Formative assessment in elementary school

(1)

CULTURE-LANGUAGES-MEDIA

Independent Project with Specialization in

English Studies and Education

15 Credits, First Cycle

Formative assessment in

elementary

school

Formative bedömning i lågstadiet

Hannah Blecher

Martin Hörlin

Master of Arts in Primary Education: Pre-School and School Years 1-3, 240 credits

English Studies and Education 2021-01-17

Examiner: Shaun Nolan Supervisor: Sirkka Ivakko

(2)

Abstract

This study's purpose is to investigate formative assessment/feedback in elementary school. According to the Curriculum (2018), it is essential to use formative feedback in the

classroom because it helps students progress in their learning. The aim is to see how formative assessment is conducted in English as a second language/English as a foreign language classroom. The research questions that we used were to what extent is formative feedback used in the elementary classroom? Furthermore, are there different ways of giving formative assessment in an English classroom? The primary method used has been

electronic searches in two databases, such as Education research complete and ERIC. The study results will show that the teachers know that formative assessment is beneficial for the students' learning process. However, they do not use it due to the lack of experience, time and knowledge. We investigated the teachers' role in formative assessment and discussed how essential time and prioritizing are.

Key Terms: formative assessment, formative feedback, ESL, elementary school, primary school.

(3)

Individual contributions

We hereby certify that all parts of this essay reflect the equal participation of both signatories below:

The parts we refer to are as follows: • Planning

• Research question selection

• Article searches and decisions pertaining to the outline of the essay • Presentation of findings, discussion, and conclusion

Authenticated by:

Hannah Blecher Martin Hörlin

(4)

1.Introduction

Is formative feedback as a strategy recognized as a support for learning in the English elementary classroom?

Feedback that supports learning is characterized by being forward-looking and taking its starting point in the assessment or the student's performance or understanding. It should be developed to contain information such the student can use. The focus in the feedback dialogue between the teacher and the student should be how the student would move forward in the learning process (Skolverket, 2011; Wiliam, 2013).

According to the Swedish national agency of education, research has shown that students' learning increases if formative feedback and assessment are used in the classroom.

Developing an understanding of assessment is something that the Curriculum in English (2018) advocates; it is also something that Wiliam (2013) identified. He described five core strategies in formative assessment which are:

· To Clarify, communicate, create learning objectives and criteria for

progress.

· To achieve practical classroom discussions, activities and learning tasks that

show that learning has occurred.

· To provide feedback that moves the learning forward.

· To enable students to become learning resources for each other.

· To enable students in their learning

Wiliams' (2013) third strategy, which in other words is called formative assessment is something that Swedish schools focus on. Mostly in English as a second language (ESL) classroom.

Sweden is considered in the top three of the best English as a second language speakers, according to Breene (2016). However, there are some misconceptions about whether or not Sweden is only teaching English as a second language (ESL). We have noticed this in

(6)

equivalent to the students' knowledge (Skolverket,2018). The implications of not being on the student level are that if the teacher puts the lessons on a high level, it can be challenging for some students to reach the requirement. However, if the teacher puts the level to low, it might not challenge any of the students and lead to that the student gets bored and does not want to learn more. Therefore, it is vital to strive to reach all student needs, according to Skolverket (2018).

The Swedish schools are working more and more with cooperative learning where the students work closely with each other, and the teacher is more involved in their active learning. Instead of giving the students a summative test, the teacher usually gives a test on a paper conducted at the end of a subject or a course. Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) write that a summative assessment is to see what the students have learned during a course. This kind of test shows what the students have accomplished, but it often lacks feedback or

suggestions on improving their performance. Wiliam (2013) describes traditional tests as formative assessments because they aim to control the students' progress. He describes traditional tests as using pen and paper, which is also recognized as a summative test. However, the teachers can give a formative assessment to the student in written form. Thus, there is a need to elaborate on whether formative feedback is a strategy recognized as a support for learning in the English elementary classroom.

To what extent is formative feedback used, how is it aligned to the syllabus for English, and how it can be included in the Swedish Curriculum. Formative assessment takes place during teaching and learning, and its main point is to help learning and teaching by giving the appropriate feedback (Ketabi & Ketabi, 2014). Wiliams and Leahy (2015) write about the sense of what the teachers want the students to learn, and here, the teacher can consult the steering documents to make sure that the teacher's aim is with the learning and is coherent with the syllabus. Wiliam and Leahy (2015) discuss the importance of teachers planning their classroom activities with a syllabus as the starting point, but he also says it is not always easy to set the goals in advance. That is why there are many different methods to use so that a teacher can develop, clarify, and communicate learning objectives to ensure they are on the right path towards the 6th-grade goal using formative assessment (Wiliam & Leahy, 2015)

(7)

Teachers assess the learners and the learning process during teaching, but this might not always be a part of the lesson plan. Therefore, it is essential to raise awareness about why and when the formative assessment is conducted. Afitska (2014) writes about the

constructive importance feedback can have and states that it will not improve the students if they do not understand the presented input and how they can use it in their work. Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) write about the formal assessment and informal assessment; formal assessment is all kinds of tests. For example, systematic observation of a student's oral performance is a kind of formal assessment. The concern with formal assessment is that it can be perceived as detrimental for learning due to students' feeling of test-taking as stressful. A test or formal assessment results can complement other forms of assessment as an informal assessment, and by this, the teacher can give an individually tailored assessment to the students.

As described by Ketabi and Ketabi (2014), informal assessment is a strategy used by the teacher to collect information about the students' performance in the classroom. It is not about collecting scores from a test that the students have conducted but about gathering information about their knowledge. The teacher can give feedback as a "good job" and give more specific feedback on how they perform.

Pinter (2006) writes about the importance of clarifying what the formative assessment focuses on both from the teacher's and the learner's perspective. The formative assessment is used to benefit the teacher, so the teacher knows what the student group is missing. To give assessment and feedback can drive the student forward and to progress with their learning. From the teacher's point of view, it is essential to know what they are assessing to provide precise feedback. Using research in our own pedagogical work, it is essential that we know how to choose relevant research and how to use it properly. Therefore, it is vital that we try to evaluate teaching and working methods with our colleagues. However, the research and methods should be put in words on how and why education supports and stimulates students' learning and development. This is something that will strengthen the profession and the quality of education (Skolverket, 2020).

(8)

Key concepts:

Formative assessment:

The term formative assessment was first used in 1976 by Michael Scriven. Wiliam (2013) uses it to describe how feedback is used when speaking about improvement in the

Curriculum. It is about giving the students opportunities to understand how they can make progress and improve their work. Formative assessment is also a strategy to encourage students to take charge of their learning and understanding.

Summative assessment:

Summative assessment summarizes the student's knowledge but not providing the student with feedback or support to further their learning. A summative assessment comes at the end of a working area. Summative assessment always includes grading, ranking, and evaluation to see what the student has reached (Wiliam, 2013).

Feedback:

The effect of feedback has been questioned by Wiliams (2013). He claims that feedback must lead to a cognitive instead of an emotional reaction.

According to Wiliam (2013), the aims of useful feedback are to generate an understanding of one's learning and relate it to the Curriculum and the learning goals.

(9)

2. Aim and research questions

This thesis paper investigates formative assessment and formative feedback in elementary school—especially in an ESL/EFL classroom. To do this, we will explore other research that has already been done in ESL/EFL classrooms when it comes to formative

assessment. Is formative feedback as a strategy recognized as a support for learning in the English elementary classroom? We want to investigate what previous research has found about the use of formative assessment at an early age and what possible effects the formative assessment brings into the learning process. The focus is on how the teacher gives feedback and if the feedback varies depending on the group's number. Can formative assessment be used in the Swedish Curriculum?

Research questions:

"To what extent is formative feedback used in the elementary classroom?"

"Are there different ways of giving formative assessment in an English classroom?"

(10)

3.Method and description of sources

Researching for this paper, different methods for finding empirical data, finding articles, and research about formative assessment and other kinds were used. The elementary method has been electronic searches in databases.

To start this process, we began by doing a general search on google to find a subject that we were both very passionate about. The findings of searching for articles on formative assessment were 28 700 000 hits. While searching for different articles and empirical data, we primarily used the MAU library database and Education research complete, ERIC.

We decided to narrow it down to formative assessment in elementary school. We picked out a couple of keywords to use and searched for them to get the results that we need. The keywords that we used were "formative assessment", "formative feedback", "ESL",

"elementary school", "primary school". We tried out other keywords, such as L2, but it was not what we were looking for when we searched for them. Using "formative assessment," "elementary school" and "L2" only gave us two hits, and those two hits did not provide any substance to our thesis. We also used many of the words in the same search because if we did not write in elementary school, ERIC would research the topic. Still, they examined high school or college students, which would have been too big of a gap and did not give us the elementary school's perspective. Using these keywords in the database, ERIC gave us 570 articles. Then we narrowed it down by only searching for "Scholarly and peer review". That gave us 329 different articles.

We came to the conclusion of focusing on direct oral formative assessment/feedback in the classroom. Doing this gave us a few more keywords to use, such as "direct" and "oral". Although when we typed the word "oral", there was only one hit combined with all of the other searches. That made us take away that keyword and focus on the others. Because even without using the keyword, we got the articles that we needed.

(11)

Inclusion

:

We decided that our focus for this thesis would be on formative assessment and formative feedback. The main focus would be the direct oral feedback in the classroom from the teacher to the students. We chose this because we were both interested in comparing our internships' findings and the influence formative assessment has on the teaching

profession.

We choose the grades F-6 because it is the school years that we become authorized to teach English. Another factor we wanted to consider and found interesting while researching is that a lot of formative assessments focus on grades at later levels. In the school years we are going to work in, there are no specific grades. There are only knowledge requirements, and those requirements are about what the student needs to know when they finish year 3. Another interesting fact is that the Curriculum only tells us what the student needs to know in English until year 6. Therefore, it is harder for teachers in the lower grades to give a formative assessment, for example, year 1.

Exclusion:

While searching, we found some different forms of assessments, such as summative and formative assessment. It would have been too broad to research, which is why we only focused on formative assessment. While searching for the formative assessment, we found a lot of different kinds of it. It made us realize that we had to choose a more specific form of formative assessment. We decided to dismiss the articles that brought up digital

formative assessment, as this would have been a whole other thesis. We also rejected peer-review as an assessment form.

(12)

Table 1: Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria

Author Themes Country

Büyükkarci (2014) Formative feedback Turkey

Ioannidou-Koutselini and Patsalidou (2014)

Formative feedback Cyprus

Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) Sardareh (2016)

Trepanier-Street, McNair and Donegan (2001)

Tsagari (2016)

Torrance and Pryor (2001) Yaffe (2010)

Formative assessment Formative feedback

Different assessment forms

Formative feedback Formative assessment Self-awareness Iran Malaysia America

Greece and Cyprus England

(13)

4. Results

In this component, we will present different perspectives on formative assessment. The structure will be as following; an overview of the research question, results, and discussion. The report itself has a structure as follow: the benefits of using formative assessment and the challenges of using formative assessment. The articles have been analyzed through participants, country, method and claim.

4.1 The benefits of using formative assessment

Research has been conducted regarding formative assessment and its benefits on the students' learning goals and the teachers. For example, Tsagari (2016) studied eight English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers by observing them. The teachers were from two Mediterranean countries and had around 25 students in their classroom. They asked the teachers a couple of questions after observing them. This study's findings were that the teachers from Cyprus found that using formative assessment instead of tests is better for students learning. However, Greece's teachers liked using formative assessment but found using tests equally useful, but they wanted more time to speak to them. Overall, both countries' teachers found formative assessment very helpful because it enhances their teaching and the students' learning.

Büyükkarci (2014) made similar findings in his research. Although Büyükkarci (2014) created an internet-based survey that he sent out to around 200 teachers but only 69 elementary school teachers in Adana, Turkey answered. All elementary teachers taught English as a second language. The teachers that answered have an average of 30-40 students in their classroom. However, there were even some that had 40-60 students in their classroom. The study reveals similar results as Tsagaris (2016) research that the teachers find it helpful to use formative assessment. Furthermore, the students also find it helpful because it gives the student a better understanding of what they need to improve. Ioannidou-Koutselini and Patsalidou (2014) conducted an action-based research on 26

(14)

from other schools and giving feedback helped the teacher evolve in their teaching

profession. The Teachers' reflections and case studies concluded that also, principals play a significant role in the teacher's profession. The improvements were significant in schools where principals built a trusting relationship at the school level, motivated and supported the teacher's initiatives, and acknowledged the project's importance (Ioannidou-Koutselini Patsalidou, 2014). The teachers involved also assessed the project positively because it improved their teaching practice. They felt more comfortable using new teaching methods such as exploratory teaching, collaborative and active learning, and by doing this, they also became more self-aware in their critical thinking and critical awareness

(Ioannidou-Koutselini & Patsalidou, 2014)

Trepanier-Street, McNair and Donegan (2001) made a study that compared lower and upper-grade teachers' views. They sent out an internet-based survey to kindergarten to fifth-grade teachers. The survey was sent out to 298 teachers that worked in different schools across five countries. The survey results were that both the lower and the upper-grade teachers used various assessment methods. The lower elementary teachers used mostly one assessment, observations, and written notes. The upper elementary teacher used more teacher-made tests and tests from reading series and textbooks. Both groups reported using different assessments to enhance the student's learning and let both the student and the parents know what they need to do to get better. They also found out that both groups were very passionate about using assessment approaches to enhance their teaching and connect it to the Curriculum.

Torrance and Pryor (2001) were conducting primary research called TASK, grounded in the classroom of observations. It explored the extent to which teachers and students shared an understanding of nature and the purpose of the classroom assessment. The study was made on two university-based researchers and a team of researchers. The teacher-researchers based the research on their classroom and teaching while the university did the interviews and observations. The results of the research were that formative assessment has a positive impact on the students' learning.

The findings reported in Tsagari (2016), Büyükkarci (2014), Torrance and Pryor (2001) all support the claim of using formative assessment in the elementary school classroom to

(15)

how to fill it. They also bring up the aspects of using learning goals for each lesson to help them follow through with the lesson and focus on what they are learning in the specific lesson. Ioannidou-Koutselini and Patsalidou (2014) also show that using formative assessment is beneficial for the students' learning and the teachers' progression in their learning/teaching. They argue that using formative assessment helps the teacher

understand what they need to improve in their lesson plan to ensure that the Curriculum is met (Ioannidou-Koutselini & Patsalidou, 2014).

They used different kinds of methods, such as observations and internet-based surveys. On the internet-based surveys, they only got a limited number of replies, such as Büyükkarci (2014), who sent out the form to 200 teachers but only got a reply from 69 teachers. In comparison, Ioannidou-Koutselini and Patsalidou (2014) sent out the form to 298 teachers and got replies from 298 teachers. However, the difference is that they sent out the survey to five different countries instead of just one like Büyükkarci (2014) did. Doing

observations as the rest of the articles gave them better access to the teacher because they were at the school. However, the disadvantage of using observation is that one has to limit themselves to one or maybe two schools; otherwise, it may get too much to examine.

4.2 The challenges of using formative assessment

There are many positive effects, but this segment will highlight the adverse impacts of Formative Assessment in the classroom for students and teachers. For example, Büyükkarci (2014) wrote about positive advantages in his research but included

disadvantages. As written before, Büyükkarci (2014) conducted an internet-based survey in Turkey with 69 ESL elementary school teachers. The disadvantages found through the internet-based survey were that the teachers did not use formative assessment because it took much time that they did not have. The time that they had to spend doing other things, such as making lesson plans and grading. Something else that was answered by the teachers was that using formative assessment increased the teachers' workload.

Sardareh (2016) researched how formative feedback was used in a Malaysian elementary school. The research focus group was two ESL classrooms and a focus group discussion

(16)

the concept was unknown to them. They also revealed that teachers do not get the help they need when it comes to formative assessment.

Tsagari (2016) concluded that formative feedback was practical for students reaching their learning goals. However, he identifies a disadvantage with using formative assessment. He discusses that the teachers in the observation room were not appropriately trained, which according to them, gave them the disadvantage to using formative assessment because they, like Sardareh (2016) teachers, did not know how to use it.

Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) conducted a study where the focus point was to find different assessment forms. The method used to perform this study was to look at research already made on the subject. The study results are that teachers must define the abilities they will assess, as it is impossible to evaluate students' performances every session. Formative assessment in English as a foreign language (EAL)/ESL has not always been in focus, but there has been much focus on formative assessment in other subjects. Another aspect that was brought up in the research is the time question. Putting formative assessment in an ESL/EAL classroom takes time that the teacher does not have.

Yaffe (2010) conducted a study where the goal was for Newly Qualified Teachers (NQT) to become an observer of themselves. The research group was NQT: s in Israel. The method used was a one-to-one approach to observation. She used video-glasses and recorded lessons of the NQTs. The recording's goal was for the NQT: s to look at their pedagogy and reflect on what could have been done better, and see how one can

implement new pedagogy techniques. The conclusion made about the observation is that for teachers to progress in their profession, they need to reflect in a more systematic significant meaning, which will promote their self-awareness and become a professional teacher.

The findings for not using formative assessment in the classroom had a lot of different aspects. For example, Büyükkarci (2014), Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) wrote about not using formative feedback due to a high workload with many subjects and lack of time and resources. However, Sardareh (2016) and Tsagari (2016) both found advantages in using it, but they found that the teacher did not know how to use formative feedback correctly.

(17)

teacher does not know their teaching style that students are the ones that get affected by it. That is why new teachers must be well educated in their profession and assimilated into their environment.

In the research articles, the empirical studies were mostly conducted on older students, not specifically school years F-3. The findings showed that teachers in school years 4-6 have more research on them because the formative feedback is specific. We also found that the empirical studies were mostly made in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries. We tried finding studies made in Europe, but not enough research has been conducted on this subject in Europe.

Research reviews, Internet-based surveys, and observations were used as methods to get results from the researchers. One negative aspect of this is that they have already analyzed the results, and therefore there is a risk of missing out on necessary essential data. Ketabi and Ketabi (2014) utilized research reviews to develop their findings. Using research reviews can be very overwhelming since there is much additional research out there, and you need to be very specific in your searches. Research reviews can become very broad. In comparison to using observations, Sardareh (2016) and Yaffe (2010) used it to look at different aspects of specific classroom activities within the observation.

(18)

5. Discussion

In the results, it was found that time and the teachers' role impact the formative

assessment. In this component, we will discuss further how time contributes to using/not using formative assessment. A discussion will also be made on how the teacher's role and obligations contribute to formative assessment.

The discussion of time

One aspect of not using a formative assessment while reading observations and research papers was that almost every observation and interview spoke about time. The teachers do not have enough time during their week to fit in formative assessment. They have teaching to do, but they also have paperwork, and their workloads are unbelievable. Büyükkarci (2014) writes that the teachers did not use formative assessment because they already have enough things to do, so why add a formative assessment. Nowadays, especially in Swedish schools, the teachers need to document everything in the school and with the students and report it back to the guardians. Putting a formative assessment on top of that is just more work and more documenting. Wiliam (2013) and Pinter (2006) speak so highly of formative assessment and all its benefits, what it does to the students, and how it can help them learn. Using a formative assessment could help the teachers with their documentation and what they need to focus on in their lessons. Tsagari (2016), Büyükkarci (2014), Torrance and Pryor (2001) all support the arguments that Wiliam (2013) and Pinter (2006) express. Sardareh (2016) and Tsagari (2016) writes that the teachers lack any formal education on using formative assessment properly and effectively, which brings down the teacher's excitement of using formative assessment. Because if they do not know how to use it properly, why use it at all and the school does not bother helping and supporting their development.

In the Swedish Curriculum, it is stated that the timetable for English from F-3 is 60 hours. This means that the students are supposed to have only 60 hours to learn English fluently, and those 60 hours are to be spread over four years. Most Swedish schools have English lessons that are around 20-30 minutes a week. How can the students learn English by hearing it for 20-30 minutes a week? Second of all, how is the teacher supposed to have the time to give a formative assessment to the students when they only have that short of time

(19)

speaking in English instead of giving a formative assessment. If they were ever to give a formative assessment, it would be as a group because they would not have the time to sit down with each person. According to Wiliam (2013), formative assessment can be given verbally, which means that if the teacher is already speaking to the students, why do they not give formative feedback. It is a question of prioritizing what is essential.

Class-teachers versus Subject-teacher

Sardareh (2016) and Tsagari (2016) both write in their articles that one of the reasons why they do not use formative assessment in English, in particular, is because the teachers have a lot of different subjects that they teach in. In Sweden, the teachers who work in the younger school years, F-6, are usually class-teachers, which means that they have the student group in all subjects except for woodwork, music and sometimes physical education. While in the higher school years, seven-nine, the teachers are subject-teachers and have complete control over a specific subject, which would mean in our case that an F-6 teacher has more subjects that they need to focus on compared to an English teacher as a subject-teacher. This would also mean that the class-teacher would have to keep track of all the different curriculums and the learning objectives for each subject they are teaching to ensure that all the students in the classroom are reaching all of the learning objectives for each subject. In contrast, the subject teacher must keep track of more students but only focus on specific learning objectives (Pinter, 2006).

Wiliam (2013) speaks about the knowledge level that the teacher needs to have to teach. He brings up the fact that one needs to have a broader knowledge level when one is a class teacher because one needs to know about all the teaching subjects. However, if you are a subject teacher, you can focus your knowledge level and go more into depth on a specific subject. According to Pinter (2006), this connects to formative assessment because if a teacher has a more profound knowledge level about English, they know what to look for and what the students need to improve. The teacher does not have to invest extra time to give formative assessments because they already have a clear understanding of different ways of getting better.

(20)

method for making changes last longer is to integrate them successively. To change your habits of old routines takes time and patience. Teachers cannot implement new routines in their spare time due to time shortage and not having the student there. This means they need to take time during the day to conduct them in the classroom. Teachers, in general, should all try to improve their practice to become a better teacher. If the teacher develops in their profession, that would most likely mean that it favors the students learning. This goes hand in hand with what the Curriculum (2018) writes about, that for a teacher to develop and the students to learn more, the teacher must be giving them time to adopt new methods to assess those. The view we have is that time is essential and what we have learned from Swedish Teachers is that usually, the time is not there.

The teacher's role

Sardareh (2016) claims that Malaysian teachers do not feel that they can use formative assessment in the classroom. If we compare to the Swedish elementary education for teachers, they learn different methods to implement assessment in schools. So, we are surprised to find out that Malaysian teachers do not know how to use formative assessment in the classroom. There is a gap because we do not understand how the Malaysian teacher's education is suited, so it is hard for us to know their education level.

Sardareh (2016), Pinter (2006) and Tsagari (2016) both feel that the need for knowing formative assessment is of great importance. Teachers need to understand what formative assessment is in their context. To achieve this, they need training and support. Sardareh (2016) and Tsagari (2016), during their research, understood that a teacher's education is vital to becoming more sufficient in their profession. Swedish Teachers are conducting different collegial methods, and one that is mentioned in Skolverket (2011) is to develop your assessment criteria, thus laying the ground for the national aim for 3rd grade. They assess the students' reading, writing, and mathematics knowledge by using follow-up, judgment, and evaluation. The teacher will use their study days to watch films and read text material to progress their knowledge about assessment and discuss it with their colleagues. By discussing it together, you can problematize the challenges and gain new perspectives on using assessment (Wiliam, 2013).

(21)

The Curriculum (2018) states that the principal's mission is to ensure that teachers and other staff can perform in their work. Wiliam (2013) writes that if teachers can get support from their environment, this will help them develop. In the Curriculum (2018), it is written that the school and the guardian should share the responsibility to create the best available opportunity for the student to succeed. However, in Swedish society, the social-economic background plays a huge part in the students' academic learning. Parents with a lower socioeconomic background have a lower chance of helping their children because they might not have the knowledge or resources. At the same time, students with a higher socioeconomic background have better resources from their guardians. Wiliam (2013) writes that the teacher should also feel responsible for progress in their practice and encourage and inspire the students in their learning. The experience we have with the teacher's program is that it is up to date and keep track of the latest research to help new teachers become more knowledgeable teachers. The teacher program in Sweden also encourages the teachers to use formative assessment to make the lessons better and become better teachers. When we are at our internship, we can see what we are learning. Our education may differ from our supervisor's education. However, we use this to our advantage and learn from each other.

Yaffe (2010) and Pinter (2006) both have concluded that the teacher does not always remember what they said or did in the classroom. The use of video recording is a way to look at the teacher's lesson with a specific focus. Because it can be impossible to remember everything that was said or done in the classroom, the recordings will help the teacher become more self-aware. Swedish Teachers follow the Curriculum (2018) and use it as a guide in their teaching. The Curriculum highlights the importance of schools being open to different ideas and encouraging teachers to use different teaching methods. The teachers who have knowledge of the Curriculum and are class-teachers, which means that they are with the student every day, which leads to them getting to know their student well and knowing all of the strengths and weaknesses. It is also vital that teachers get the chance to share their knowledge and learn from other colleagues to develop as teachers. Our

experience is that during meetings in the Swedish schools, teachers exchange different problems that have occurred in the classroom to be given other colleagues an input on

(22)

Our aim with this thesis paper was to determine if the formative assessment was given in a group or individualized or depended on the school year. In the articles that we read, we could not find much information on this subject. The only thing we found was that Sardareh (2016) and Tsagari (2016) writes that the student group can vary in size. If the teacher has a smaller class, it is easier for the teachers to attend to their needs. However, Pinter (2006) brings up the fact that we should put the teaching at the student's level and give the students the tools they need to succeed. If this is by giving the students the formative assessment individual or in a group is not stated, neither is if the school year is relevant. There is also a gap in empirical studies made in earlier years, such as F-3, because the studies we found are made in school years 4-9. Another interesting aspect is the social-economic role and its part in empirical studies as it is not stated in the research. We believe that this is a research gap and is something to discuss in the later degree thesis.

(23)

6. Conclusion

Our aim with this thesis paper was to investigate the formative assessment and formative feedback in elementary school—especially in an ESL/EFL classroom. While researching formative assessment, we found that using formative assessment helps us as teachers improve in our profession as educators and give us a broader understanding of what we can do to help our students progress in their learning.

Teachers are well aware of the benefits that formative assessment/feedback has and how it helps students achieve the learning objectives. However, the classroom's formative

feedback is not implemented due to a lack of knowledge. Another thing that was found is the aspect of time and prioritizing. Since the teacher does not feel that they have enough time to use formative assessment, they choose not to prioritize. The implication of not using formative assessment can lead to the teacher missing out on where the class has their knowledge level and the student's progression. We noticed this in our internship where the teacher who did not use formative assessment also lacked in their English teaching.

However, using formative assessment in the classroom is beneficial in all subjects such as Swedish and social science, not only during the English lesson.

We also found a lack of self-awareness among teachers when they teach, which can harm the teaching and students' knowledge.

After researching this area, we want to conduct a further investigation into how teachers use formative feedback in an English classroom compared to those who do not. What are the benefits and disadvantages for the students from their perspectives?

(24)

Reference:

Afitska, O. (2014) Use of formative assessment, self and peer assessment in the classroom: some insight from recent language testing and assessment (LTA) research. I-manager's Journal on English Language Teaching, 4(1), January - March 2014

Breene, K. (2016, 9 November). Which countries are best at English as a second language? World Economic Forum.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/11/which-countries-are-best-at-english-as-a-second-language-4d24c8c8-6cf6-4067-a753-4c82b4bc865b/

Büyükkarci, K. (2014) Assessment Beliefs and Practices of Language Teachers in Primary Education. International Journal of Instruction, 7(1), 107–120.

Ioannidou-Koutselini, M. & Patsalidou, F. (2014) Engaging school teachers and school principals in an action research in-service development as means of pedagogical self-awareness, Educational Action Research, 23:2, 124-139.

Ketabi, S. & Ketabi, S. (2014) Classroom and Formative Assessment in Second/Foreign language teaching and learning. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 4(2), pp. 435-440, February 2014. Finland: Academy Publisher

Pinter, A. (2006) Teaching young language learners. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Sardareh, S. A. (2016) Formative Feedback in a Malaysian Primary School ESL Context. Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Sciences, 4(1), 1–8.

Skolverket (2011) Kunskapsbedömning i skolan. - Praxis, begrepp, problem och möjligheter. Stockholm

(25)

Skolverket (2018). Curriculum for the compulsory school, preschool class and school-age educare 2011: revised 2018. Stockholm: Skolverket.

Skolverket (2020, 22 september) Ett vetenskapligt förhållningsätt. Skolverket.

https://www.skolverket.se/skolutveckling/forskning-och-utvarderingar/utbildning-pa-vetenskaplig-grund-och-beprovad-erfarenhet/ett-vetenskapligt-forhallningssatt-i-skolan

Trepanier-Street, M. L., McNair, S., & Donegan, M. M. (2001) The View of Teachers on Assessment: A Comparison of Lower and Upper Elementary Teachers. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 15(2), 234–241.

Tsagari, D. (2016) Assessment Orientations of State Primary EFL Teachers in Two Mediterranean Countries. Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal, 6(1), 9–30.

Torrance, H. & Pryor, J. (2001) Developing Formative Assessment in the Classroom: using action research to explore and modify theory. British Educational Research Journal, 27(5). Yaffe, E. (2010) The reflective beginner: using theory and practice to facilitate reflection among newly qualified teachers, Reflective Practice, 11:3, 381-391.

Wiliam, D. (2013) Att följa lärande- formativ bedömning i praktiken. Lund: Studentlitteratur Wiliam, D. & Leahy, S. (2015) Handbok i formativ bedömning: strategier och praktiska tekniker. (1. utg.) Stockholm: Natur & kultur.