Formative vs. Summative

Question: 
Differentiate between formative and summative assessment and give examples of how each might be used in your own teaching situations.


Answer:
Formative assessment occurs before or even during time of instruction and is usually ungraded. This form of assessment helps form instructions for the students.

Summative Assessment occurs after the instructions have occurred and is typically graded. This form summarizes all of the accomplishments of the students.

I would use formative assessment when beginning a new chapter because then it lets me know if the students have any type of knowledge in the topic we will be starting. Also, it tells me that, that will be a strong point when given a graded test because they that knowledge is already in their head.

I would use summative assessment at the end of a chapter to see how much of the information the student retained over the course of learning the material and how successful they were.