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ASSIGNMENT
Review the paper ‘Formative assessment and self-regulated learning’ (Dylan William 2014) and reflect on your current assessment practices and how you might improve AfL and AoL practices in your classroom.
Create a Forms assessment and share the link here as a reply to this post with a short descriptor (150 words min) of how they would use this and the Forms app for assessment with their class in September.
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I suppose the article highlights how formative assessment has evolved from being mainly teacher-led to placing greater emphasis on students becoming more active in their own learning through self-regulation, clear learning intentions, and success criteria. In my classroom, I currently use formative assessment through teacher observation, questioning, checklists, and regular feedback to monitor my students’ understanding. I then try to adapt my teaching as needed. While these approaches provide valuable information, there is scope to involve pupils more actively in assessing their own progress. In the future, Google Workspace could support this by enabling pupils to reflect on their learning using Google Forms, monitor their progress with digital checklists, and respond to feedback in Google Docs or Classroom. These tools could promote greater pupil ownership of thier learning while providing teachers such as myself with real-time evidence of progress. Combining more established assessment practices with these new digital tools has the potential to make formative assessment more responsive to individual learning needs. This would be an important advancement in my view.
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I like what you’ve said here about pupils taking a more active role in their own learning John. I think that’s a big part of good formative assessment, and it’s something that can easily get lost when we’re busy trying to check understanding ourselves. You’re right too that a lot of formative assessment is already happening naturally in the classroom through questioning, observation and feedback. The digital tools don’t need to replace any of that, but they could make some parts of it a bit quicker or easier to track. Google Forms would be a nice one to start with, even just for a quick check-in at the end of a lesson. It could be as simple as asking pupils what they understood well, what they found tricky, or what they might need more help with. Paul
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Hi John,
I am also passionate about pupils taking greater ownership of their learning. I believe this enables them to develop a great interest in their learning as it ensures they see the ‘why’ and the reasons behind any tasks being completed. The use of digital checklists is a wonderful way of incorporating Google Workspace in their learning experiences. By providing our students with the digital tools necessary to develop essential life skills, they can also understand and track their own progress in formative assessments, thus ensuring effective assessment for learning is embedded in practice within the classroom.
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I looked at Dylan Wiliam’s ideas on formative assessment and self‑regulated learning. It made me see that I still rely a lot on end tests (Assessment of Learning) and not enough on ongoing checks (Assessment for Learning) during a topic. I do correct copies and give tests, but I don’t always use that information straight away to change what I’m doing, or to show pupils clearly what their next step is.
From September, I want to: Use more short checks in lessons (2–3 questions, mini whiteboards, quick Forms).
Share simple learning intentions and success criteria in child‑friendly language.
Give brief, focused feedback: one thing done well and one small target.Add a little more self‑ and peer‑assessment, e.g. “traffic lights” or “two stars and a wish”.
Google Forms assessment – how I’ll use itHere is my sample Google Form for a 3rd/4th class maths check on place value:
Google Forms – Place Value Check
https://forms.gle/EsHhLbMvCT7uhZy67I will use this Form at the end of the first week of place value in September. The quiz is very short and I will repeat similar questions (about 8 questions). Most are multiple‑choice, for example
- “What is the value of the 6 in 462?”
- “Which number is biggest: 345, 354, 435, 453?”
They are short‑answer questions where pupils select their choice.I will set it as a self‑marking quiz, so pupils see straight away which ones they got right or wrong. In class the next day, I will look at the summary of answers (without names) on the board. We will talk together about any questions that lots of pupils missed and try a few similar examples.I will use the spreadsheet of results to see who needs extra practice in a small group and who is ready for harder work. I plan to repeat this kind of short Form in other topics (tables, fractions, measures) so assessment becomes more regular and helps guide my teaching, not just record marks at the end.
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I would use the Form as an initial assessment to identify what pupils already understand and any areas that may need to be revisited. It would include a mixture of multiple-choice and short-answer questions, with some questions providing immediate feedback.
Wiliam (2014) highlights the importance of using assessment evidence to inform the next steps in teaching. This made me reflect on the importance of not simply collecting assessment results, but actually using them to adapt my planning.
Google Forms would make this easier as responses can be reviewed quickly. I could identify common misconceptions, decide whether a topic needs to be retaught and provide additional support or challenge where needed. I would also use Forms throughout the year for short quizzes and exit tickets as part of AfL, while end-of-topic assessments could contribute to AoL. -
William (2014) highlights seven strategies that makes up assessment for learning. The first strategy involves providing students with a clear and understandable vision of the learning target. I believe that this is highly important to the success of lessons with children as when they are shown the end goal or target of a lesson it increases their engagement in the lesson from start to finish.
The form I have put together is a form I hope to use before starting my first topic of the year in 6th class which is place value. This form will give me a clear understanding of the childrens prior knowledge when it comes to place value. Having this information will then allow me to push the children who seem to have a strong grasp of the concept and also provide further support to the children who may find it challenging. I ensured that the quiz isn’t too strenuous or challenging as this could be overwhelming for children when completing on their first week back to school.
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This short pupil reflection form is designed to help a principal understand what children learned from an assembly on stillness, spirituality, purpose and inner peace. It invites pupils in 3rd to 6th Class to reflect on the difference between being physically quiet and experiencing a deeper sense of calm or spiritual stillness. Children are also asked whether they used a quiet pause during the following week, when they used it, what strategy they chose and whether it helped them feel calmer, think more clearly or respond more kindly. Pupils who did not try the strategy can explain what made it difficult and what support might help next time. The form is anonymous, child-friendly and takes only a few minutes to complete. It is not a test and is not graded. Responses will be reviewed at school level to guide future assemblies, identify helpful supports and plan meaningful next steps in learning.
https://forms.gle/HEtsdMf1gLueWK8aA
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Wiliam’s paper highlights that assessment becomes formative only when evidence of learning is interpreted and used to make better decisions about the next steps in teaching. It also stresses the importance of clear learning intentions (outcomes), success criteria, feedback, peer learning and pupils taking greater ownership of their progress.
In my role as principal I enjoy having the opportunity to take classes. I also use assemblies fortnightly to engage with the children and role model for teachers what I have talked about at staff meetings. I use questioning, observation, discussion, and end-of-lesson reflection to check understanding. However, I recognise that gathering evidence is not enough; I must use it more consistently to adapt teaching. I am aware that it is critical to allow sufficient thinking time so that all pupils contribute. I remember reading one time that waiting three to five seconds—often referred to as “wait time”—instead of just one second dramatically increases student participation, the number of correct answers, and the complexity of student responses.
I will share learning intentions and success criteria in child-friendly language and provide feedback that identifies a clear next step rather than simply praising.
I also want to develop pupils’ self-regulation by giving them regular opportunities to assess their own learning, set manageable goals and explain which strategies helped them.
For Assessment of Learning, I will continue to use end-of-assembly pupil reflection to demonstrate understanding. -
A key learning from this paper is that not everything that is taught is learned. This to me shows where reflective practice is a key element of how a teacher develops his or her practice and how they can progress as opposed to stalling or becoming stale. The article outlines how in the past an assessment was carried out to evaluate knowledge as opposed to assessment strategies nowadays that focus on improving the entire process of the learning.
This key quotation highlights the moves towards involving the student in the entire process of assessment over recent years:
“clarifying, sharing and understanding learning intentions and criteria for success” and “activating students as owners of their own learning”. I think this is an excellent example of where students are more involved in the ‘how and why’ they are learning about a topic as opposed to just being told ‘You need to know it.’In terms of my own assessment practices over my teaching career I believe I have developed significant experience and learned from a combination of CPD, working with colleagues in three different schools as well as developing the confidence to try new strategies and not be afraid to admit when something new has not worked. Fear of the unknown is generally the biggest obstacle to teachers trying new AfL or AoL strategies. Providing feedback to students during teacher student conferences was a really effective strategy I used when discussing students’ academic progress using the Accelerated Reader programme. It developed a two-way conversation about what was going well and what required greater support in terms of making adjustments and improvements to ensure progress was transparent for all to see. Starting out in my teaching career, this strategy would have seemed daunting.
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There were a number of standout points from this paper that struck a chord with me and enabled me to review and reflect on my own assessment journey as a teacher over the past 16 years. The reference to formative assessments being used as a form of assessment ‘before the big one’ is an interesting quotation for me. Does this suggest teachers previously ‘taught to the test’? or does it simply suggest that teachers have constantly scaffolded their students and prepared them appropriately to be able to undertake and perform in an assessment/test scenario. I have over and back with the use of assessments over my career. A weekly spellings test suggest some children practice their spellings diligently every night. In the same breath, children who struggle with spellings work tirelessly throughout the week only to be disappointed with an assessment that is tailored towards those who will always flourish in a skill/concept they are naturally string at.
The Assessment Reform group I feel is linked intrinsically to the SSE process we are using in our schools today. The involvement of children in conversations and processes around assessment will have a positive and practical effect on their learning experiences and levels of enjoyment. In terms of how this paper has influenced my own views on AoL and AfL, I believe teacher autonomy and confidence is critical. The longer I have taught, the more confident and sure I am that I can make a decision based on my level of teacher observation of the group I am teaching. There is no one size fits all and this is something I feel Oide, school leaders, the inspectorate and department are cognisant of, thankfully!
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Please see a link to a Google Form about All Ireland Finals – Past and Present. This is a nice topic to explore in September after the highs and lows of the GAA season that has just come to a close. I feel it is imperative to tap into the interests of our students. With a new and improved focus on wellbeing increasing physical activity, what better way than to celebrate the heroes of the summer by creating more exposure to those working and living among them.
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Hi Robert
I am not do the forms yet but over the next few days I plan on improving and updating myself .Being from Limerick this would be lovely to do !!
I enjoyed where one of your questions was a nickname for Limerick and one option was “the villains “!!!!
A touch of Buff Egan about that !!!!
Thank you
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Wiliam’s paper reframes assessment as only truly formative when the evidence gathered is used to adjust the next steps in teaching, rather than simply recording what pupils already know. This resonated with me because in my 4th class I often collect plenty of evidence through questioning, observation and correcting written work, but I don’t always use it consistently to reshape my next lesson. The emphasis on clear learning intentions, success criteria and increasing pupil ownership of their own learning stood out to me as areas I could develop further.
To try this out, I created a Google Forms exit ticket tied to our Ancient Egypt SESE topic. It checks pupils’ understanding of a key fact (the importance of the River Nile), asks them to note one thing they learned, rate how confident they feel about the lesson, and optionally ask me a question. I plan to use this at the end of lessons in September to gather quick, honest feedback, give pupils a low-stakes way to reflect on and take ownership of their learning, and help me decide whether to move on or revisit a concept before starting new topics. Over time I’d like to build a bank of these short forms across different subjects so self-assessment becomes a regular part of our routine, not just an occasional add-on.
Link to my Forms assessment: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfnpUSoUnojuEQmHp1UAHjNbQgV8OB7OCaE5bwN1WIEdtgD6Q/viewform
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Hi Niamh, your point about the weekly spelling test really struck a chord with me. It’s such a good example of how something intended to encourage consistent effort can end up highlighting a fixed skill gap for pupils who are naturally weaker spellers, no matter how hard they try during the week. I think your question about whether teachers are “teaching to the test” or scaffolding pupils to succeed is an important one, and I’d lean towards the latter for most of us, though it’s a useful check to keep asking ourselves. Your point about teacher autonomy and confidence growing with experience is reassuring too — a good reminder that there’s no single correct AfL/AoL approach.
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Please see a link to my forms assessment about County Towns of Ireland – suitable for a senior class studying the county towns of Ireland in September. I think with such a focus on finding new ways to teach new topics we can at times forget our sense of place. It is important our students understand the various aspects of Geography, History and Culture of Ireland. This assessment focuses on different towns of Ireland ranging from inland to coastal and in the different provinces.
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I enjoyed reading the Williams report. It really made a lot of sense to me for a number of reasons. As I was going along the course I was happy to see that it’s not assessment for the sake of it but assessment that will lead to children (and the teacher of course) taking agency over their own learning . We have all been that teacher who does the tests, records them and then puts them into the drawer.
The paper focuses on having clear outcomes/intentions, having clear success criteria, giving feedback and the students taking ownership of their learning.
Having reflective practise as a feature of everyday learning is also very important.
It has as an important feature having the children involved in their own assessments, for them to more informed and centre of their learning .to become active agents of their own learning,
My own AFL and AoL has changed as my understanding of assessments has developed over the years. It’s a skill that develops in time with a lot of CPD and talking to peers. Doing assessments and then leaving them aside is not productive for anyone. Assessments are a source of information to guide us in our teaching and for the child to become more active in their own learning.
To review and reflect is for the teacher and the student.
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Hi Helen,
You make a great point about the importance of reflective practice being a feature of everyday learning. It’s so important as teachers to reflect on the day and see what want well and what could we do to enhance the teaching and learning in our classrooms. Recognising what worked well is as important as what we could do differently as sometimes I feel we are quick to remember what didn’t go as well as we would like.
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Reading Dylan Wiliam’s paper reinforced the importance of formative assessment as an ongoing process rather than something that happens only at the end of learning. In my classroom, assessment is most effective when it provides immediate feedback that helps me adapt my teaching and respond to each pupil’s needs. Using Google Forms allows me to gather this information quickly while encouraging pupils to reflect on their own learning and wellbeing.
In my autism class, assessment is continuous and is used to understand each pupil’s communication, engagement and readiness to learn. I already use observation, visual supports and regular check-ins to adapt my teaching throughout the day. Going forward, I would like to make Assessment for Learning more consistent by using Google Forms to gather pupil voice and encourage self-reflection. I also plan to use the information collected in Google Sheets to identify patterns over time and inform my planning. While Assessment of Learning remains important for monitoring progress, I feel that ongoing formative assessment provides more meaningful information to support the individual needs of my pupils.
I created a Google Forms assessment to support daily check-ins and formative assessment in my primary autism class. Many of my pupils have autism, communication differences and varying literacy levels, so I wanted to design an assessment that was accessible, meaningful and provided immediate information to guide my teaching.
The form begins with a visual “battery check-in”, where pupils indicate whether their battery is full, half full or low. Pupils then select how they are feeling using symbols and simple language before identifying what support may help them during the day, such as a movement break, sensory activity, quiet space or adult support. At the end of a lesson, pupils complete a simple self-assessment using emoji scales to show how they felt about the activity and whether they feel confident or need more help.
See here https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc4bbBUkWsjlt6nxRp0BI82tXwTJvhbe64psa2kctEWdd_Qqg/viewform?usp=publish-editor</p> -
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https://forms.gle/XqJuoVJvBodwGRVGA
The Google Form above is intended as an End of Lesson Reflection for pupils in a senior class to utilise. It allows the students to share some of their learning while also providing scope for pupils to pose further questions. This would facilitate the teacher in planning the next steps for the learning. Pupil voice should play a central role in all aspects of teaching and learning and the form gives an example of this. A follow on would be allowing time for the children to explore a selection of websites relating to the activity.
In relation to William’s paper, I would agree that assessment should be about improving learning and not simply measuring it. As teachers, we can be under so much pressure trying to cover the curriculum and undertaking assessments, it can be difficult to find the time to really utilise the assessment data. This should be the central focus of any assessment. I also agree with the argument that assessment feedback must be understood and not simply provided by the teacher. It led me to reflect on how often we check for understanding with pupils on the feedback we provide.
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I liked your Google Forms which incorporates KWL into your Geography reflection and allows for individual responses and awareness of learning. It is a great idea to see what individual children bring to the lesson and what they they learn from the lesson and makes them realise the importance of their own learning.
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I have created a forms quiz on the great famine to be used as a homework assignment which provides immediate feedback so that children can see for themselves how well they have understood the main ideas and vocabulary covered in class. It will also inform me about how well the class as a whole have understood the content and whether I need to adapt the way that I have approached it.
The key idea that I took from William’s paper is that assessment should create information that leads to a action that improves learning. Next year I will think more about what I will do with the evidence that I collect through assessment and also what the pupils in my class can so with it.
A few years ago I completed a course on using self assessment for learning folders – next year I hope to encourage pupils to become more responsible for their own learning by asking them to use their own digital portfolios to identify what they can do and what they need to improve, and to give them opportunities to act on feedback. -
I liked the definition offered below by the following researchers. Recent research emphasises the importance of the learner and their peers in negotiating new learning whereas previous research saw the teacher as the main actor in Formative Assessment. This article talks about the evolution of assessment and its different meanings in Formative Assessment and Assessment of Learning.
Stiggins, Arter, Chappuis and Chappuis (2005) proposed that assessment for learning consists of seven strategies:1. Provide students with a clear and understandable vision of the learning target.
2. Use examples and models of strong and weak work.
3. Offer regular descriptive feedback.
4. Teach students to self-assess and set goals.
5. Design lessons to focus on one learning target or aspect of quality at a time.
6. Teach students focused revision.
7. Engage students in self-reflection and let them keep track of and share their learning.
Self regulated learning posits the student as an active agent in their own learning and suggests that they don’t need immediate reward for their efforts but can postpone the reward for future success. It allows a variety of methods to achieve learning and is more theoretically grounded whereas Formative Assessment is more pragmatically based on classroom practice. The way forward, the author suggests is to interlink and build on the strengths of each marrying the practical pragmatic FA with the more theoretical SRL research based methods.
Going forward, I will use Google Forms to gather information through Exit tickets and quizzes to help me assess students’ mastery of key work covered and students own feelings about their own learning. I would compare this also to summative assessment to see what is reflected back on students’ learning. As a school we gather qualitative data to garner student’s attitudes towards learning and this informs our practice as teachers.My Google forms is based on the assessment of word vocabulary and seeks to establish a baseline for work at the start of the year. This forms assessment is suitable for 3rd/4th class or Learning Support for 5th/6th class. It is based on 15 items and the students receive feedback on submission of the forms. This will serve to indicate those children who are relatively proficient in word meaning. For learning support children who have difficulty reading, this forms could be administered one by one by a Learning Support teacher who would read the items aloud and let the students make their selection. The data can be imported into sheets and read in different ways and cross class comparisons can be made.
The link is as follows https://forms.gle/ncSBkeaWJUfNFkV47 -
Use of Microsoft Forms for Assessment
I reflected on how I currently use assessment in my classroom. I feel that assessment should inform what you teach. I will be given a great opportunity in September in SET. I will be teaching blocks of literacy and numeracy and other curricular areas based on the previous years and September testing to inform what needs to be taught.
In September, I would use Microsoft forms to create quizzes so that children can understand concepts in science, literacy and numeracy.I would use the quiz as an Assessment for Learning tool at the beginning and during the topic. The responses will help me modify the lessons in real time to maximise learning potential. Feedback could be used as a further learning tool.
At the end of the lesson, using forms quiz for assessment would help.
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William’s paper reminds us that assessment should not just be used at the end of a lesson to see what pupils have learned, but should be an ongoing element of our teaching. This is something I am always aware of but the realities of a busy classroom mean that it is not always something I manage to do consistently. Using my knowledge from this course I plan to incorporate more assessment for and of learning into my classroom this year.
I can improve my assessment for learning by paying closer attention to pupils’ responses and using this information to adapt my teaching. William’s idea of responding to “moments of contingency” in teaching is a great way to think about assessment for learning and an approach I hope to get better at using once I begin using more assessment with my class. It highlights the importance of noticing when pupils are struggling or misunderstanding something and responding to this rather than simply moving on. I feel teachers are generally very good at noticing and adapting on the spot for the pupils they teach, but it is not always evident when an individual child is finding something difficult or misunderstanding. Using short, effective assessments would give me a clearer picture of how each child is doing and would mean that what I am teaching and how I am teaching it would be more meaningful for my class.
Google Form Assessment
For my Google Form I created a short assessment for First Class to complete once they have completed work on 2D shapes. To make the assessment suitable and engaging for First Class I included simple images and tried to keep the questions short and simple. I used a variety of question types, including multiple choice, tick box and short answer to keep pupils engaged and to give them different ways of demonstrating their learning.
I look forward to using the information gathered from Google Forms to adapt my teaching based on the needs of my pupils and ensuring
that teaching and assessment if more meaningful in my class. -
There were a few key points that stood out to me from reading his article. The first one was that what students are taught isn’t necessarily learned and how it’s important to check for understanding during the process of learning not just at the end. By doing this, we can see where we need to adapt our teaching in order to enhance the learning. The characteristics of assessment that promote learning stood out to me. Involving the children in the process was highlighted as a key to success. That is something I want to focus on more this year. I think children enjoy being involved in the process and taking ownership of their own learning. It’s a great way to provide opportunities for them to feel success.
https://forms.gle/hEFZjAzsxn3a9Pr98
I made a Google forms for 5th class on the topic of place value that I could use with my class for assessment in September. It’s a short exit ticket with 6 simple questions. I included an open ended question asking the children to explain their understanding of the topic of place value. This will help me to see the knowledge they have that hasn’t been asked in the rest of the Google form. I also included a question at the end asking the children how confident they feel on their understanding of the topic of place value. I think this will give me a really good insight into the children’s views on their own understanding of the topic.
I really like the idea of using Google forms as part of my assessment. I think the children will enjoy it and engage well with it. I look forward to using it this year.
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Dylan William (2014) Paper Review:
William focuses on how formative assessment helps teachers adapt learning as it happens. His central point is contingency, which is the idea that teaching should directly respond to what assessments reveal about student understanding in real time. He breaks this concept into two main types: immediate, minute-by-minute adjustments during a lesson, and short-term planning changes made between lessons based on collected work.
Ultimately, William argues that assessment is only truly formative if the evidence gathered is used to adapt instruction. Collecting data or assigning exit tickets is meaningless unless we as teachers act on that information to close learning gaps and guide students forward.
It delineates the concepts of AfL and AoL quite clearly for my own practice. For AfL, I must action the assessment in the short to medium-term in order for it to take place, be it adjusting subsequent lessons to support or extend the learning needs as appropriate. In short, it places AoL as the final snapshot of achievement, while outlining AfL as the engine that drives my day-to-day teaching decisions.
Google Form: https://forms.gle/gSDViWm1P724EKRS6
For this task, I created a Google Form as a Post-Assessment for learning about Renewable Energy in Science. When synthesising this, I considered the class level (5th and 6th) and what information I wanted to gather. I used topic-specific vocabulary (environment, renewable energy technology, fossil fuels) whilst keeping the questions concise. I used a blend of short answer, multiple choice, and check boxes. Finally, I included a self-assessment at the end using a linear scale of 1 to 5, with 1 meaning the student is needing more support on the topic and 5 indicating they fully understand it.
Running a Google Form like this gives me quick, clear feedback on how the class did. Comparing their answers with their self-assessment scores helps me spot any gaps in understanding right away. From there, I can tweak my next lesson to revisit specific terms or extend pupils as appropriate.
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After reviewing William’s (2014) paper, the idea of a Captains Log to encourage self regulated learning was a tool which stood out to me as one I could use with my 5th class to develop both AOL and AFL. Having a child, or children, summarise the lesson at the end would encourage them to focus on what was being taught and could also create discussion on what was learned (AOL) and what future lessons could look at for the topic (AFL).
With this in mind, I have created a Google Form for the first maths topic of the year which is Place Value. I would have the children fill out the form during and at the end of the lesson, and anyone who would feel comfortable sharing their opinions, learnings and insights could share them out loud with the class. This would help me and the students get an insight into what they have actually learned and what the future learning during the week will begin to look like.
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Hi Ross,
Thanks for this post and for sharing your thoughts. Dylan William is such a fountain of knowledge when it comes to assessment and his writing often challenges to think about what we think of as assessment and whether much of our time is spent ‘assessing’ without actually assessing. The key is being able to gather information that will inform what you do next – you have correctly noted that you may get this information from some children verbalising thoughts, offering opinions, etc.
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After reading Dylan William’s paper, I was reminded that assessment should be used to help children learn and to help us as teachers decide what to do next. In my classroom, I use questioning, observation, discussion and written work regularly, but I think I could use digital tools more to quickly check children’s understanding.
For September, I’d create a short Google Forms quiz for my 2nd class. I would use it at the end of a topic to see what the children have understood and if there are any areas we need to go back over. I would include simple questions and pictures to make it suitable for all learners. I like that Google Forms gives me a quick overview of the children’s answers. If I notice that lots of children struggled with the same question, I can revisit that area in my next lesson. I could also use the results to give some children extra support while giving others an extension activity. I think Google Forms will be a simple and useful way to add more digital assessment into my classroom without making assessment feel like a big task.
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<p class=”isSelectedEnd”>After reviewing Dylan Wiliam’s paper on formative assessment and self-regulated learning, I recognise the importance of using assessment to inform teaching and support pupils in becoming more independent learners. In my current practice, I use questioning, observation, discussion and pupils’ work to assess understanding. However, I would like to make greater use of digital tools to gather evidence of learning and respond to pupils’ needs.</p>
<p class=”isSelectedEnd”>In September, I would use Google Forms to create short assessments at the end of a topic. These could include multiple-choice, short-answer and self-assessment questions. The responses would give me an immediate overview of pupils’ understanding and highlight any misconceptions or areas requiring further teaching. I would use this information to adapt my planning rather than simply recording a mark.</p>
Google Forms could also support Assessment of Learning by providing evidence of pupils’ achievement at the end of a unit. I would combine these results with classroom observations and pupil work to gain a more complete picture of progress. Pupils could also reflect on their results and identify personal learning targets. -
To improve AfL feedback needs to be far more actionable. Moving away from standard grades toward “thinking feedback” ensures feedback directly drives progress. Additionally, to support self-regulation, pupils should use clear success criteria and rubrics to assess their own work before submitting it, thereby giving them a true sense of ownership of their progress.
A couple of ways to do this might be:
Attach an unscored or criteria-only rubric directly to an assignment. Before turning in their work, students can view the criterion descriptions directly within the assignment portal to check their work against success criteria.
Attach a brief Google Form as part of the assignment. Ask students to copy/paste a section of their work, select which rubric level they achieved, and explain why before hitting submit.
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Hi Ben,
Thanks for this post – I am in full agreement with you in terms of feedback being actionable. In addition to this, I feel it being timely is right up there in terms of performance. In truth, lots of our feedback can probably be very general, focus too much on the positives and be difficult for a child to alter future work based on this. A great suggestion is to lay out clear success criteria beforehand through a rubric – indeed, asking a child to grade their own work or a peer’s work based on this could further develop their concept of feedback.
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I created a quick quiz on 2D shapes for third class just to help familiarise myself with how to do it. Choosing different question settings was quite intuitive and didn’t take much time. I can see how these quizzes could be created throughout the year quite quickly and easily to keep track of student progress and also to see where students need additional help.
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Sorry, didn’t see the part about reflecting on the reading along with the Google Form submission – I think the standout point of William’s paper is that it highlights that formative assessment is not simply about collecting marks or checking whether students have completed a task. It is about using evidence of learning to decide what should happen next.
This reflects my daily experience as a teacher, where students do not always learn what I have intended to teach. For example, during a 3rd Class Maths lesson on 2D shapes, a quick Google Forms quiz could show that students can identify shapes but are less secure in describing their properties. Rather than simply recording their scores, I could use this evidence to adapt my next lesson, perhaps through practical activities involving sides, corners and sorting shapes.</p>
Also the emphasis on students becoming owners of their learning struck a chord with me. Asking students to explain an answer or identify what they need to practise makes the assessment an ongoing part of teaching, allowing me to respond to student’s needs rather than following a fixed plan regardless of their understanding.
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Hello everyone,
Can I ask you for some support please? If anyone could help me out I’d be very grateful.
In June I applied for our school to join Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals. I am the admin on the account. I created a school domain and gave the school roll number and details as required.
This should have allowed me to support up to 1000 email accounts on our Workspace platform and to access the whole suite of Google Classroom resources.
However, I could only set up 10 email accounts and received a message to say that the school is on a limited trial for Fundamentals. I duly followed the prompts to ensure that we had properly applied and now I am at a loss.
Has anyone else come across this problem? It has been two month now and I really need to get us going before the new school year begins.
Please help!
Anita
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The paper ‘Formative assessment and self-regulated learning’ by Dylan William made very interesting reading and a starting point for reflecting on my current assessment processes. I am more reliant on AoL practices and would like to increase the AfL practices this year. I think that a balance between assessment styles is important. The seven strategies for Assessment for Learning proposed by Stiggins, Arter, Chappuis and Chappuis (2005) are very valid. In the paper, Williams highlights the importance of assessment in activating students as owners of their own learning, this is something I strive to do in my classroom.
Using Google Forms as a tool for assessment will be very helpful in my classroom this year for creating quizzes and exit tickets to assess learning, gather feedback and plan for future learning.
I created a quiz based around the class novel, Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl. The quiz was created for 2nd class students. The video in this module was very helpful in demonstrating how to create the quiz. I created multiple choice questions to see how much the students knew about the novel. This quiz will help me to see how engaged the children were with the novel and the story. In future, an exit ticket about the novel would be useful to gather feedback about the learning and novel. I would add questions such as ‘Did you enjoy this story?’ ‘How difficult was the story to read?’. This style of exit ticket would give me a different insight into the students’ learning.
My Google Forms Quiz Link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdbar2prfunguwDqjT4wEMQxKIcrw9kiHlS2dU59dnVdPXoEw/viewform?usp=publish-editor -
Module 4 Part 1 Google doc
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MfBarxCMNIAkSF2AU9Ttx_0ePlbA3bl0mle_A8uk-ts/edit?usp=drivesdk
This doc is for children coming to my SET class at the beginning if the year.
The aim is to hear their voices and understand how they perceive their strengths and weaknesses. I would add the nformation to their SSP and use it to help generate real and meaningful targets for their year ahead.
Module 4 part 2
PAPER REVIEW
This section of the article resonated with me most. It states:
” an assessment functions formatively:
to the extent that evidence about student achievement is elicited, interpreted, and used by teachers, learners, or their peers, to make decisions about the next steps in instruction that are likely to be better, or better founded, than the decisions they would have taken in the absence of the evidence that was elicited. (Black & Wiliam, 2009 p. 9)”
This makes perfect sense as a teacher but generally too. It brings me in my mind to the Doctor’s surgery and to the patient waiting for a decision in what is the next best step in his or her care. If there are results of tests such as bloods or scans in front of the Doctor and patient then the next course of action is more likely to be “better founded” surely! Likewise with teaching and learning, unless we as professionals continually assess FOR learning, listen to the students voice, assess engagement and participation as well as gather product outputs or test results, we will not FORM optimum learning paths and maximise learning for the children.
Another section of the article that I found very interesting outlines the seven strategies that assessment for learning consists of.
I have copied them into the next paragraph and I have added in my own reflections on each.(*)
“Stiggins, Arter, Chappuis and Chappuis (2005) proposed that assessment for learning consists of seven strategies:
1. Provide students with a clear and understandable vision of the learning target.
*as someone who has been teaching for over 25 years, I must say that stating a learning intention at the outset of a lesson was not on my radar. And yet, it makes so much sense. At this year’s Oide courses, the facilitator stressed that the redeveloped curriculum stresses the importance of a teacher stating learning intentions at the beginning of every lesson.
2. Use examples and models of strong and weak work.
* I have used models of weak work more so than strong work if I’m being honest…the ‘what not to do’ example! Something I need to work on having read this.
3. Offer regular descriptive feedback.
* not just well done or try harder.
4. Teach students to self-assess and set goals.
* I think we are getting better at this strategy
5. Design lessons to focus on one learning target or aspect of quality at a time.
* sometimes we can put too much into one lesson as we are often constrained by an overloaded timetable.
6. Teach students focused revision.
*this is possibly more relevant to secondary school but I think it is a very valuable skill to teach from early on.
7. Engage students in self-reflection and let them keep track of and share their learning.
*student portfolios, gathering feedback on quizzes and surveys etc. and digital tech such as digital portfolios all add to this.
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