Enhancing Inquiry through Formative Assessment A monograph by W. Harlen (2003)

1. Enhancing Inquiry through Formative AssessmentA monograph by W. Harlen (2003) Summarized by: MekbibAlemu(PhD student in SMED, AAU) January 25, 2011

2. Defnitions: • Assessment :involves gathering evidence, interpreting it, and using the result in some way. How these things are done depends on the purpose of the assessment. • Formative assessment refers to the gathering and use of information about students’ ongoing learning by both teachers and studentsto modify teaching and learning activities in order to help learning (assessment for learning). • Summative assessment involves gathering, recording and reporting individual students’ achievement at certain time (assessment of learning).

3. Defnitions: (cont.) • “scientific literacy” a grasp of basic science concepts and the ability to use them to “identify questions and to draw evidence-based conclusions in order to understand and help make decisions about the natural world and the changes made to it through human activity” (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 1999) • Aim of Scientific Literacy equipping students not just with mere facts and skills, but with “the capacity to readily acquire new knowledge, to solve new problems, and to employ creativity and critical thinking in the design of new approaches to existing problems” (President’s Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology, 1997)

4. Inquiry and Formative assessment: • Inquiry approaches: • their implementation ensures that students use and develop skills and ideas; • give teachers opportunities to assess this development • Formative assessment • provides information about where students are in relation to learning goals • Conclusion: • It is not possible to practice inquiry-based approaches in the classroom without also using formative assessment practices.

5. Why formative assessment? • Research reveled that it is the most significant single factor in raising the academic achievement. • Teachers need to use information about where students are in relation to learning goals in Science inquiry teaching and learning in order to determine subsequent tasks and levels. • considerations of equity (gender, language, and culture, “preferred intelligences”), since formative assessment is not dependent on tests, which introduce bias into measures of achievement • decreasing the gap in performance among students.

6. Why formative assessment? . . . • improving the communication of goals to students and parents increases students’ productive work. • ensuring that decisions are based on carefully interpreted evidence by providing a more formal structure for making judgments about how well students are doing. • the gap between the students and the teacher reduces and students will take responsibility and commitment to their learning

7. Goals C B Students’ activities A Teacher collects evidence relating to goals Teacher decides how to help next steps Students Next Steps in learning Evidence Teacher decides appropriate next steps Teacher interprets evidence Judgment of Achieve- The process of formative assessment

8. Inhibitory factors for formative assessment: • Views of the process of learning and the nature of science • The pressure of external (summative) tests • The pressure of time in the classroom • Limited opportunities for professional exchange within schools • Lack of appropriate provision in pre-service education and further professional development programs

9. What to do to enhance the practice of formative assessment? • Encourage teachers to try incorporating formative assessment into their teaching, and to see for themselves its powerful effect on learning. • Use information gathered from formative assessment for more reliable summative assessment and school improvement purposes. • Reduce curriculum width and increase its depth • Create forums for teachers to share their insights and ideas with their peers

10. What to do to enhance the practice of formative assessment? . . . • Include opportunities learning about formative assessment and inquiry in pre-service and professional development programs. • Provide administrative and policy support at local and regional level to encourage inquiry based learning and use of formative assessment.

11. Thankyou!