Formative assessment
Formative assessment involves both you and your teacher in a
conversation about your progress and takes place before summative
assessment. The main purpose of formative assessment is to provide feedback to
enable you to make improvements or attain a higher grade. This feedback is timed
appropriately to enable you to achieve your best. Time is given following the feedback
for actions to be complete before summative assessment. You are provided with
formative feedback during the process of producing evidence and are encouraged
to act to improve your performance.
Your teacher’s feedback on formative assessment must be
constructive and provide clear guidance and actions for improvement. It is
important that you understand that informal verbal feedback is an ongoing
process for BTEC programmes and is an important part of the teacher/learner
relationship. However, one formal opportunity to provide final formative
assessment feedback is given for each assessment at a point when you will have
had the opportunity to provide evidence towards all the assessment criteria
targeted.
Formative feedback should indicate how you are performing up
to that point and give a clear indication of how you can improve. Between the formative
feedback and the final submission of evidence for summative assessment, you
should work independently. Usually, further formal opportunities for formative
feedback should not be necessary. However, if it is clear at the formative
assessment stage that you have misinterpreted or have been misdirected by the
assignment brief, there may be the need for another formative assessment once
issues have been addressed.
Summative assessment
Summative assessment is a final assessment decision on an
assignment outcome in relation to the assessment criteria of each unit. It is
the definitive (final) assessment and recording of your achievement.
Your teacher must identify where the evidence supports their grading decisions
against the unit assessment criteria.
Learners are not offered opportunities to revisit
assignments at this stage of the assessment process, unless a resubmission is
approved by the school’s Lead Internal Verifier. Therefore, at the summative
assessment stage it is not appropriate for your teacher to give guidance to you
on improving your work to achieve higher grades.
