Discussion 8: Formative and Summative Evaluations
Discussion 8: Formative and Summative Evaluations
Part 1.
Formative and summative evaluations are two approaches applied to assess learning among students. Formative evaluation is applied to offer ongoing monitoring for learning among students and provide feedback intended to improve the learning and teaching processes. Summative evaluation is applied to assess students’ learning at the end of an instructional unit through comparing the performance against a benchmark or standard. Four main differences can be identified between the two approaches to evaluation. The first difference is when the evaluation is applied during the learning process. Formative evaluation is applied during the learning process while summative evaluation is applied at the end of the learning process. The second difference is the intention of the evaluation. Formative evaluation is intended to guide the learning process as the student is monitored to improve outcomes. Summative evaluation is intended to assign the students grades, determining whether they have achieved the learning objectives. The third difference is that formative evaluation can occur more than once for an instructional unit while summative evaluation only occurs once at the end of the instructional unit. The final difference is that formative evaluation approaches the student assessment as a process while summative evaluation approaches the student assessment as a product (Tobin, Mandernach & Taylor, 2015). Discussion 8: Formative and Summative Evaluations
ORDER A PLAGIARISM -FREE PAPER NOW
Part 2.
Formative evaluation is applied in clinical settings to improve a learner’s clinical behavior, knowledge and skills through the use of feedback. It is directed at effectiveness and accuracy of history taking, communication, and case presentation. The specific activities that occur in formative evaluation include informing a student about learning progress, informing the student concerning the observed learning needs for improvement, and motivating the student to engage in the appropriate learning activities. These activities are performed through feedback that directs learning among students by reinforcing desirable learning based on specific clinical tasks. Other activities that occur in formative evaluation include self-assessment and peer feedback (Burgess & Mellis, 2015). Summative evaluation is applied in clinical setting to review performance in terms of whether or not progression should occur with regards to the learner having acquired the intended behavior, knowledge and skills. Taking place at the end of the clinical placement, it offers judgment about how poorly or well the predetermined outcomes have been met by the student. It involves observing students in the clinical setting then writing comments and rating students by assigning marks or grades based on a set criteria (Burgess & Mellis, 2015).
Part 3.
Summative evaluation tools are the assessment approaches applied at the end of the unit to determine whether or not a student should progress. They include examinations, projects, portfolio, and standardized tests. Students should be able to review summative evaluation tools since this would allow them to improving learning efficiency by focusing on the testable aspects. Besides that, the student review makes the evaluation a cooperative process between the learners and educators so that the evaluation is promoted as learning and not simply an assessment (Billings & Halstead, 2016). Summative evaluation is important since it allows the educational institution to improve its curriculum and planning. The gaps identified in summative evaluation point to a disconnect between learning targets and student knowledge thus acting as a basis for the education institution to improve its curriculum planning and present new learning criteria that improve levels of learning attainments (Gaberson, Oermann & Shellenbarger, 2015). Discussion 8: Formative and Summative Evaluations
References
Billings, D. & Halstead, J. (2016). Teaching in nursing: a guide for faculty (5th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier.
Burgess, A. & Mellis, C. (2015). Feedback and assessment for clinical placements: achieving the right balance. Advances in Medical Education and Practice, 6, 373-381. DOI: 10.2147/AMEP.S77890
Gaberson, K. B., Oermann, M. H. & Shellenbarger, T. (2015). Teaching in nursing: a guide for faculty (4th ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company, LLC.
Tobin, T., Mandernach, J. & Taylor, A. (2015). Evaluating online teaching: implementing best practices. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Discussion 8: Formative and Summative Evaluations
