Formative assessment is an ungraded learning process used during instruction to check students’ understanding of learning goals and monitor their progress. Teachers use this evidence to adapt instruction and provide actionable feedback. The purpose of formative assessment is simple: to improve student learning.

In this sense, formative assessment has two key audiences:

• The teacher: Evidence gathered through formative check-ins helps teachers adjust instruction, respond to learner needs, and provide feedback that moves learning forward.

• The student: Students need to understand where they are in their learning so they can set goals, make adjustments, and work toward their learning targets.

Formative assessment is a critical part of a balanced assessment plan. Teachers remain in the formative assessment loop until students demonstrate mastery of an outcome. Once mastery is evident, teachers move to summative assessment, where the focus shifts to documenting learning for the purpose of reporting.

If the results of a summative assessment do not align with the pattern of understanding established through the formative assessment process, this may indicate a need to gather additional evidence of student learning before making a final judgment.

There is no set number of formative assessments required before a summative assessment. When formative assessment is treated as practice for its own sake, its purpose is lost. The focus should always be on using evidence and feedback to adapt teaching and improve student learning of curricular outcomes.

For this reason, formative assessment is not reported on. Students should not be penalized for the iterative, and often messy, process of learning. Formative assessment creates space for students to take risks, make mistakes, and learn from them—without feeling judged.

Research consistently shows that formative assessment has a significant impact on student learning (Black & Wiliam, 1998; Sortwell et al., 2024). Classroom assessment, when used effectively, not only measures learning but promotes it by providing ongoing evidence to guide both teaching and next steps for students (O’Connor, 2018; Cooper, 2007).

Without this process, teachers may struggle to understand why students are not meeting expectations, and students may come to see each learning experience as a graded event rather than an opportunity to grow. In such contexts, learning can shift toward point accumulation instead of deep understanding, reinforcing traditional grading practices that do not meaningfully support learning (O’Connor, 2018).

Formative assessment keeps the focus where it belongs—on learning, engagement, and growth—by making thinking visible and informing next steps for both teachers and students (Cooper, 2007; Sortwell et al., 2024). It is not an add-on, but an essential component of a balanced assessment plan that supports meaningful and responsive learning.