or final understanding, they are not typically used to calculate final grades. The only exception is when important summative assessments are missing due to illness or other special circumstances.
By the time students complete summative assessments, they have had plenty of time to learn the material, practice the skills, and receive feedback. Summative assessments are also larger assignments that allow students to show a deeper and more complex understanding of the material and fully demonstrate their skills, so they are usually the best examples of students' understanding of the curriculum. For these reasons, final grades are mainly based on summative assessment marks.
By the time students complete summative assessments, they have had plenty of time to learn the material, practice the skills, and receive feedback. Summative assessments are also larger assignments that allow students to show a deeper and more complex understanding of the material and fully demonstrate their skills, so they are usually the best examples of students' understanding of the curriculum. For these reasons, final grades are mainly based on summative assessment marks.
