Improving Students’ Learning (Academic Achievement) through Teachers’ Effective Use of Formative Assessment
Dr. David E. Bartz

Abstract
The purpose of this article is to explain how teacher-driven formative assessment can enhance students’ learning and improve academic achievement. The basic principles of formative assessment are: (a) developing learning progressions composed of learning targets for the content to be mastered by students, (b) collecting student performance data for the learning targets, (c) providing students with feedback on their performance in relation to a learning target, and (d) adjusting instructional strategies to the needs of each student so that content is mastered. The conclusion drawn is that formative assessment is more effective at enhancing student learning and improving student achievement than summative assessment. Summative assessment is administered at the end of a time period and often used for comparative purposes (e.g., Program for International Student Assessment [PISA] results country to country) and grading students.

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