Center for Teaching and Learning Blog

Tag: assessment

Formative Assessment: What Is It? Why Is It Useful?

Published
By

Final exam week is coming soon. How confident are you that your students understand what you’ve been teaching? Do your students know what they understand and what they need to work on as they prepare for finals? If you are looking for a way to find out how well your students understand key concepts or can perform key skills before the students turn in a major project or take a big exam, formative assessment can help.

What Is Formative Assessment?

Formative assessment is a type of assessment that provides teachers and students with information about how well students understand concepts or can perform skills before students turn in a major project or take a big exam. “The goal of formative assessment is to monitor student learning to provide ongoing feedback that can be used by instructors to improve their teaching and by students to improve their learning” (Eberly Center, n.d.). These assessments are activities where students demonstrate skills or understanding and receive feedback on how well they perform skills or understand.

What Do Formative Assessments Look Like?

A formative assessment can be any type of activity that gives you and your students information about how well a student understands course concepts or can perform important skills. These activities should include opportunities for students to receive feedback on their performance.

“Examples of formative assessments include asking students to:

  • Draw [and share] a concept map in class to represent their understanding of a topic” (Eberly Center, n.d.). Then you create a concept map together as a class so students can compare their understanding to yours. You can also review the student concept maps to identify misconceptions and make plans to address them.
  • “Submit one or two sentences identifying the main point of a lecture” (Eberly Center, n.d.). Then you can share the main point you intended to communicate during the lecture, so students can compare what they took from the lecture with what you wanted to communicate. You can also review the student submissions to determine if your intended points are coming across to students.
  • “Turn in a research proposal for early feedback” (Eberly Center, n.d.). This feedback can be written or oral and can be provided in-person or through recorded audio or video. To explore different ways of providing feedback to students, learn more about the feedback options in Canvas, our institution’s learning management system (LMS).

These are not the only activities that can be used as formative assessments. What is key is that the activities give students a chance to show their understanding of course concepts or their level of proficiency when performing skills and that students receive feedback related to their achievement of course learning outcomes. Formative assessments give you the opportunity to determine if you need to review information or procedures, provide additional resources, or move on to a new topic or skill. Formative assessments give students the opportunity to determine if they are correctly understanding course materials and developing the desired skills.

How Can I Use Formative Assessment in My Courses?

To effectively use formative assessments in your courses:

  • First, identify the key concepts and skills you want students to understand or be able to perform. As you do this, you may want to consider the concepts or skills that have been challenging for students to learn in the past.
  • Then identify or develop activities that ask students to explain a concept, perform a skill, or in some other way demonstrate understanding of what you want them to learn. Consider reviewing the techniques suggested in The K. Patricia Cross Academy’s Techniques Video Library for ideas.
  • Determine how students will share their work with you so that you can “recognize where students are struggling and address” misconceptions (Eberly Center, n.d.).
  • Determine how feedback on their work will be provided to students.
  • Then try out the activities in your course.
  • Listen to student feedback about their experiences with the activities, and reflect on how well each activity helped you identify misconceptions or problematic performance.
  • Finally, make changes to the activities, and continue to use them to inform your teaching and students’ understanding of what they are learning well and what they should focus on as they continue to learn.

There is no need to change your entire course overnight. Instead, start small by adding one opportunity for formative assessment to your course. Evaluate how well it worked. Make changes. Then consider adding more.

More Information

To learn more about formative assessment, take a look at the following resources:

If you have questions about formative assessment or specific formative assessment techniques, contact a member of the Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning team.

References

Eberly Center. (n.d.). What is the difference between formative and summative assessment? Carnegie Mellon University. https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/assessment/basics/formative-summative.html

Continue Reading →

Online Course Design: Getting Started

Published
By

Are you interested in creating an online course? Do you have colleagues who enjoy teaching online, but you’re not sure how to get started? Below are some tips for developing an online course. (If you are already teaching online, consider joining our Fall 2024 book club where we’ll read Flower Darby’s Small Teaching Online.)

Develop a Vision for Your Course

When you begin developing an online course, start by thinking about what you want to teach students and why an online course would be a good way to teach what you want to teach.

Many times, online courses are developed as an additional section of an in-person course that is already being taught at the university. In these cases, the purpose for teaching the course and the learning outcomes that you want students to achieve by taking the course may already be clear.

Sometimes, an online course is developed to meet a specific need before a similar in-person course has been developed. For example, your department may be launching a new online program, and a new course needs to be developed to support students in achieving the program learning outcomes. In these cases, it’s important to clarify how the course will fit into the program and what learning outcomes students should achieve by taking the course.

Determine How to Assess Student Achievement

After you have decided on the purpose for your course and what students should learn from taking the course, it’s important to think about how you will assess student achievement using assessments that have been tailored for an online environment. In addition to or instead of multiple choice tests and writing assignments, authentic assessments can be useful for assessing student achievement in online courses. Authentic assessments “are tightly aligned with the learning objectives of a course or learning experience and have learners working on ‘real world’ problems” (Niemer, 2024). These types of assessments can be more engaging for learners and can better prepare them to use what they are learning in a course in their professional and personal lives.

For more information about authentic assessments, see Rachel Neimer’s (2024) discussion of Creating Authentic Assessments.

For more information about assessing students in online courses, see Creating and Adapting Assignments for Online Courses.

Collaborate with Instructional Designers

Once you have a vision for your course and ideas about how you would like to assess student achievement, consider working with an instructional designer as you continue designing and organizing your online course. The instructional designers at the Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning can help you:

  • Gain access to the MTU online course Canvas template
  • Brainstorm effective online assessment and learning activities
  • Consider how to make your course accessible to as many students as possible
  • Prepare to meet the Michigan Tech online quality course standards

To contact the CTL’s Instructional Design team, email Dan Ye at dany@mtu.edu or Catharine Gruver at cgruver@mtu.edu.

References

Niemer, R. (2024, January, 15). Creating authentic assessments. M Online Teaching. https://onlineteaching.umich.edu/articles/creating-authentic-assessments/

The Ohio State University Teaching and Learning Resource Center. (n.d.). Creating and adapting assignments for online courses. https://teaching.resources.osu.edu/teaching-topics/creating-adapting-assignments

Continue Reading →

March

Published
By

GUEST SPEAKER LUNCHEON: The Rise of Network Scholars – Senenge Andzenge, Guest Presenter (Tuesday, March 15)

Traditionally, scholarship has been disseminated through journals which carry an editorial process that takes as long as a year from submission to publication. In many fast-moving fields, scholars are turning to faster – and sometimes more informal – ways of publicizing their work, including blogs, twitter feeds, and online journals. This change is impacting the way we define academic spaces and engage students in conversations about how to stay current in a field. Senenge T. Andzenge, the Instructional Technology Fellow of Digital Education and Innovation in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Minnesota, will share his expertise in this area and lead a discussion on how learning is changing across the academy. Lunch will be provided to those who register by Friday, March 11th. Click here to register.

WORKSHOP: Making Social Media Productive in Learning – Senenge Andzenge, Guest Presenter (Tuesday, March 15)

While social media has a reputation for communicating trivia, Senenge Andzenge is working to find ways to expand classrooms and learning into the broader world using unique social media tools. In this workshop, repeated in the morning and afternoon for your convenience, Senenge will explore two unique low-cost tools that allow classes to productively participate in online (and ongoing) video discussions from mobile devices. These tools could be used for small group, project-based, or full class discussions, and allow students to see facial expressions, hear vocal inflection, and share experiences as they discuss. Please register by Friday, March 11. Register for one of the available sessions: 10-11am Session and a 2-3pm Session.

GUEST SPEAKER LUNCHEON: Project-Based Approach to Global Literacy (Thursday, March 24)

On Thursday, March 24 from 11:30am-12:30pm, Dr. Richard Vaz, Dean of Interdisciplinary Studies at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), will give a talk on WPI’s Global Projects Program for which undergraduates are required to complete projects, located at project centers across the globe, that emphasize real-world problem solving, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking. The projects are organized and overseen by WPI faculty and typically respond to problems identified by local organizations. Vaz will also present findings regarding the long-term impacts of project work completed away from campus. Lunch will be provided to those who register by Monday, March 21. Click here to register.

ASSESSMENT WORKSHOP: Advancing Global Literacy at Michigan Tech (Thursday, March 24)

In this workshop, scheduled for 3-5pm on Thursday, March 24, led by guest presenter Dr. Richard Vaz, participants will explore approaches to achieving goals for global literacy. Participants will start by identifying the global skills and abilities we want students to be able to demonstrate, and then consider different forms of evidence those skills and abilities might generate. Next, they’ll identify examples of assignments and activities that will generate the desired evidence. Finally, they’ll explore how those assignments and activities can fit into the curriculum, and discuss how to support successful and sustainable implementation.  Refreshments will be provided to those who register by Monday, March 21. Click here to register.

WORKSHOP: Reducing Unintended Bias in the Classroom (Thursday, March 31)

It’s natural and necessary for people to use their “quick brain” to make judgments and generalizations below the level of conscious thought. In college classrooms, however, particularly those with few women and/or with other under-represented populations, these unconscious generalizations can impact student attitudes, behaviors and sense of belonging in subtle and unintended ways. The Engineering Inclusive Teaching Faculty Development series from WEPAN (the Women in Engineering Programs and Advocates Network) has provided an excellent preparation video and a wealth of scenarios on this topic. After viewing the preparation video, participants will gather for a coffee chat on Thursday, March 31, from 3:30-4:30pm, to explore the wealth of scenarios provided and also discuss specific strategies to help recognize some of these unconscious generalizations in order to reduce their negative impact on students. Refreshments will be provided to those who register by Monday, March 28. Click here to register.

TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOPS (February and March) Click below for additional information and registration or email ctl@mtu.edu to schedule a consultation.

  • Panopto Recorder – Thursday, March 17 from 2-3pm
  • Nb (Annotation and Discussion Tool) – Tuesday, March 22, from 3-4pm
  • Mastery in Modules (Canvas Quizzes/Modules to Support Mastery)- Wednesday, March 23, from 3-4pm
Continue Reading →

Considering the Role You Want Assessment to Play in Teaching and Learning

Published
By

This article presents a general overview of student learning assessment in higher education while suggesting how assessment techniques and activities can help you, your students and faculty groups support continuous improvement of learning at the course, program and university levels. I especially liked the comments posted by “Dan” that focus on the need for assessment to be collaborative within a department.

How To Talk About Assessment

From: Inside Higher Ed
By: Melissa Dennihy

Continue Reading →