Teaching Psychology - Assessment for Learning

Formative Assessment Fun

Relevant for GCSE and A-Level

Over the last few weeks, I've had a number of requests for some more formative assessment strategies to build on those I mentioned in a previous post (http://flmpsychologypedagogy.blogspot.co.uk/2017/10/flipped-learning-part-2-assessing.html). There are so many strategies that can be used to assess learning effectively. Below I have selected four that I use regularly and have found that students particularly like.

A couple of things to note before we get into the strategies:

1. My school uses a bronze, silver, gold medal system for differentiation. This can be used to give students choice (so they can complete either the bronze, silver or gold task) or they can work their way up the medals to earn gold and go from the 'easiest' task to the most 'difficult.' We then use challenge tasks to really extend the thinking of the top end.
2. I'm sure I read about a couple of these strategies somewhere and then modified them for my own use, so I can't claim full credit.

Strategy 1 - As easy as 1, 2, 3

 Works best for assessing: knowledge, application and evaluation

The basics of the strategy: Students choose one question to answer from a possible three on a whiteboard, with question 3 being the most challenging (see right for an example). These questions are structured to enable progress against the success criteria of the lesson to be assessed. Students are given a set time limit (e.g. 3 minutes) to write the most complete answer they can to the question they choose, and are told to consider this when making their decision of which to answer. They should choose the most challenging question that they think they can answer within the time limit. Not only does this assess students' progress, it gets them to think carefully about the most important ideas that they need to convey. This has a substantial impact on the quality of their answers to shorter exam questions over time. They then hold up their answers for checking.

Twists to make it more effective:

Whilst students are writing their answers, circulate and make a mental note of any particularly strong answers. When their time is up, select these students to read their answers to the class. Other students can then be selected through hands-down questioning to explain why the answer is a strong one to make students consider what makes an effective answer. This also reinforces their understanding of the command words used in exams (for further ideas on how to teach the meaning of command words, see: http://flmpsychologypedagogy.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/teaching-exam-technique-command-words.html).

To support students in considering the most important ideas to convey to answer each question, give them one minute to discuss potential answers with a partner. This enables them to use the three minutes they have individually more effectively.

Strategy 2 - Celebrity face game

 Works best for assessing: knowledge and evaluation (but can be modified for application too)

The basics of the strategy: Based loosely on the TV show 'Catchphrase', students are selected through hands-down questioning and choose a question to answer from the board. If their answer is correct, the box disappears to reveal part of a celebrity's face. The student who answered the question then gets to guess the celebrity (see left for an example). The aim of the game is to be the first person to guess who the celebrity is. The beauty of this game is that the number of boxes can be increased or decreased based on what you want to assess from the lesson.

Please note that this example is from a GCSE lesson.

Twists to make it more effective: 

To signify the level of challenge, I colour code the boxes bronze, silver and gold. I also ensure that answering the more challenging questions means that students are more likely to be able to guess who the celebrity is (generally the gold boxes cover the eyes).

To support students in selecting challenging answers, allow students two-three minutes to discuss the answers before the quiz begins. Further challenge can be added by selecting questions for particular students to answer or by getting other students to evaluate the answer given by the selected student. This feedback can be structured using ACE feedback (see right).

Strategy 3 - Dicey behaviour

 Works best for assessing: knowledge, application and evaluation

The basics of the strategy: Students are divided into groups of six. Each group member is assigned a number between one and six, and each group is given a pile of question cards to place in the middle. Within each group, students take it in turns to roll a die, and whoever's number it lands on picks up a card and answers a question. The rest of the group use ACE feedback (see above) to feed back whether the answer is correct and suggest any corrections and/or additions.

Twists to make it more effective:
To signify the level of challenge, I put a B (bronze), S (silver) or G (gold) in the bottom right hand corner of each card (see left). Before the game begins, students sort the cards into three piles, one for each level of challenge. This allows them to self-differentiate.

To ensure that all students participate throughout the game, they are given the responsibility of feeding back on the answers given by the person on their left. This is structured using ACE feedback.

To assess whether students have grasped the key ideas from the lesson (and to reduce your workload), the groups can create the question cards for another group at the end of the lesson (and finish for homework if necessary). The game then becomes your starter for the next lesson.

Strategy 4 - Quick on the draw

 Works best for assessing: knowledge, application and evaluation

The basics of the strategy: Students are divided into groups of equal size. Each group needs a team name or number. Question cards (similar to those from Dicey behaviour) are attached to the board (I use blu-tac) under the team's name or number, and students nominate one member of the group to race to the front to collect one of their questions (see right). They return to their group and answer the question together on a whiteboard. They then send another member to collect the next card etc. The aim is to be the first team to answer all of the questions correctly. At the end of the game, students from any team can be selected to share their answers to one of the questions, and the winning team is tasked with feeding back on whether their answer is correct (again using ACE feedback).

Twists to make it more effective:

To signify the level of challenge, I put a B (bronze), S (silver) or G (gold) in the bottom right hand corner of each card. I also introduce multiple ways to be a winning team - they can be the first team to answer all questions of one particular medal colour correctly, or the first team to answer all of the questions correctly. The more able students tend to figure out that they increase their odds of winning if they try to be the first team to answer all of the gold questions correctly, and this gives the lower ability chances of winning too.


Whilst some of these activities require a fair amount of preparation, my students love them and I am able to accurately assess their learning from each lesson. Give them a go and let me know how they work out.

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