Education Commons^™

The Impact Of Formative Assessment Cycles On Students' Attitudes And Achievement In A Large-Enrollment Undergraduate Introductory Statistics Course, Kimberleigh Felix Hadfield

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study aimed to investigate the impact of student attitudes toward statistics and student achievement after engaging in large-enrollment introductory statistics course curriculum using continuous formative assessments with feedback and reassessment opportunities. This framework, called Formative Assessment Cycles (FACs) was implanted, providing students formative assessments both in and out of the classroom, with feedback and reassessment. A quasi-experimental, quantitative research design allowed for the investigation of course achievement from pre-FACs to FACs semesters using regression discontinuity methodology. Changes in attitudes from pre- to post-survey in semesters using a curriculum with FACs were analyzed by multilevel regression techniques. Course achievement improved …

Using Formative Assessment And Linguistic Representation In Math Instruction, Emily Lorenzen, Saundra Shillingstad

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

This capstone project reports the instructional strategies and formative assessments implemented throughout an elementary mathematics unit. The capstone reports the benefits and effectiveness of two instructional strategies that promote student learning with the content of telling time, creating and analyzing graphs, and word problems. The unit included a pre-test, midpoint check, post-test, and 17 lessons taught over the course of five weeks. I collected and analyzed data from the pre-test, midpoint check, post-test, and various exit tickets throughout the unit.

Technological Tools And Methods Used In Formative Assessment Activities, Lisa E. Goldsmith

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation examined the use of technological tools in formative assessment activities. These phenomena have left teachers searching for timely methods to perform formative assessment or assessment for learning activities. The problem addressed by this study was that standardized testing, large class size, and increasing distance learning at all educational levels, achieving formative assessment tasks necessary for successful learning can be a challenge. The sample from which data was gathered was 189 studies and academic articles. The target of the assessment process became apparent in many of the sections studied, which led to information about the impact of the …

Teacher Perspectives On Formative Assessment Within A Primary Classroom, Dawn M. Macdonald

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

Research has acknowledged the importance of the beliefs of educators and how their beliefs have implications impacting their classroom practices (Clark, 1987; Doyle 1997; Zhou & Urhahne, 2018; Graham & Pajares, 1997). Teachers’ beliefs have been a significant topic for researchers due to the contribution they provide for the development of teaching and learning (Gilakjani & Sabouri, 2017). Above all, with increasing attention on teacher quality and effectiveness internationally there has been little research looking at the influences between teachers’ classroom practices and their judgments on student learning (Devine, Fahie, & McGillicudy, 2013).

Further research may benefit teachers who are …

The Impact Of Utilizing Non-Permanent Workspaces As A Formative Assessment Tool On Students’ Outcomes And Attitudes Towards Mathematics In A Middle School Math Classroom, Robert Minkkinen

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The present study investigated the effectiveness of utilizing non-permanent workspaces as formative assessment tools for middle school mathematics students in regards to their academic performance and feelings or attitudes towards mathematics. The researcher took two sections of eight grade basic algebra students, and implemented the practice of utilizing non-permanent workspaces as formative assessment tools with one section, and similar formative assessment strategies with the other section of students, but without the non-permanent workspaces. The participants from both sections took a pretest and post-test to determine the academic effectiveness of implementing the non-permanent workspaces. The participants from both sections also completed …

Learning In A Community : An Investigation Of Mentor Inquiry Into Formative Assessment Practices, Erin Riley-Lepo

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative, instrumental case study examined how a mentor inquiry community can serve as a space for mentors to articulate their knowledge and what about the inquiry community, its characteristics, might harm or help that development. Using Design-Based Research as the methodology, a mentor inquiry community, composed of three university-based mentors of preservice teachers and I engaged inquiry. Mentors showed their knowledge through their storytelling and problematizing each other’s work. The inquiry community was facilitated by shared symbolic language, and mentors’ off-task talk hindered the current work of the community but may have opened up new avenues of inquiry for …

The Impact On Student Learning Outcomes And Mastery Of The Unit When Guided Feedback Is Added To The Instructional Design, Majida Timimi

International Graduate Program for Educators Master's Projects

Providing feedback after an assessment is a method used to communicate to students that the desired learning outcomes of a unit taught have been met or not. Typically, feedback provided to students is brief and not integrated in the lesson plan. With the disruption that COVID-19 pandemic brought to teaching and learning in educational institutions during the 2020-2021 academic year, there was a gap in the learning outcomes being met by the majority of the students. In this Action Research, I investigated the role feedback had in achieving the desired learning outcomes and mastery of the unit by integrating Guided …

Impact Of Student-Driven Mathematical Assessment On Learning Behaviors In Sixth Grade Students, Cheri R. Gardner

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This seven-week study explored the impact of student-self assessment on learning and engagement behaviors of 48 sixth graders during math classes in a public school setting. Data collection tools such as student surveys, pre-and post -self-assessments, observations, reflections, and teacher- student conferencing provided the information to inform the conclusions regarding self-efficacy. Observation confirmed that a student’s participation in using self-evaluation to contribute to their learning affected internal processes such as motivation and engagement. Assessment activities that provided evidence and feedback to inform goals specific to skill development and learner traits yielded significant results. Highly structured assessment tools and classroom routines …

The Effects Of Student Constructed Formative Assessment In The Elementary Classroom, Jessica Burgwald

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research project studied how student-created formative assessments in mathematics would affect student confidence and perceived math ability. Students participated in a four-week study. The researcher conducted this study in September and October of 2021. The seven participating students were from an Upper Elementary classroom in a private Southern California Montessori school. The intervention consisted of a student-constructed survey taken weekly and a group analysis of the anonymized data collected from the said survey. Additional data sources included parent surveys, end-of-intervention student surveys, and classwork observational tally sheets. This study found that students gained further awareness of their work …

Teacher Perceptions Of Practices That Enculturate Data-Driven Decision-Making, Nevermind Everlasting Chigoba

Theses and Dissertations

Classroom teachers in PK-12 grades in the U.S.A. are under immense pressure to use data from internal and external sources in order to make decisions expected to transform their instructional practice to hopefully meet the adequate yearly progress demanded by accountability policies. This exploratory case study was conducted on a midsized school district in the Midlands region of South Carolina. The study sought to explore what student data forms the district teachers had access to, and how they used those data in making instructional and other student-level decisions. The study also explored the teachers’ perceptions on their attitudes towards data, …

Writing As A Vessel For Thinking: Incorporating Self-Regulation, Metacognition, And Formative Assessment In The Middle School Ela Classroom, Alyssha Ginzel

Culminating Experience Projects

Writing is not only a means of demonstrating what one knows, it is a vessel to knowing. Thus, secondary writing curricula should support students’ learning and knowing. Evidence from meta-analyses suggests that an emphasis on self-regulated instruction to teaching writing (Graham, 2018a; Graham, 2020; Graham & Perin, 2007), metacognitive strategies (Hacker, 2018; Madison et al., 2019), and an emphasis on formative assessment and feedback throughout the writing process (Black & Wiliam, 1998; Fleischer, 2013; Madison et al., 2019) are among the practices with the highest effect sizes on students’ thinking and writing. When purposefully integrating these approaches and practices, secondary-level …

Middle School Teacher Perceptions Of Digital Tool Integration For Formative Assessment And Feedback, Jeanna R. Wagner

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

District leaders in a suburban New England middle school expect that teachers will use technology to administer formative assessments and use the resulting feedback to plan subsequent instruction, but it is often unclear how or if feedback is being used to do so. Anytown Middle School (a pseudonym) teachers inconsistently use digital tools for formative assessment and feedback. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how teachers perceive the use of digital tools to facilitate formative assessment and use the resulting feedback to inform subsequent instruction. Guided by the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) conceptual framework, the …

High School Teachers’ Best Practices For The Use Of Formative Assessment Strategies, Leria Joy Mckenzie

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research has shown that only some teachers use learner-centered approaches in their instruction. However, it is unclear why and how those teachers use such approaches in their instruction. The purpose of this study was to examine one program—feedback, feed up, and feed forward—to understand why and how teachers choose to use this learner-centered instructional method. The study was framed by the concept of learner-centered instruction. With basic qualitative methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8 high school teachers from an island near the United States. The collected data were analyzed using open and axial coding to reveal the themes and …

Teacher Feedback And Assessment Outcomes Of Students: A Literature Review, David Doe Agoha

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines the role of teacher feedback in improving the assessment outcomes of students. The literature review provides a brief overview of the types and levels of feedback, and discusses how the timing, format, and type of feedback affect the learning and assessment outcomes of students. This literature review reveals that feedback is valuable and it closes the gabs between learners’ current understanding and performance compared to their learning targets. It also gives information to both learners and instructors that lead to an adjustment of learning through the use of more effective strategies to achieve learning objectives. Furthermore, feedback …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Impact Of Vertical Non-Permanent Surfaces In Mathematics Classrooms, Michelle Mikes

Ed.D. Dissertations

The historical, traditional mathematics classroom of students sitting in rows receiving information from the teacher and working individually was still prevalent in the 21st century. Many teachers had resorted to student-centered activities to engage passive students, but the minimal progress of math achievement of United States students denoted a need for the reform of the traditional mathematics classroom. In this multi-site, multi-case qualitative study, I explored teacher perceptions of the use of vertical non-permanent surfaces on the impact of engagement, including the use of formative assessment and feedback with mathematics students, and the lesson structure of 360 Degree Math. The …

Influence Of Istation Formative Assessment On Reading Student Achievement, Tiffini Ann Montelione

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many elementary teachers use formative assessment strategies as common practice, yet little information is available regarding specific programs and their influence on student achievement. Accordingly, the problem of this quantitative study was that the influence of the Istation computer-based reading program on student achievement as measured by the English Language Arts Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (ELA PARCC) summative assessment is unknown. The purpose was to investigate the influence of the Istation program on achievement and the use of specific digital learning tools for assessment. Sadler's framework outlined the formative assessment cycle, designed to improve achievement, …

Formative Assessment And Academic Performance As Predictors Of National Physical Therapy Examination Success, Tobi Fox Baldwin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Physical therapy educational researchers have studied various factors that may or may not predict success on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE). One factor that has not been studied extensively is the use of the Academic Practice Examination and Assessment Tool (APEAT) as a formative assessment. The purpose of this study was to determine the predictive power of the APEAT as a formative assessment along with Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program grade point average (GPA) on success on the NPTE. Carless’s learning-oriented assessment theory was used as the theoretical foundation for this study and to guide the analysis of …

Exploring How Formative Assessment Rubric Is Used In Schools To Support Teaching And Learning: A Case Study Of One Primary School In Kenya., Jacqueline Bahati Atak

Theses & Dissertations

Kenya implemented a new curriculum, CBC, due to the flaws experienced by the 8-4-4 system. The realization was made possible by borrowing ideas from countries with success anecdotes in CBC across the globe. A key component of the curriculum design book, the formative assessment rubrics, is a new concept especially in rural public primary schools, Kenya that have limited resources, infrastructure, and teachers. With just over five years of operation, opportunities and challenges are expected in its adoption. However, there is scant literature about the use of rubrics in primary schools in Kenya and therefore, this study sought to explore …

Are Teachers’ Formative Assessment Practices Reliable Indicators Of Students’ Mastery Of Standards?, Olivia Hall

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

Some students, parents, and teachers are concerned over the apparent disparity between a student’s classroom grades and his/her proficiency levels reported from criterion-referenced standardized assessments, such as the Georgia Milestones. The purpose of this research project was to determine if teachers’ formative assessment practices were reliable indicators of students’ mastery of grade-level standards. This study was a mixed-methods study with an explanatory research design. Qualitative data were collected through observations and interviews that analyzed teachers’ perceptions of the meaning of formative assessments and how they are impacted by the summative assessment system. Also, samples of teacher-selected assessments were analyzed to …

How Students Communicate Knowledge: Written Versus Drawn Responses To Formative Assessment Questions In An Introductory Undergraduate Marine Science Course, Christina Siddons

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Undergraduate science education suffers from a lack of concrete instructional strategies that address real-world postgraduate skills such as visual literacy and science communication. Research within marine science education especially lags behind other, more well-researched fields such as physics or mathematics education, both of which have extensive literature addressing specific instructional strategies that instructors can implement in the classroom. Undergraduate marine science programs overlap with content areas from chemistry, physics, and biology, and provide a rich opportunity for examining how to include more authentic educational experiences in an undergraduate classroom. However, the types of assessments that are typically employed tend to …

Integrating Google Forms As A Means Of Formative Assessment In The Elementary Math Classroom, Morgan Douell

Honors Theses

This study provides a case study in the use of Google Forms as a formative assessment tool. Literature regarding formative assessment is included and models are applied in lesson plan development and implementation. However, no research has been found linking the implementation of formative assessment along with Google Forms. Formative assessment and Google Forms both provide feedback to learners, which is a critical component of formative assessment. This study reported the use of formative assessment in conjunction with Google Forms and the impact it has on the lesson planning process. The researcher designed a lesson plan using the principles of …

Key Pedagogical Practices For Formative Assessment In Higher Education, Brita L. Williams

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Instructors in higher education, except those in teacher education, generally do not have any prior pedagogical training nor are they generally required to have such training. Formative assessment is an essential component to creating effective teaching and learning. Most research in methods of formative assessment primarily stems from pedagogical research for the PK‒12 learning environment. Consequently, collegiate instructors typically do not know how to use methods of formative assessment in higher education to gather evidence of learning during the teaching and learning process or why it may inform their instruction and have an impact on student learning; hence, achieving student …

An Examination Of The Use Of Computer-Based Formative Assessments, Patrick D. Sullivan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In one-to-one computing settings, the teacher's own internal beliefs and attitudes will primarily determine how often and in what ways they will use technology with their students. Although a great deal of literature addresses the barriers that teachers face when utilizing technology, the majority of these studies investigated technology use very broadly. The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to investigate the computer-based formative assessment (CBFA) practices of 414 core academic teachers within a one-to-one computing environment in a mid-sized suburban school district to better understand the relationships between CBFA usage rates of teachers and their background and perceptions …

Middle-School Mathematics Teachers' Use Of Formative Assessment Data, Shawana T. Green

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A school district located in the southeastern United States uses benchmark tests as formative assessment to provide teachers with data to differentiate their instruction to meet the individual needs of students in their classrooms. Despite this effort, student achievement in mathematics in this school district has not improved. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how middle-grade mathematics teachers used the benchmark results as formative data to guide instruction and meet student needs. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was the model of formative assessment developed by Black and Wiliam. For this basic qualitative study, …

Implementing Authentic Formative Assessment To Improve Student Learning, Ola Elshurafa

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) capstone addresses the Problem of Practice (POP) pertaining to the lack of a robust system of authentic formative assessment at the Department of Business Administration (DBA) in an Arabian Gulf University. A synthesis on the literature around formative assessment has informed a conceptual model for the POP which highlighted the importance of formative assessment and its positive influence on student learning. This OIP designs a comprehensive and systematic plan which guides change towards the improvement of the POP, targeting stronger system performance and enhanced outcomes for student learning. Using an organizational culture lens, this OIP …

The Effect Of Formative Assessment On Student Motivation And Self-Regulation, Beau Simon

Graduate Teacher Education

The main purpose of this study was to determine whether the use of formative assessment in a high school classroom setting would increase student motivation and self-regulated learning strategies. The sample (n=41) in this study included students from grades 7-12 social studies course. The researcher engaged in formative assessment strategies paired with formative feedback aimed at improving student understanding of concepts and ideas in social studies. Based on the research, formative assessment, paired with formative feedback, can give students the motivation to aide their learning, and help them learn rather than memorize. The shortened 44-item Motivational Strategies for …

Sources Of Missed Understanding: A Framework For Diagnosing Comprehension Breakdown, Tarr Jennifer

Dissertations

This research sought to understand how a formative assessment framework created by the researcher (called the Sources of Missed Understanding construct) would be used by teachers to diagnose students’ reading comprehension challenges during authentic reading instruction, and to understand the context and supports teachers needed to use the tool effectively. A design experiment methodology was used to follow the diagnostic processes of five reading specialist candidates, each working one-to-one with an upper elementary or middle school reader during a five week summer university-based tutoring setting, resulting in five case studies and cross case analysis. This study shows that teachers who …

The Influence Of Question Sequencing Using Formative Assessment In Introductory Statistics, Bryan Nelson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Formative assessment has long been used to gauge students’ understanding of course material prior to taking an exam. With the advent of more advanced technology, only recently have instructors been able to combine formative assessment with a student response system to allow students to respond to questions in real time during class. Previous studies show mixed findings on the relationship between the use of student response systems and student learning. For example, some studies show that those students who used a student response system performed better on exams or in the course when compared to those who did not, while …

Formative Assessment As A Method To Improve Student Performance In The Sciences, Natalie Miller

Honors Projects

This study focused on utilizing formative assessment to shape student understanding and teaching practices in a junior high science classroom. Students were given a pre-test as a method of formative assessment and their results on the pre-assessment before instruction were compared to their performance on a modified post-test. Students received direct instruction, completed an independent project, and responded to daily “bellringer” questions as a form of additional formative assessment before taking the post-test. Students showed marked improvement on the post-test as average scores increased from a 35.7 percent to a 94.4 percent.

Student And Teacher Response To Formative Assessment Feedback In Eighth-Grade Mathematics: A Design Experiment, Desiree Dawn Rones

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Formative assessment is a tool for learning that virtually every educator uses in the classroom to some extent. While teachers may be motivated to use formative assessment for a variety of reasons, its intended purpose is to be a tool for both teachers and students for teaching and learning, respectively. However, many teachers, even those with the best intentions, misunderstand and misuse formative assessment, and may cause more harm than good in the way that it is implemented in the classroom. Three critical factors for student success in learning are mindset, goal orientation, and autonomy. Research has shown that students …