The PEAL project: co-operation or competition in the assessment process

Abstract

This presentation reports on the first year of the PEAL (Primary English Assessment for Learning) project which seeks to enhance the implementation of formative assessment in Hong Kong primary schools. The study uses a case study approach, including interviews with teachers and students, and classroom observations. This paper draws on the notion of the formative use of summative tests, in other words how the testing process can be reconfigured to facilitate productive student learning. Interim findings are discussed in terms of test-related pedagogies, particularly the potential of peer tutoring as a test preparation tool; and tensions in the assessment process: summative versus formative assessment; high stakes versus low stakes assessment; and performance versus learning or mastery. Some implications and issues for further exploration are sketched.