Summative Assessment

What Progress Have We Made?

Summative assessment occurs at the end of a period of learning and provides students with opportunities to demonstrate their achievement of the important/enduring learning addressed during that period of time.

It is used in combination with data from formative assessment to:

describe what students know, can do and value
evaluate student growth relative to the purpose of the lesson/activity/unit/program
evaluate student growth relative to The Ontario Curriculum expectations and the provincial standards

The teacher gives the students a paper and pencil test allowing them to demonstrate their learning.

Other Examples of Summative Assessment

At the completion of a poetry unit, the grade 7 teacher has the students read three poems on the same theme, each by a different poet. The teacher asks the students to select two of the poems and compare/contrast the poetic techniques used by each poet to express the same theme. The teacher analyzes these responses on the basis of pre-determined criteria and unanticipated observations.

At the end of a unit on "The Microscope," the grade 4 teacher sets up a series of stations. At each station the students are required to use the microscope to identify a variety of objects. The students demonstrate their ability to correctly position the slide and adjust the focus by drawing what they see under each microscope.