Using Formative Assessment to Differentiate Middle School Literacy Instruction

Seven Practices to Maximize Learning

Leslie Laud, Pooja Patel

• Publisher: Corwin
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN:
  9781452226217
• eBook ISBN:
  9781452284095
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Teaching Languages

Formative assessment and differentiated instruction made manageable

We all recognize the countless benefits of differentiated instruction. The challenge is in its implementation. Faced with a classroom of 25 students—each with very different needs—how can we possibly keep every student on track and motivated? Through formative assessment and efficient follow-up instruction. This start-to-finish guide will show you how through seven classroom-tested practices for maximizing student learning.

Established experts on this subject, Leslie Laud and Pooja Patel demonstrate how to:

• Establish new classroom norms 
• Involve students in the use of assessment data and feedback to inform their next steps
• Clarify end-of-unit criteria to help map learning progression
• Apply assessment data to grouping students for tiered activities
• Differentiate assignments based on student readiness, characteristics, and interest

Best of all, Using Formative Assessment to Differentiate Middle School Literacy Instruction is packed with vignettes, sample worksheets, and charts to assist you through each step in the process. Armed with this toolkit, you?ll quickly discover new ways to keep all students engaged in their learning.

1	Getting Started With Formative Assessment

When we first read about formative assessment, the compelling research sparked our immediate interest. In a nutshell, formative assessment involves collecting and using ongoing assessment data regularly to inform teaching and learning, rather than merely to assign grades. Research shows that formative assessment can double student learning, and it can result in even greater gains for students who struggle (Black & Wiliam, 1998). The more formative assessment is used, the greater the gains. Students given one formative assessment per 15-week period scored 13% higher on final achievement measures. Students receiving 20 assessments scored 26% higher, and those who received 30 assessments scored almost 30% higher (Bangert-Drowns, Kulik, Kulik, & Morgan, 1991).

After using formative assessment regularly, we found this research even more compelling. We witnessed this accelerated growth as our students in special education were mainstreamed back into regular education at rates we had never seen before. Even more gratifying, we watched students beam with pride at what they could now accomplish. Our most disengaged students came alive as they systematically took charge of their own learning and saw their efforts pay off. Moreover, our students unanimously told us how much they liked formative assessments. While the research piqued our interest, our experience secured our buy-in.

In this first chapter you will find:

• An introduction to the formative assessment framework
• An overview of the purpose of formative assessment
• Three ways to begin using formative assessment, with vignettes that illustrate the three paths teachers typically follow
• A self-assessment tool to help you determine how much formative assessment you already use in your own classroom
• Steps to establishing a classroom culture that supports formative assessment practices

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK

Formative assessment provides a framework of practices in which both you and your students use assessment data to shift the mindset away from gauging “What has been taught?” toward “What has been learned?” You and your students then use the information gained to guide what you teach and what they focus on learning.

So what exactly is a “formative assessment framework,” and where did this framework originate? Formative assessment is a framework of related practices originally proposed by Sadler (1989) and perpetuated by other researchers and practitioners. This framework includes not only the collection of assessment data to inform instruction and learning, but also several related practices that guide which data to collect and how to use these data. Wiliam (2010) formally defined the formative assessment framework as how teachers or students use assessment data to make decisions about next steps—decisions that are better founded with these data than those made without these data.

The research of Black and Wiliam (1998) references and builds on Sadler’s (1989) framework. In their view, for assessment to qualify as formative assessment, it must:

• Be based on and directly convey criteria or standards
• Be followed by detailed, clear, and specific feedback
• Involve students in self-assessment, using feedback and goal-directed behavior
• Use the data gathered to inform next steps and adjust teaching practices
• Recognize the enormous impact of assessment on students’ confidence and motivation

Therefore, the process of formative assessment involves (1) specifying and conveying standards, (2) collecting assessment data on where students are in relation to these standards, and (3) sharing the data with students via detailed feedback. It is essential to ensure that students are actively involved; their participation is a critical piece of the formative assessment framework. Students will often score their own formative assessments and determine how they can use the results to inform what they focus on learning.

It is also critical for you to use the assessment data “to inform next steps and adjust teaching practices,” or to differentiate instruction. Tomlinson (1999) defines differentiating instruction as an organized, flexible, proactive approach to adjusting instruction so that it best meets the needs of all learners and promotes maximum growth for all.

As discussed in the Preface, we developed our own formative assessment framework based on research and classroom experiences (see Figure 1.1). Our framework presents seven practices, or steps, for practitioners; each practice is followed by research that validates its effectiveness.

We suggest that you approach the list of practices as you would a buffet. Do not expect to engage in all of these practices at once or within a short time frame. Teachers we have worked with have repeatedly recommended that we emphasize this. Fortunately, choosing and using only a few practices will still increase student achievement. For the most part, the teachers we worked with tested the practices by selecting only a few of the strategies; in some cases, they used even the ones they chose only partially. Yet they quickly discovered that student achievement rose in notable and exciting ways. This finding is confirmed by larger-scale research (Ruiz-Primo & Furtak, 2006).

Figure 1.1

Seven formative assessment practices.

The first column of Figure 1.2 shows classroom characteristics and practices that exemplify these formative assessment practices; the second column shows those that do not.

Figure 1.2

Comparison of formative assessment–based and performance-based classrooms.

These practices can seem daunting. As one teacher joked, “Being expected to do all seven of these practices now there’s an argument for merit pay!” But again, you can pursue these individually. First, use the self-assessment at the end of this chapter to note which ones you already do. Then consider each carefully, weighing which benefits would help the most in your current situation. We suggest you prioritize and select two or three to focus on each year.

THE PURPOSE OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

As we have noted, the ultimate role of formative assessment in the classroom is twofold:

1. You will use the results of the assessments to alter your teaching practices.
2. Your students will use the results to set goals and focus their learning efforts.

The fundamental purpose must be to increase student learning, not to collect data. Let us take a brief look at that purpose in more detail here.

A colleague recently asked, “What is formative assessment, and what is the purpose?” Almost any assessment can be used summatively or formatively. Traditionally, schools have focused on summative assessments, which summarize learning and are used to compare students’ achievements to one another for the purpose of assigning grades or ranking students. In contrast, formative assessments actually inform next steps taken by students and teachers in ways that enhance achievement. Essentially, formative assessment looks forward to how the information we gain from looking at student work can inform future instructional decisions, much like how information gained from a physical exam might inform future health choices we make.

Moreover, formative assessment is often conceptualized as “assessment for learning” rather than “assessment of learning.” Summative assessment takes time away from learning for assessment of learning. But with formative assessment, you can use assessment purposefully for learning, as an integral contribution to learning. You can integrate assessment with learning so that it becomes a powerfully effective learning activity itself. Formative assessment is not about giving assessments; it is about using the results to teach differently (Reeves, 2005).

Formative assessment offers a paradigmatic shift concerning some of the deepest purposes of education. Until recently, schools functioned to sort students (Wiggins, 2005). School practices, including assessment, separated those who knew from those who did not. Assessment results were often used to determine who could continue in academic tracks and who would be placed in vocational tracks. Now schools must ensure that all students strive to meet certain standards. Organizations such as the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) have called for a shift in the purpose of education, with the primary role of assessment no longer being to “prove [emphasis added] whether teaching or learning has taken place, but to improve [emphasis added] the quality of teaching and learning and thereby increase the likelihood that all members of the society will acquire a full and critical literacy” (NCTE, 2009, Standard 3).

So the role and purpose of assessment, along with many school practices, has become to maximize learning for all rather than some students. The formative assessment framework enables you and your students to identify standards and to assess where students are in terms of mastering all of those standards. The formative assessment practices offer a research-validated route for the steps that will then need to be taken to close any gap.

THREE WAYS TO BEGIN USING FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Given the definition, framework, and purpose of formative assessment, where and how should you get started? The vignettes in the following sections illustrate three paths that we have observed teachers, including ourselves, take as they get started:

1. Preassessments before a new unit
2. Midunit concept check-ins
3. Specific skill probes

Following these vignettes is a self-assessment tool you can use to identify where you are in using the seven practices that make up our framework—and next steps you can take.

Keep in mind that the teachers in the vignettes began in different places and pursued individually designed goals. Additionally, each teacher used a combination of formative assessment practices, but not all seven.

Preassessments Before a New Unit

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Preassessments are a central practice used frequently in high-performing, high-need districts (Reeves, 2003). Ms. Yang, an eighth-grade teacher in a suburban district, decided early in the year to start using preassessments to enhance how she differentiated instruction. (We discuss differentiated instruction in great detail in Chapter 3.) She based that decision on the following research:

• Students typically already know 40% to 50% of what teachers expect them to learn from an activity (Nuthall, 2007).
• Preassessments help teachers determine instructional levels and avoid reteaching known material.
• When students self-correct, they focus on what they need to work on, set goals, and become motivated to improve.
• Although teachers often believe they can predict students’ performance, research has shown time and again that their judgments are often inaccurate (Begeny, Krouse, Groce, & Mann, 2011; Eckert, Dunn, Codding, Begeny, & Kleinmann, 2006).

To begin, Ms. Yang identified practices she already used. She regularly offered differentiated classwork, homework, and tests so that students would spend more time working at their respective instructional levels. She decided her next step would be to give formal diagnostic preassessments before units.

As a trial, Ms. Yang gave a preassessment performance task that measured sentence variety in essay writin...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• About the Authors
• About the Contributor
• Dedication
• 1. Getting Started With Formative Assessment
• 2. Standards, Feedback, and Assessment Options
• 3. What Is Differentiated Instruction?
• 4. How Do I Differentiate Lessons?
• 5. Time Management Strategies
• 6. Supporting Students Who Are Low Achieving
• 7. Challenging Students Who Are Gifted or High Achieving
• References
• Index