Formative Assessment in the Secondary Classroom

Summary:
This highly practical guide focuses on learning objectives, effective questioning and feedback as the key elements of formative assessment - assessment for learning - in the secondary classroom. Taking forward core themes developed in Unlocking Formative Assessment, Shirley Clarke shows how marking and feedback complete the 'learning loop' which starts with learning intentions and success criteria.

The ways in which pupils are told what is expected of them, how well they are doing, and how their efforts are appraised, lie at the heart of effective assessment for learning. Shirley Clarke explains first how to formulate, and communicate, clear learning intentions and the types of success criteria to which pupils can relate. She then explores the use of questioning as a tool for effective teaching, before looking at classroom interaction and how pupils respond to written, oral and 'incidental' feedback. Different approaches to marking, including self- and paired marking, are then considered as one aspect of feedback, which in turn can underpin pupil self-evaluation and target setting.

Down to earth and direct, and with examples from across the secondary curriculum, this book shows how formative assessment can bring a dramatic culture shift to teaching and learning in your own classroom.

• Focuses on learning objectives, effective questioning and pupil feedback as the core elements of assessment FOR learning in the secondary classroom.
• Re-shapes Shirley Clarke's hugely successful Unlocking Formative Assessment and Enriching Feedback books - specifically for secondary teachers.
• Gives classroom teachers the 'how to' information they need to make effective strategies work: down to earth, practical and direct.
• Numerous real-life examples and realia drawn from across the secondary curriculum and age range
• Fully in tune with the Key Stage 3 strategy, current assessment concerns and government recommendations in England, Wales and Scotland: a 'must have' purchase for every school assessment coordinator.

About the Author(s):

Shirley Clarke is an assessment consultant and trainer who is highly regarded by classroom teachers for her down-to-earth, practical approach to formative assessment, as well as a hugely successful author with an international reputation. A former classroom teacher and advisory teacher, she is a popular speaker who is much in demand. Her courses and training days for teachers, and ongoing involvement in classroom research, give her both credibility and a down-to-earth perspective on day-to-day classroom realities. She was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Greenwich in 2007.

Readership:
Secondary school teachers - across all curriculum subjects