Assessment in Primary Science

Formative assessment

Often called ‘Assessment for learning’ and involving a range of techniques and strategies typically used by teachers in the classroom day-to-day to gauge how well a learner is progressing, to identify any misconceptions or difficulties the learner is having (also known as diagnostic assessment) and to identify what to teach next (‘next steps’). It aims to promote better learning and improve the effectiveness of teaching. Usually it uses processes such as self-assessment, peer-assessment, feedback, moderation and dialogue between teachers and learners. NB The same assessment activity might be described as ‘summative’ and/or ‘formative’ assessment depending on the intentions and context.