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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=177291122-20022008><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Formative assessment - probably the most important type of
assessment that can be done in the classroom - it looks at the individual as
well as the group, uses the talents and skills of the teacher (potentially the
best and most underutilized assessment tool we have) and allows for continuous
adjustment of the teaching and learning process to meet the needs of
students. Lately I've been engaged in evaluation of adult education
programs (mostly college based) that look at the formative process in order to
give programs the tools to change and modify what they do to improve
outcomes. Often if we wait for the summative assessment of the individual
or t he summative evaluation of a project or program, we miss the why. We
don't learn the reason for the outcomes or get the insight we need to make
change. Thanks for the chance to hear more about this important
topic.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=177291122-20022008></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=177291122-20022008><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Laura Chenven</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=177291122-20022008><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Healthcare Career Advancement Program</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=177291122-20022008><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>National Coordinator</FONT> </SPAN></DIV><BR>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left>
<HR tabIndex=-1>
<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>From:</B> assessment-bounces@nifl.gov
[mailto:assessment-bounces@nifl.gov] <B>On Behalf Of </B>David J.
Rosen<BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 20, 2008 11:00 AM<BR><B>To:</B> The
Assessment Discussion List; The Adult Literacy Professional Development
Discussion List; The Family Literacy Discussion List; The Adult English Language
Learners Discussion List; The Workplace Literacy Discussion List; The Health and
Literacy Discussion List; Women and Literacy Discussion List The Poverty Race;
The Learning Disabilities Discussion List; The Technology and Literacy
Discussion List<BR><B>Subject:</B> [Assessment 1265] Formative Assessment in
Adult Literacy Education:A Special Topics Discussion<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Colleagues,</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Beginning on Monday, February 25th, the Special Topics list
will hold a discussion on formative assessment, a set of classroom practices
that substantial research in England has shown to positively affect elementary
and secondary level student learning outcomes. Not a term widely known in the
U.S., formative assessment refers to what teachers and learners do in the
classroom to assess learning progress. An assessment is _formative_ when
information gathered in the assessment process is used to modify teaching and
learning activities. It's an assessment _for_ learning, not just
_of_ learning.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>A just-published study sponsored by the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), <I>Teaching, Learning and
Assessment for Adults: Improving Foundation Skills</I> < <A
href="http://tinyurl.com/2dksn5">http://tinyurl.com/2dksn5</A> > looks at
formative assessment practices in adult foundation skills (basic skills) classes
in several countries among which were the U.S. and England. We will have as our
guests the researchers who did the studies in these two countries. OECD
researchers who studied adult formative assessment practices in other
countries may also participate in the discussion.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>In my opinion, not an unbiased one as I was an OECD
researcher in this study of practices in Flanders Belgium, the study could have
an important impact on adult literacy education practices in North America, and
formative assessment could -- as has been shown in K-12 and higher education
studies -- make an important difference for students' learning.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>I hope you will join my esteemed guests for this
discussion.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>To subscribe to the discussion, go to</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><A
href="http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/specialtopics">http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/specialtopics</A>
.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>You can unsubscribe after the discussion by going to the
same web page or, if you prefer, you can stay subscribed for the next
discussion, Transition from Corrections to Community Education.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Formative Assessment Guest Experts</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><B>Janet Looney</B></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Janet Looney is the project leader of the Centre for
Educational Research and Innovation program known as What Works in Innovation in
Education. Since 2002 its focus has been on formative assessment. Between
2002 and 2004, the What Works program explored formative assessment in lower
secondary classrooms in eight international systems. [See Formative Assessment:
Improving Learning in Secondary Classrooms (2005)]. OECD has just
published the second study addressing formative assessment for adult basic skill
learners, whose web page was provided above.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Earlier in her career Janet taught ESOL in Japan for over
two years, and at the YMCA in Seattle Washington.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><B>John Benseman</B></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>John Benseman has been involved in adult education and
literacy for over 30 years working as a practitioner and program administrator,
but mainly as a researcher and evaluator. He started his working life as a
primary (elementary) school teacher, but “became disillusioned with the task of
constantly trying to motivate reluctant learners and became much more interested
in working with adults who were much more motivated”. After a year of studying
adult education in Sweden, he worked in continuing medical education, followed
by seven years of running a community-based adult education organization and a
similar period of self-employment as a researcher. After 12 years of teaching
adult education at the University of Auckland, he moved last year to the
Department of Labour to run a national workplace literacy project. The aim of
this project is to identify best practice in workplace literacy by evaluating 15
diverse programs throughout New Zealand. They are about halfway through and
should complete it late next year. To date they have interviewed about 250
learners and are just starting to get their first post-program data. They expect
to have data on about 500-600 learners when it is finished.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>John’s PhD was an analysis of New Zealand as a learning
society. In addition to a "zillion" reports, he has edited a book on New Zealand
adult education and two weeks ago, another one (with Alison Sutton) on New
Zealand adult literacy. He “mainly works from home in a study that looks out on
to beautiful native bush, including a stream and lots of native birds”. He says
"It’s summer here, so life includes jaunts to the beach, enjoying family life,
frustrated attempts to lower a very average golf handicap and riding a motorbike
to beat the Auckland traffic. My current project also includes a lot of travel
round the country to interview people – a duty that I am even paid to do…"</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>With John Comings, John Benseman did the formative
assessment research in the U.S., sponsored in part by the National Institute for
Literacy</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><B>John Comings</B></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Dr. John Comings was director of the National Center for
the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) during its 11 years of funding
from the US Department of Education. He is currently Senior Research Associate
and lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a consultant on
adult education in the U.S. and other countries. His research focuses on the
impact of adult literacy programs and ways to support persistence of adult
learners.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><B>John Vorhaus</B></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Dr John Vorhaus is Associate Director, Research, at the
National Research and Development Centre in Adult Literacy and Numeracy (NRDC)
at the Institute of Education. He is also Director of the Centre for Research on
the Wider Benefits of Learning. </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>John has directed numerous projects on adult literacy,
language and numeracy, many of these focused on teaching and learning practices,
and also on disadvantaged groups such as offenders, ethnic minority groups and
people who are not in education, training or employment. </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>On-going research is taken up with persons with profound
and multiple learning difficulties and disabilities; their political status, the
question of whether and how they are shown respect, and an examination of the
teaching and learning practices best fitted to their needs and abilities.
</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>John has taught philosophy at the Universities of Bristol
and London, and also in prison, adult and further education, and he continues to
publish in the areas of political philosophy, philosophy of law and philosophy
of education.</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>David J. Rosen</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal>Special Topics Discussion Moderator</DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal><A
href="mailto:djrosen@comcast.net">djrosen@comcast.net</A></DIV><BR><SPAN
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