Modules

Assessment Modules

About these learning pathways:

We’ve created these learning paths to provide you with a coherent learning experience, bringing together a variety of resources and media that support specific learning objectives. 

Each learning pathway in the series offers a self-paced, flexible route to becoming a formative assessor who is committed to equity and excellence in diverse California K-12 classrooms. It helps you blend instructional and assessment “moves” seamlessly, during each lesson, to re-connect students to the subject content while helping everyone check for understanding.

The formative assessment moves framework© introduced in this series will open up new opportunities to help teachers and students recognize, evaluate and use “soft data” that emerges during and across a set of lessons. It invites all to drive towards deeper learning with an open, visible classroom-based formative assessment process committed to continuous improvement.

By offering practical tips, video-based examples, worksheets, and templates, you will have the tools you need to make progress–minute by minute, day by day–with assessment for learning practices rooted in research on what works.

The IAEP Center is committed to your success and we believe that formative assessment is the key to deeper learning and visible learning for all. 

Topics on this page:

 fa moves

Module 1: Introduction to FA Moves Framework

Synopsis: This module provides you with an overview of the “Formative Assessment Moves” framework and focuses on assessment for learning aimed at deeper learning. It introduces each move–priming, posing, pausing, probing, bouncing, tagging, and binning–and sets the stage for the next modules in the learning pathway. 

Sources: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021, July, 30). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 2 on priming. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

Start Module 1 Introduction

Module 2: On Priming

Synopsis: This module provides you with an overview of the “Formative Assessment Moves” framework while focusing on priming students for learning to learn.

Focus on FA practice: Priming moves set the stage for any formative assessment-rich classroom context by preparing the groundwork with students, establishing and agreeing on norms and values, and ensuring that all students’ voices can be heard in the process of assessment for learning routines.

In this module, you’ll explore:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Priming
  • Video clips of “Priming” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define priming
  • Describe why priming matters
  • Apply good priming techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021b). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 2 on priming. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 3: On Posing

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Posing” moves. Essential questions, hinge questions, diagnostic questions, Socratic questions, open-ended questions–all of these types of questions can be posed during a lesson to build and check for understanding. 

Focus on FA practice: Posing is the art of asking questions that deepen learning experiences and size up learners’ needs in a lesson and across the unit. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of posing moves that drive the process of checking for understanding with rich learning targets. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to pose questions more coherently and systematically to check for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Posing
  • Video clip(s) of “Posing” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define posing
  • Describe why posing matters
  • Apply good posing techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021c). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 2 on posing. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 4: Pausing

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Pausing” moves. Wait time, think time, processing time–all of these types of support cognitive learning strategies can be used during a lesson to build and check for understanding.

Focus on FA practice: Pausing is the art of giving students–and ourselves as teachers–adequate time to think and respond, as individuals or in groups, to questions in the classroom learning environment. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of pausing moves to aid in the process of checking for understanding. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to pause systematically to assist checking for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Pausing
  • Video clip(s) of “Pausing” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define pausing
  • Describe why pausing matters
  • Apply good pausing techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021d). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 4 on pausing. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 5: Probing

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Probing” moves. Seeking explanations, justifications, and elaborations by questioning responses–all of these types of deeper learning strategies can be used during a lesson to  build and check for understanding.

Focus on FA practice: Probing is the art of asking follow-up questions that use information from actual student responses, inviting all students to elaborate, to go deeper, to push beyond their “first draft” answers. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of probing moves to aid in the process of checking for understanding. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to probe more coherently and systematically to check for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Probing
  • Video clip(s) of “Probing” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define probing
  • Describe why probing matters
  • Apply good probing techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021e). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 5 on probing. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 6: Bouncing

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Bouncing” moves. Increasing student participation, student engagement, student uptake, student self-efficacy, student agency–all of these types of deeper learning strategies can be used during a lesson to build and check for understanding.

Focus on FA practice: Bouncing is the art of sampling a variety of responses intentionally and systematically to better map terrain of student thinking during a lesson. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of bouncing moves to improve the representativeness of student responses while checking for understanding. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to bounce more coherently and systematically to check for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Bouncing
  • Video clip(s) of “Bouncing” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define bouncing
  • Describe why bouncing matters
  • Apply good bouncing techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021f). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 6 on bouncing. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 7: Tagging

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Tagging” moves. Scribing, writing, recording, illustrating, noting, visualizing –all of these types of deeper learning strategies can be used during a lesson to build and check for understanding.

Focus on FA practice: Tagging is the art of publicly representing variation in student thinking by creating a snapshot or a running record of a class’s responses. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of tagging moves to include more student voices, and hence better understand prior knowledge, p-prims and misconceptions, during the process of checking for understanding. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to tag more equitably and systematically to assist checking for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Tagging
  • Video clip(s) of “Tagging” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define tagging
  • Describe why tagging matters
  • Apply good tagging techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021g). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 7 on tagging. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 8: Binning

Synopsis: This module introduces you to the concept of “Binning” moves. Using rubrics or answer keys is the most common way to bin student performances. Categorizing, sorting, ranking, evaluating, grading–all of these types of assessment strategies and evaluation tools can be used to gauge understanding and to help determine possible next steps.

Focus on FA practice: Binning is the art of noticing patterns in student responses, categorizing them along learning trajectories, and using real-time assessment classroom-based data to inform next steps with students. In this module, we consider various modalities, types, and purposes of binning moves to aid in the process of checking for understanding–the heart of formative assessment–in addition to providing a summative mark or grade. 

We also discuss various binning tools such as rubrics, answer keys, partial credit scoring guides, and progress guides that support self-assessment and peer assessment routines. 

In this module, you’ll explore how to bin more thoughtfully and systematically to assist checking for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Binning
  • Video clip(s) of “Binning” in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Define binning
  • Describe why binning matters
  • Apply good binning techniques in face-to-face, blended, and online instructional environments

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021h). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 8 on binning. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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Module 9: On Closing Opportunity Gaps

Synopsis: This module offers examples of how to use the “Formative Assessment Moves” framework at the classroom or school-level to support teachers who aim at  closing opportunity gaps in linguistically, culturally, and economically diverse classrooms. We offer templates for integrating Formative Assessment  Moves into inquiry-based lesson plans and we describe how to use video-based, formative assessment-driven lesson study to connect PLC work that connects deeper learning and equity to real-time instruction in a positive, caring, and thoughtful classroom learning environment.

Focus on FA practice: In this module, we consider integrating all the formative assessment moves and incorporating them into lesson plans.

In this module, you’ll explore how to integrate the formative assessment moves to better plan for checking for understanding during classroom instruction. Resources include:

  • A 20-25 minute video explaining Formative Assessment Moves
  • Video clip(s) of formative assessment moves in action in authentic classroom settings
  • Checks for understanding and a Glossary to help you clarify content
  • A PDF of References

By the end of this module, you will know and be able to:

  • Integrate formative assessment MOVES into lesson plans
  • Connect PLC work on deeper learning and equity to classroom assessment practices
  • Utilize soft data within a lesson and across units of instructions aimed at closing opportunity gaps
  • Integrate formative assessment moves with high-leverage instructional practices

Citation: Duckor, B., & Holmberg, C. (2021i). Assessment for learning to support student achievement: Module 8 on closing opportunity gaps with the FA moves framework. California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

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