Teacher professional development for assessment for learning

Abstract

Many schools aim to implement Assessment for Learning (AfL) to stimulate students to take more ownership of their learning and develop self-regulatory skills. This surveybased study is among the few in the field showing how students experience the extent of implementation of AfL, here in English language and mathematics classes in 12 Dutch secondary schools. Analysis showed no differences between the subjects. Students (N = 685) experienced activities to clarify the learning intentions and success criteria and eliciting evidence on their learning progress regularly (between 50-74% of the lessons). Students hardly ever experienced activities aimed at peer-and self-assessment (less than 25% of the lessons). However, cluster analysis revealed three distinct clusters related to the extent of AfL strategy use students experienced. Overall, we can conclude that AfL is not yet fully integrated into teaching practices. Teachers' skills, knowledge and attitudes required to increase student engagement in AfL practices and strengthen students' self-regulated learning need more attention in future teacher professional development trajectories.

A whole learning process-oriented formative assessment framework to cultivate complex skills

“…Firstly, richer measurement and intervention methods also must be introduced to make up for the lack of cultivation of learners' objective knowledge in current instruction based on the 4C/ID model. This may involve using video clips of classroom sessions to facilitate reflective questioning (Wolterinck-Broekhuis CHD et al (2022)), designing effective discussions, as well as fostering teacher-student interactions to explore conceptual understanding of objective knowledge (Helms-Lorenz and Visscher, 2022). Additionally, emerging technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) and computer simulation software could be employed to enhance students' comprehension of abstract foundational knowledge (Solmaz et al, 2023).…”

“…Moreover, since we have delved deeply into the complex process of students' skill acquisition and the specific design of formative assessments, we still discovered that many studies focused on other aspects of assessment for learning. These aspects include teachers' metacognitive abilities and knowledge base, effective classroom management and diverse teaching methods, as well as interactions and collaboration between teachers and students (Helms-Lorenz and Visscher, 2022; Wolterinck-Broekhuis CHD et al, (2022)). These concepts could also play significant roles in the design and implementation of formative assessments in classroom practices.…”