SCHOOL PROFESSIONALS' PERCEPTIONS OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT AS RELATED TO STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Abstract

This study examined potential relationships between North Carolina school professionals' perceptions of formative assessment and district-level EOG, EOC, and AYP proficiencies. There were three primary areas of interest for the study as follows: 1. Analyze North Carolina school professionals' perceptions toward formative assessment after completing online learning modules that define formative assessment and identify formative assessment practices. 2. Use pre-existing survey data to identify potential district-level clusters based on perceptions toward formative assessment. 3. Investigate district-level clusters for potential relationships with district EOG, EOC, and AYP academic proficiencies. A literature review on formative assessment as a school improvement strategy was performed. Quantitative research methodologies were utilized to describe the perceptions of formative assessment in a sample of North Carolina school district professionals and tested for any statistically significant relationships to EOG, EOC, and AYP proficiencies. The findings provided preliminary data on the perceptions of formative assessment in North Carolina school districts. Each district was able to be statically placed in a cluster and then evaluated for relationships with student and district proficiencies. It was found that differences between clusters were statistically significant; however, the parametric statistic was extremely sensitive to the large sample size of the study. Due to the small differences and the large sample sizes, it was determined that the differences were practically insignificant. The findings indicate the lack of a dominant perception about formative assessment and may suggest North Carolina education professionals are unsure or unaware of formative assessment implementation. A major implication from the study that is relevant to state educational policymakers and school leaders is the importance of communicating a clear, coherent formative assessment implementation plan consistent with the purpose. Over time, future research studies on the perceptions of formative assessments may build a more comprehensive picture of school professionals' perceptions of formative assessment and how they affect school improvement in North Carolina. Such research could include qualitative inclusive case studies focusing on specific districts that have a cohesive perception of formative assessment. This work could also include a methodological component that quantifies the relationship between perceptions of formative assessment and student proficiencies.