All teachers and others involved in education and training are very familiar with summative assessment, as most formal education is aimed at certified performance. Nowadays the benefits and advantages of formative assessment, i.e. those assessment forms that play an active role in enhancing the learning process are becoming more and more known. Formative assessment is part of the daily practice of teachers even when they do not always realise that.
In this MOOC several assessment experts, Desirée Joosten-ten Brinke, Olga Firssova and Johan van Strien, of the Open Universiteit of the Netherlands will provide you with theory and guidelines for knowledge construction on the topic of formative assessment while offering support in designing assessments can be applied as a tool for learning and training of competences.
The MOOC is in first instance aimed at teachers and educationalists, but can be followed by anyone who would like to learn about formative assessment and apply it in practice.
The MOOC follows the state-of the art on the topic, yet is practice-oriented and offers flexibility for learners. In the MOOC three main topics are covered: formative assessment, rubrics and feedback.
In the first topic you will be introduced to the topic of formative assessment and learn to differentiate between summative and formative assessment. You will use examples to evaluate how you can make use of summative assessment for formative purpose, i.e. for learning instead of of learning.
In the second topic you will develop a set of criteria and a rubric for (formative) assessments. You will also consider how to apply these criteria and rubric to support learning in your own educational practice.
In the third topic you will look at the role feedback has in formative assessment, you will analyse some examples and you will work on a design that you could apply in your own practice.
Each of the topics are presented in a two-week sequence, but each can be taken and completed separately should you wish so. You can start at various moments and still gain sufficient meaningful learning experiences if you have little time for learning.
Learning together with others
Learning in a MOOC doesn’t have to be a solitary experience. You can communicate with others, provide examples and share experiences and examples with others using social media such as Facebook and Twitter. In this MOOC we actively use a closed Facebook group in addition to the communication facilities that are available on the EMMA platform.
You can use the hashtag #AfL_MOOC for the assignments in this MOOC and in case you would like to share your experiences with others, e.g. via twitter or other social media channels.
Further information
The MOOC is scheduled to start at 26th October 2015 and will last 6.5 – 7weeks. Afterwards the MOOC will remain open and accessible to allow you prolonged time to assess learning materials or work at the assignments at your own pace, although there will be no teacher involvement anymore.
Further information and to enroll in the MOOC, or visit the EMMA platform.