FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: GUIDANCE FOR EARLY
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT:GUIDANCE FOR EARLYCHILDHOODPOLICYMAKERSCEELO POLICY REPORTShannon Riley-Ayers, PhDApril 2014This policy report provides a guide and framework to early childhood policymakers consideringformative assessment. The report defines formative assessment and outlines its process andapplication in the context of early childhood. The substance of this document is the issues forconsideration in the implementation of the formative assessment process. This guide provides apractical roadmap for decision-makers by offering several key questions to consider in the process ofselecting, supporting, and using data to inform and improve instruction.
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org2ContentsIntroduction . 4What We Know . 5Recommendations for Policymakers. 5Defining Formative Assessment and Its Process. 6Perspectives and Evidence about the Importance of Formative Assessment. 7Setting the Future Research Agenda. 8Issues for Policymakers and Stakeholders to Consider . 8Leadership and Policy. . 8Professional Development and Support. 9Time. . 9The Assessment Tool . 10Standards Alignment. . 11Curriculum Connection. . 11Key Domains. . 11Reliability and Validity. . 12Data . 13Important Considerations for Policymakers. 14Conclusion . 16Additional Resources . 17References . 18ENDNOTES . 23CEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org3ABOUT CEELO:One of 22 Comprehensive Centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Elementaryand Secondary Education, the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) will strengthen thecapacity of State Education Agencies (SEAs) to lead sustained improvements in early learningopportunities and outcomes. CEELO will work in partnership with SEAs, state and local early childhoodleaders, and other federal and national technical assistance (TA) providers to promote innovation andaccountability.CEELO Policy Reports (describe what a policy report intends to do). For other CEELO Policy Reports,Policy Briefs, and FastFacts, go to www.ceelo.org/products.Permission is granted to reprint this material if you acknowledge CEELO and the authors of the item. Formore information, call the Communications contact at (732) 993-8051, or visit CEELO at CEELO.org.Suggested citation: Riley-Ayers, S. (2014). Formative assessment: Guidance for early childhoodpolicymakers (CEELO Policy Report). New Brunswick, NJ: Center on Enhancing Early LearningOutcomes.Shannon Riley-Ayers, Ph.D. is an Assistant Research professor at the National Institute for EarlyEducation Research (NIEER) and the Center for Enhancing Early learning Outcomes (CEELO) atRutgers University. She conducts research and provides technical assistance on issues related toliteracy, performance-based assessment, and professional development. She is first author of theEarly Learning Scale, led the validation study for the instrument, and continues to evaluate itsimplementation and use in the field.This policy report was produced by the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes, with funds fromthe U.S. Department of Education under cooperative agreement number S283B120054. The contentdoes not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department of Education, nor does mention orvisual representation of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by thefederal government.The Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) is a partnership of the followingorganizations:CEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org4IntroductionFormative assessment * is a process that teachers employ to collect and use assessment information totailor instruction to the individual needs of children. 1 Collecting information from multiple sources andanalyzing it in light of children’s individual learning needs can support teaching whereby all childrencontinue to learn and thrive.Ideally, early childhood educators embed formative assessment in instruction by working directly withchildren to gather information about what children know and can do, how they process information andsolve problems, and how they interact with other children and adults. Formative assessment mayinclude informal, but systematic, vetted and published assessment instruments, home-grownassessment instruments, and data collection procedures employed by teachers in classrooms.Formative assessment is one component of a comprehensive assessment system. A comprehensiveassessment system is defined as, “a coordinated and comprehensive system of multiple assessments–each of which is valid and reliable for its specified purpose and for the population with which it will beused–that organizes information about the process and context of young children's learning anddevelopment in order to help early childhood educators make informed instructional and programmaticdecisions. A comprehensive assessment system includes, at a minimum, screening measures, formativeassessments, measures of environmental quality, and measures of the quality of adult-childinteractions.” 2A comprehensive assessment system addresses several purposes, each with implications for data use.These purposes include (1) assessments used to support learning and instruction, (2) assessments usedto identify children who may need additional services, (3) assessments used for program evaluation andto monitor trends, and (4) assessments used for high-stakes accountability. 3 These assessments canfurther be classified into three tiers, summative, interim, and formative. 4 Summative assessments are often used as one-time high-stakes tests; Interim assessments are those that are given a few times a year but are administered at theprogram, school, or district level; Formative assessment is embedded in instruction and administered in an ongoing manner.This brief focuses specifically on formative assessment.*Other terms that are used include classroom assessment, observation-based assessment, or authentic assessment, but forconsistency this brief will use the term formative assessment.CEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org5What We Know Formative assessment is a process that provides a critical link between standards, curriculum,and instruction.Formative assessment data are used to plan effective and differentiated instruction andintervention for young children.Reliable assessment and effective data use require considerable training and support foreducators and administrators.Assessments selected to inform instruction for young children must be used in everydayroutines, activities, and places and include information from multiple sources.Evidence that informs instruction should be gathered over time. A single snapshot does notprovide a complete and accurate picture of a child’s capabilities.Assessments must be reliable and valid; aligned with standards, age-appropriate expectations,and curricula; and examine key domains of learning and development.Assessment should not supersede effective practices, nor should it in any way drive instructionand learning to become didactic, rote, or isolated for children.Empirical research on formative assessment implementation in the early childhood field iscritical, as policy is outpacing research in this area.Recommendations for Policymakers Ensure that formative assessment is a key component of a larger, balanced, and comprehensivestate assessment system.Include research and evaluation as components of any new systemic child assessment.Consider the unique needs of children being assessed, including their cultural and linguisticbackgrounds, when selecting an assessment system.Pilot test and revise any new assessment policy and procedures, based on feedback fromeducators, administrators, families, and researchers or data analysts, before roll out.Coordinate assessment policy with other mandates from federal, state, and local sources toavoid duplication, excessive burden on classroom staff, and over-assessment of young children.Engage stakeholders in making decisions, developing policy, and providing important supportssuch as professional development and ongoing technical assistance.Consider the larger data system when weighing the pros and cons of adopting a common toolacross the state, giving local choice from a list of approved tools, or simply providing guidance inselecting assessment tools.CEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org6Defining Formative Assessment and Its ProcessThe process of assessing what young children know and can do poses particular challenges for younglearners. 5 Assessing children is often“unreliable,” as young children’sWhat Formative Assessments Are Notperformance is not necessarily consistentFormative assessment is decidedly distinguished fromover even short periods of time.summative and interim assessments. Examples ofContextual influences and emotionalassessments that are not formative are as follows.states can affect how they perform on One-time statewide, standardized tests ofassessments. 6 Moreover, young childrenachievement and end-of-course exams can providedevelop at vastly different rates and theirsummative data but do not provide ongoing data todevelopmental and learning patterns canteachers to inform instruction (Perie, Marion, &be episodic, uneven, and rapid. 7Gong, 2007).Understanding what children know is Interim assessments, even if they are administeredimportant for teachers, since children’smore than one time, are not formative assessments.new knowledge builds on priorThese have been misconstrued as formativeknowledge. Given these factors, teachers’assessment simply because they are administered atmore than one point (Pinchok & Brandt, 2009;use of formative assessment to informHeritage, 2010).instruction is an essential piece of8effective pedagogy.Formative assessment is much more than repeated assessment measures over time. Formativeassessment is a process, which includes a feedback loop to assist children in closing the gap betweencurrent status and desired outcomes, milestones, or goals. 9 It informs and supports instruction whilelearning is taking place, by having children receive feedback from the instructor. 10 It also includesmultiple sources of evidence gathered over time. 11 The formative assessment process is not a singleevent or measurement but rather an ongoing planned and intentional practice to evaluate learning withteaching. 12 Formative assessments yield descriptive data—not necessarily judgments. 13 It often takesthe form of observational protocol using evidence collection as a means to examine children’s cognitiveprocesses. 14Formative assessment may be defined in different ways in state regulations and interpretations. TheCouncil of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) definition best captures the essence of formativeassessment for the purposes of this brief focused on young children. It is defined as, “a process used byteachers and students during instruction that provides feedback to adjust ongoing teaching and learningto improve students’ achievement of intended instructional outcomes.” 15CEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org7Thus, formative assessment is a process rather than simply a tool. 16 In this process, teachers gatherassessment data from children using multiple methods in an ongoing process and then organize thedata. 17 This leads to the interpretive process of taking note ofdata, making meaning of it, and making a plan of action. 18 RileyAyers, Stevenson- Garcia, Frede, & Brenneman (2012) suggestthat teachers of young children become participant-observersand engage in an iterative process over time that includes:The FormativeAssessmentProcess(1) observing and investigating young children’s individualbehaviors as a seamless part of instruction,(2) documenting and reflecting on the evidence,(3) analyzing and evaluating the data in relation to set goals ora trajectory of learning,(4) hypothesizing and planning, which considers what thechildren are demonstrating and the implications for instruction,and(5) guiding and instructing, where the data help the teacher totarget the needs of the children and scaffold their learning tothe next level.Perspectives and Evidence about the Importance of Formative AssessmentThe National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has long promoted the use ofdevelopmentally appropriate assessments to improve instruction and programs. 19 Using systematicongoing assessment of children’s learning and development has become a distinctive feature of highquality programs and classrooms. 20 The National Council of Teachers of English and The NationalCouncil of Teachers of Mathematics have each also published research briefs describing the benefits offormative assessment. 21The landmark synthesis of research by Black and William (1998) reported that formative assessment iscritical for effective teaching practice. These authors concluded that firm evidence of student learninggains is reported from a number of studies that examined teacher use of data to inform teaching. Thesestudies collectively encompassed kindergarteners to college students, represented a range of subjectareas, and were conducted in countries throughout the world, including the United States. They furthernote that the gains reported in the studies are among the largest found for any educationalintervention. More recent meta-analyses report that there is research evidence to support the use offeedback and formative assessment as a strategy to improve student learning when considering highquality interventions studied with rigorous methods. 22Additional evidence shows that teachers’ judgments of young children’s learning and development arevalid. 23 Teachers’ data collected over time in the classroom with formative assessment tools wererelated to standardized assessments of the same children. This demonstrates that teachers’ evaluationCEELO POLICY REPORT – April 2014Formative Assessment Guidance
www.ceelo.org info@ceelo.org8of children, with training and support and using specific tools, can be trusted. One study demonstratedthat formative assessment in the classroom can produce a larger growth in reading skills than forchildren in a classroom that remained status quo. 24Setting the Future Research Agenda. Formative assessment may be an example of where policy isoutpacing research. With Race to the Top money, requests for No Child Left Behind (NCLB) flexibility,and states working diligently to set policies around formative assessment practice in early childhood,there is much need for information and research. One essential component of future research is theneed to clearly conceptualize and operationalize formative assessment. 25 This will allow studies to beeasily synthesized, compared, and evaluated.In particular, there is a deficiency of quality empirical studies in early childhood. A strong researchagenda of empirical research is needed to strengthen the evidence of the impact of formative datause. 26 Several states are implementing formative assessment policies, thus generating large-scaleimplementation and even opportunities for randomization of implementation with various roll-outplans. Researchers must be ready to evaluate and examine the impacts of these measures.Issues for Policymakers and Stakeholders to ConsiderImplementation of a formative assessment process is not a one-time event, but rather it is a decisionthat needs systemic change, and requires professionalIssues for Policymakers to Considerdevelopment to train, empower, and support teachersand educational leaders charged with its Who is involved in decisions about theimplementation. 27 This systemic change can be brokenformative assessment system?into three components: leadership and policy, What is the purpose of formativeprofessional development and support, and time. Eachassessment, who are the target childrensection here describes the context needed to assureto be assessed, and how does formativesuccessful roll out of an assessment system.assessment fit within a comprehensivePolicymakers will want to consider having all pieces inassessment system?place before moving forward with requirements thatare put upon local education agencies.Leadership and Policy. One key component in successful assessment policies is to first cultivate theenvironment to be supportive of such an approach. 28 This means including all stakeholders from stateagencies and local agencies to be a part of the decision-making process. Policymakers should alsoarrange the coordination of the assessment policy with other policies, such as mandates from federal,state, and local sources. This will eliminate duplication and also work toward building a commonvocabulary and understanding across program types (0-3, preschool, K-3, etc.). Doing so provides asystemic ap
Formative assessment is a process that provides a critical link between standards, curriculum, and instruction. Formative assessment data are used to plan effective and differentiated instruction and intervention for young children. Reliable assessment and effective data
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