I wanted to
continue talking about Formative Assessment since it is a focus for our
school. Many researchers define it in
different ways but one stood out to me as I have been reading material. According to Marzano, “formative assessment
is intimately tied to the formal and informal processes in classrooms. It
is important to keep one thing in mind when considering the practice of
formative assessment. By definition, formative assessment is intimately tied to
the formal and informal processes in classrooms.” Marzano
uses the word processes in one of his
descriptions of formative assessment which is a word that triggered me to think
of the meaning of learning and how it relates to process. Students are in school to learn. Students are in school going through a
process. Did I just repeat myself? Process by definition according to the
Merriam-Webster dictionary, is defined as a “series of actions that produce
something or that lead to a particular result.”
Ultimately, every action students go through in their daily education
should result in a positive outcome. The
outcomes should be aligned to curriculum which is designed based on
standards. Yes, I did repeat myself
because learning is a series of moves that all people make in order to achieve
a result. Learning in school or going
through a process in school should be purposeful, engaging, and
productive. So, how does Formative
Assessment relate to learning or the process a student goes through in school? As teachers we need to ensure that the student’s
processes are going in the right direction.
Are they moving toward the outcomes?
We as teachers also go through a process; a series of actions that supports
learning. The instructional process is
what will bridge the student goals to the student outcomes. If we do not formatively assess our process
that targets the essential learning, then how will we know if our process is
the right process for students?
