Handbook of Formative Assessment in the Disciplines

Citation

Andrade, H. L., Bennett, R. E., & Cizek, G. J. (Eds.). (2019). Handbook of Formative Assessment in the Disciplines. Routledge.

Chapter Summary

This is a compact edited handbook of about 290 pages: a preface and ten chapters in three parts, followed by contributor notes and an index. Its distinctive idea, in the publisher's words, is a focus on domain dependency: instead of treating formative assessment as a set of generic classroom strategies, the book asks what it looks like inside particular subjects. It builds on an updated definition of formative assessment, links it to measurement principles, and ends with questions of teacher preparation.

Chapter 1: Formative Assessment: History, Definition, and Progress

Part I, on theoretical advances, opens with a chapter by Cizek, Andrade and Bennett, the three editors. It sets out the history of formative assessment, the updated definition on which the volume builds, and where the field stands.

Chapter 2: Integrating Measurement Principles into Formative Assessment

The second chapter of Part I, by Bennett, addresses how principles from educational measurement can be built into formative practice, a theme the publisher highlights as one of the book's main concerns.

Chapter 3: Formative Assessment in Mathematics

Part II, on intersections of theory, research and best practices in the disciplines, begins with Hugh Burkhardt and Alan Schoenfeld on formative assessment in mathematics, the first of the subject chapters.

Chapter 4: Scenario-Based Formative Assessment of Key Practices in the English Language Arts

Paul Deane and Jesse R. Sparks treat the English language arts through scenario-based assessment of key practices.

Chapter 5: Formative Assessment in Science Education: Mapping a Shifting Terrain

Erin Marie Furtak, Sara C. Heredia and Deb Morrison map developments in formative assessment in science education.

Chapter 6: Formative Assessment in the Arts

Andrade, Joanna Hefferen and Maria E. Palma take the arts as their domain.

Chapter 7: Formative Assessment in Higher Education: An Example from Astronomy

Anders Jönsson and Urban Eriksson use astronomy to illustrate formative assessment at university level.

Chapter 8: Creating Formative Assessment Systems in the Teaching of Writing, and Harnessing Them as Professional Development

Part III, on professional preparation, begins with Lucy Calkins, Mary Ehrenworth and Diana Akhmedjanova, who discuss building formative assessment systems for teaching writing and using them as professional development for teachers.

Chapter 9: Teacher Preparation in Mathematics

Margaret Heritage and Caroline Wylie turn to the preparation of mathematics teachers for formative assessment.

Chapter 10: Conclusion: Why Formative Assessment is Always Both Domain-General and Domain-Specific and What Matters is the Balance Between the Two

Dylan Wiliam's closing chapter answers the question the book raises: its title states his position that formative assessment is always both domain-general and domain-specific, and that the balance between the two is what matters.

Key Concepts

Part I: Theory

• Formative assessment: assessment used to adapt teaching and learning while they are under way, defined in the opening chapter.
• Measurement principles: the ideas from educational measurement that Chapter 2 argues should be integrated into formative practice.

Part II: The disciplines

• Domain dependency: the book's central theme, that formative assessment operates differently in mathematics, English language arts, science, the arts and higher education.
• Scenario-based assessment: the approach to English language arts in Chapter 4.

Part III: Preparation

• Formative assessment systems: structured arrangements, in the writing chapter, that serve both assessment and teacher professional development.
• Domain-general and domain-specific balance: Wiliam's closing argument in Chapter 10.

Critical Analysis

Strengths

• A clear organising question. Domain dependency gives the book a single question that the subject chapters answer in turn, and Wiliam's closing chapter returns to it explicitly.
• Connection of measurement and classroom practice. The publisher stresses the integration of measurement principles into practice, and Chapter 2 is devoted to it.
• A mix of contributors. The authors range from assessment researchers such as Bennett and Wiliam to specialists in mathematics, science, writing and the arts, so the subject chapters are written from inside their fields.
• Attention to teacher preparation. A whole part treats training in formative assessment, in both writing and mathematics.

Limitations

• Five domains only. Subject coverage is limited to mathematics, English language arts, science, the arts and one higher education example in astronomy; other subjects, such as history or languages, have no chapter.
• Research-handbook style. The book is written for instructors, graduate students, researchers and policymakers, not as a set of classroom techniques; teachers wanting ready-made strategies will find them elsewhere.
• One edition, 2019. The publisher lists only this first edition, so work on formative assessment since 2019 is not reflected.

Where It Fits in the Course

In the assessment course, this is the research handbook on formative assessment. Wiliam's Embedded Formative Assessment is the practical companion: an account of formative assessment for teachers, with five key strategies and many techniques. It is the better starting point, and the Handbook's closing chapter by Wiliam is a natural follow-on. Popham's Classroom Assessment and Brookhart and Nitko's Educational Assessment of Students are general textbooks on designing and using assessments, which cover the basic vocabulary the Handbook assumes.

Furr's Psychometrics: An Introduction explains the measurement theory behind tests and assessments, so it is a useful background for Chapter 2. The Handbook is a better fit for readers who already know the basics of classroom assessment and want to examine how formative assessment works in a subject.

How to Use This Book

The book is aimed at instructors, graduate students, researchers and policymakers. Some background in classroom assessment is useful, and Chapter 2 is easier with a basic grounding in measurement.

A practical plan: read Chapter 1 for the definition and Chapter 10 for the closing argument, then read the subject chapters that match your own area. Chapters 3 and 9 pair naturally for anyone in mathematics education, and Chapters 4 and 8 for writing and language arts. A reader outside those subjects can still use the chapters as models for what a domain-specific account of formative assessment includes. Read Chapter 2 if you design assessments or work with large-scale testing.