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Formative Assessment Process

Formative Assessment Process

Formative assessment is a planned, ongoing process used by all students and teachers during learning and teaching to elicit and use evidence of student learning to improve student understanding of intended disciplinary learning outcomes and support students to become more self-directed learners.  (CCSSO 2018)

Visit the Official Web Site for the for the Formative Assessment for Michigan Educators Project at FAME – Formative Assessment for Michigan Educators (famemichigan.org)

 

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Get Involved

Each year, FAME New Coach applications open in February for the next school year cohort. We invite you to visit the FAME website to learn more about the FAME Program and check back to begin the application process. 

Helpful introductions to FAME:

This document outlines participation expectations for FAME Coaches and their Learning Team members.

Use this document to begin a 3-point discussion of formative assessment.

Becoming Aware

The resources below provide a beginning understanding of the formative assessment process. The purpose is information only. Used by itself, this background information is not likely to enhance formative assessment practices.

The document shares some classroom examples of formative assessment in practice. The vignettes are very short descriptions of formative assessment, some of which represent formative practices and some do not.

Companion article by Paul Black and Dylan William based on the influential research on formative assessment

Assessment literacy is the set of beliefs, knowledge, and practices about assessment that lead a teacher, administrator, policymaker, or students and their families to use assessment to improve student learning and achievement. 

Emerging Applications 

Artificial Intelligence

The principles of formative assessment can be used in any context to enhance learning. Regardless of evolving technologies, techniques, or environments — the formative assessment process is and remains an intentional, ongoing process centered on the dynamic interactions between teachers and students throughout the learning journey. 

Position Statement 

The formative assessment process is driven by the ongoing, moment-to-moment interactions between teachers and students. 

  • These interactions—rooted in trust, curiosity, and professional judgment—are the heart of effective teaching and learning. 
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) may serve as a supportive tool, but it can never replace the expertise, decision-making, or human connection that define the formative assessment process. 
  • Teachers remain the essential disciplinary creators and interpreters of evidence of student learning, and students are active agents in that process. 

Guiding Principles for Educators 

  • Start with deep understanding: Strengthen knowledge of both the formative assessment process and disciplinary content before integrating AI tools. 
  • Keep the teacher–student relationship central: Use AI only to enhance, not replace, the feedback loop between teacher and learner. 
  • Use AI purposefully: Consider when, why, and how AI might inform instructional planning, questioning, feedback, or reflection. 
  • Evaluate critically: Discern the accuracy, bias, and educational value of all AI-generated responses or materials. 
  • Empower students thoughtfully: Guide students in using AI responsibly to support self-assessment, reflection, and deeper inquiry. 
  • Maintain professional judgment: The teacher’s understanding of student thinking and evidence of learning remains foundational to responsive instruction. 

FAME’s Ongoing Work 

FAME is actively exploring how AI can support, rather than redefine, the formative assessment process. 

  • We continue to learn alongside educators, researchers, and partners about the responsible and effective use of AI in assessment for learning. 

The resources below provide a deeper understanding of the formative assessment process.

This is a summary of observations from international formative assessment experts that may impact how state and federal government officials, school leaders, and classroom teachers support and practice formative assessment

Margaret Heritage presents definitions and attributes of learning progressions and how they support instructional planning and formative assessment

While written for policymakers, the primer provides a general description of formative assessment and its place in a comprehensive assessment system.

Links to Margaret Heritage's presentation "The Role, Purpose, and Power of Assessment for Learning in an Assessment System" followed by links to an interview with Margaret.

Extending Learning Opportunities

 It is recommended that the deepest applications of the formative assessment process occur in learning opportunities that are job embedded and collaborative. Each is a long-term, supported learning experience that provides opportunity to learn, implement, and reflect on teaching and learning.

MDE's Formative Assessment for Michigan Educators (FAME) program has, since 2008 provided professional learning opportunities for teams of educators, led by a coach, to develop, read about, implement, and reflect on the formative assessment process. Teams are developed locally and share multiple configurations of members. Learning teams are provided a learning guide and access to a FAME resource website and encouraged to stay tougher for up to three years. 

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