Date of Award
Spring 5-12-2022
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education in Secondary Education
Department
Education
Committee Chair
Dr. Sutton-Brown-Fox
First Committee Member
Dr. Belinda Edwards
Second Committee Member
Dr. Guichun Zong
Abstract
Formative assessment is a valuable tool that may be used to track academic progress and increase student learning. The purpose of formative assessment is to collect evidence of students' thinking and learning, thereby modifying teaching to meet students' needs based on the collected information. The literature has well established the significance of formative assessment in assisting students' learning. However, defining and implementing this in the classroom is a complicated task.
The purpose of this study is to examine mathematics teachers' beliefs and practices of formative assessment in mathematics teaching and to determine how their beliefs affect their use of formative assessment practices in a mathematics classroom. The research for this study was carried out over a semester in a rural high school classroom in eastern Georgia. Multiple types of data were collected from the three mathematics teachers through classroom observations of teachers' experiences with formative assessment, semi-structured interviews, and artifacts. The qualitative case study method was used to gather and analyze data. The framework used for this study was the Formative Assessment Model by Black and Wiliam (2009).
Teachers discussed their experiences with the practice of assessment during semi-structured interviews. The analysis of teachers’ interview responses shows that the teachers valued and had a positive belief toward the importance of formative assessment and used it as part of their classroom instructional practices. Their responses also revealed that they used formative assessment as part of their instructional practices at a medium level. The implications and limitations of the study are discussed.