Recommendations for state education agencies and districts implementing formative assessment at scale¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The brief closes with recommendations for SEAs — build on existing relationships with LEAs to identify systems ready for change; identify and extend partnerships yielding thought partners and content expertise; develop a flexible implementation plan meeting local contexts, planning for scale at the outset; and leverage discretionary grant opportunities for LEA implementation resources. For LEAs: emphasize formative assessment is not "another" initiative; provide constant and consistent messaging about its relationship to improved teaching and learning; engage in deep learning at all levels with collaboration, peer feedback, and self-reflection; and focus on building coherence within the district.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Existing SEA-LEA relationships and partnerships capable of providing thought partners and content expertise

Constraints¶

Target Learners¶

• State education agency officials
• District leaders
• Site leaders
• Teachers

Target Learning Goals¶

• Systemwide instructional transformation through formative assessment and student agency

Related Strategies¶

• District strategies for spreading and deepening formative assessment practice systemwide
• Implementation-phase supports: staff engagement, communication and action plans, thought partnership, and self-assessment rubrics
• Phased LEA and SEA recommendations for adopting Opportunity Culture staffing redesign
• Build district capacity so improvement gains are sustained without direct external supports
• Facilitate a multi-session collaborative workgroup to co-develop state guidance

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Center on School Turnaround at WestEd. (2018). Thought Leadership Forum brief: Formative assessment and agency as drivers of instructional transformation. San Francisco, CA: WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED592990