Assessment is defined as "The use of a variety of procedures to collect information about learning and instruction." (Johnson, 2013) It is a crucial part of instruction. In asking students to demonstrate what they have learned we are then able to evaluate if the educational goals and standards are being met. It can affect decisions about grades, instructional needs, curriculum, placement, advancement and in some cases even funding. It inspires three important questions.
"Are we teaching what we think we are teaching?"
"Are students learning what they are supposed to be learning?"
"Is there a better way to teach the subject, thereby promoting better learning?" (Edutopia, n.d.) There are two basic assessment types, summative and formative. Each has a distinct purpose and answers certain questions about student learning. We will discuss these later in this treatise. It is the teachers' responsibility to interpret these assessments and utilize the data for meeting student need, tailoring the content of curriculum and lessons, and, of course, assessing student progress. Teachers must take an active responsibility for achieving a balance between assessments and content. Both summative and formative assessments contribute to the measurement of broader progress on assessment goals. Formative assessment is commonly known as "assessment for learning". It focuses on monitoring student response to and progress in instruction as well providing information to teachers about where students are struggling. This allows students to identify what they have learned and understood and what they need to focus on. It also helps teachers to tailor instruction to the needs of the students. Formative assessment is an informal type of assessment. It is generally "low stakes", meaning that it will have little or no point value in grading. Formative assessment could include such techniques as journaling, observation and feedback, concept maps, or research projects to name just a few. For formative assessment to be effective, the information it provides must be utilized to make adjustments in curriculum and lessons. It is cyclical in nature. Students participate in various forms of assessment and the information is then used to make improvements not only in what they are taught but also in the way they are taught. After adjustments are made and knowledge is imparted, formative assessments again take place and so on and so forth in a cycle. (Black, 1998) There are several common techniques used in formative assessment. These include:
Curriculum Based Measurement
A set of standardized measures are utilized to discover student progress and performance. One example would be administering oral reading fluency assessments. This determines the number of words a student can read fluently in a timed session and is an indicator of overall reading ability. Observation
The teacher observes students, makes assessments of their engagment level, academic progress, and/or affective behavior and uses that knowledge to inform instruction. Teacher observation then continues in order to determine the effectiveness of changes.
Self-Assesssment
Students monitor and reflect on their own progress. This should be performed with student's having full knowledge of specific academic and/or behavioral goals. It can also be performed with learning contracts.
Feedback
This is teacher response to student work or even to class discussion. Examples might be a teacher responding to a student's questions, teacher responses to students' journal entries, or feedback provided on student work.
Portfolios
Portfolios are a collection of student work which provides a record of student growth in any particular area. Porfolios can pertain to almost any content area. (Fuchs, 2001) Formative assessment, though informal, must use valid indicators of student progress. It often answers such questions as how the student is doing , what teaching methods are proving to be most effective and what changes or modifications can be made to instruction in order to better meet student need. Other questions it might answer are what the student has learned and whether they can discuss thier newfound knowledge. Self-evaluations would answer student questions such as how they are doing and how they might do better as well as additional areas they might like to study. Summative assessment is more commonly known as "assessment of learning." It's focus is determinng what student's have learned at the end of a unit, session/semester, or grade level by evaluating it against a standard or benchmark.. Standardized assessments are included in this area. Summative assessment helps determine "to what extent instructional and learning goals have been met." (Johnson, 2013) Summative assessment is generally considered more formal as well as being "high stakes".This simply means that it is typically graded and has a high point value. Examples of summative assessment might include final research papers, mid-term or final exams, or senior interviews. It provides information at classroom, student and school levels. Like formative assessment, if the infomation gained is used properly, it can then be used to inform curriculum and instruction. For instance, if a schools performance does not meet state standards for science, the school may address adopting or even writing a new curriculum for this area. Professional development may be provided in order to provide for stronger student achievement. This type of assessment uses assessments that are clearly aligned with curriculum, instruction and, usually, standards or benchmarks. Assessments used must be valid and reliable. Summative assessment provides information about student achievement toward specific learning goals and objectives. Similar to formative assessment, it is cyclical, though on a larger scale. Types of formative assessment might include:
Standardized assessments
Tests such as state or national measures of student performance and content standards. They indicate student progress reflected as how many students are achieving grade-level standards.
Portfolios
When used with this type of assessment they provide an assessment of student progress as reflected in stated learning goals and objectives.
End of unit or term projects exams/projects
These assessment will reflect the stated learning objectives of lessons. A well-designed summative assessment of this type will provide the teacher will knowledge about individual student progress as well an an overall picture of the success of classroom instruction.
Course grades
If these grades as based on specific criteria, summative assessment will provide knowledge of how well students have met the expectations of the course. Summative assessments (in particular standardized assessments) are often criticized for providing information too late to influence instruction and being "disconnected" from actual classroom instruction,.They are also criticized for not fully reflecting the content of a course, resulting in "teaching for the test" mentality. (Messick, 1989) This last concern relates to state content standards and accountability systems because such areas as student retention and teacher performance pay can be a affected by these areas. Both formative and summative assessment can effectively inform instruction in an equally important fashion. Each, in different ways, contributes to the larger goal of student progress and assessment. Although they serve different purposes, each can ultimately "be used with an integrated system of assessment, curriculum and instruction" to inform the learning process. (Herman, 2006) They must be valid and reliable in order to serve as an effective influence on instruction. For instance, course grades can serve as a valid and reliable measure when they are compared to student performance and to other academic measures. (Hoge, 1989) When formative and summative assessments are used together to evaluate student progress, the potential exists for improving the educational outcome for all students. This would include students performing below acceptable levels as well as all other students accross the spectrum of achievement. It cannot, however, achieve these ends unless teachers are sustained in evaluating student performance and responding to these results through making adjustments to their classroom procedures, curriculum, lessons and instruction.
References
Black, P. &. (1998). Assessment and Classroom Learning. Assessment in Educaton, 7-74.

Edutopia. (n.d.). Why is Assessment Important? Retrieved from Edutopia: http://www.edutopia.org/assessment-guide-importance

Fuchs, L. H. (2001). Oral Reading Fluency as an Indicator of Reading Fluency. Scientific Studies of Reading, 239-5-256.

Herman, J. O. (2006). The Nature and Impact of Teacher's Formative Assessment Practices. National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing (CRESST).

Hoge, R. &. (1989). Teacher-based Judgments of Academic Achievement: A Review of Literature. Review of Educational Research, 297-323.

Johnson, E. &. (2013). Formative and Summative Assessment. Retrieved from Education.com: http://www.education.com/reference/article/formative-and-summative-assessment/

Messick, S. (1989). Validity. New York: McMillan.