Formative and summative assessment relationships: Synergies or constraints

Abstract

The potential of formative assessment for enhancing student learning is now well-recognised but a key challenge remains the influence of summative assessment. If formative assessment (also known as assessment for learning) is to flourish, initiatives aimed at supporting a positive link between formative and summative assessment functions are sorely needed. This paper explores potential synergies between formative and summative assessment at a conceptual level and at the level of practice. The main aims are as follows: To identify existing good practices at the interface of formative and summative assessment and support the further development of these practices; To examine under what circumstances summative assessment acts as a barrier to formative assessment and under what circumstances it can be supportive. The paper is exploratory in nature and draws on qualitative data from an ongoing project in Hong Kong primary schools. This project, Primary English Assessment for Learning (PEAL), involves in-depth case studies, three of which form the basis of this paper. The essence of the research method is to explore assessment for learning practice through semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and documentary analysis. The main findings to date relate to teachers’ conceptions of learning and assessment; the potential of ‘test paper review’ and ‘consolidation days’ to enhance learning after a test; and the tensions stimulated by an external examination taken by year 3 and year 6 students. The significance of the paper relates to its contribution to assessment theory in terms of the exploration of synergies between formative and summative assessment. The paper also carries implications for the development of a context-sensitive version of formative assessment. In other words, where testing is frequent and pervasive negative impacts may be reduced if appropriate follow-up learning interventions are carried out after a test is taken.