Compare and Contrast Formative and Summative Assessment

 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT:
 Formative assessment is used to monitor student’s learning to provide ongoing feedback that

can be used by instructors or teachers to improve their teaching and by students to improve

their learning.

 The role of formative assessment is to improve learning allows teachers to make decisions

and monitor their instructions based on student’s performance.

 Formative assessment is an ongoing activity. The evaluation takes place during the learning

process. Not just one time, but several times.

 Formative assessment focuses on the process.

 With formative assessments teacher try to figure out whether a student’s doing well or needs

help by monitoring the learning process.

 For formative assessment, the purpose is to improve student’s learning.

 Formative assessment includes little content areas.

 Formative assessment is designed to adjust teaching and learning while they are still

occurring.

 Formative assessment considers evaluation as a process. This way, the teacher can see a

student grow and steer the student in an upwards direction.

 Examples of formative assessments include

 In-class discussions

 Weekly quizzes

 Homework assignments
 SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT:
 Summative assessment, however, is used to evaluate student’s learning at the end of an

instructional unit by comparing it against some standard or benchmark.

 The role of summative assessment is to predict and judge students’ performance. Give grades

and content being taught.

 A summative evaluation takes place at a complete other time. Not during the process, but

after it. The evaluation takes place after a course or unit’s completion.

 When teacher use summative assessments, he/she assign grades. The grades tell whether the

student achieved the learning goal or not.

 Summative assessment focuses on outcome.

 For summative assessment, the purpose is to evaluate student’s achievements.

 Summative assessment includes complete chapters or content areas.

 Summative assessment is designed to provide information about the amount of learning that

has occurred at the particular time.

 With summative assessment it’s harder for you to steer the student in the right direction. The

evaluation is already done. That’s why summative assessments or evaluations are considered

to be more of a “product”.

 Examples of summative assessments include:

 a midterm exam

 a final project

 a paper