Active Assessment project
The Active Assessment project builds on the earlier development work in Concept Cartoons. Brenda Keogh and Stuart Naylor’s research into Concept Cartoons identified an approach to formative assessment that had a significant impact on teaching and learning and was easily managed by teachers. They called this approach Active Assessment, to highlight the active engagement of pupils in the learning and assessment process. The initial focus for the Active Assessment project was science education. Research into the use of the Active Assessment approach highlights the impact that it has on pupils talking and thinking in lessons, and the way in which it supports Assessment for Learning in schools. (see Active Assessment research)
Assessment for Learning can appear complicated for teachers and learners. Active Assessment aims to be quick, simple and effective. It emphasises making learning better rather than simply recording learning.
An Active Assessment approach supports Assessment for Learning. It emphasises the connection between formative assessment and learning through the use of strategies that simultaneously provide opportunities for assessment and promote learning. It places learners at the heart of the assessment process by actively engaging them in discussion to clarify their ideas. This involves using strategies that generate cognitive conflict and create a purpose for finding out more and extending their learning.
An integral part of the Active Assessment project was identifying, and developing, a wide range of strategies in such a way that they can support an Active Assessment approach. All the strategies enable teachers to integrate formative assessment into their normal teaching, and make it manageable and effective in typical classrooms. Research into differentiation helped to inform this process (see Differentiation research).
During 2004-2007 the Active Assessment project was funded by GlaxoSmithKline. Approximately 6000 teachers participated in a UK-wide professional development project to introduce teachers to an Active Assessment approach and provide them with resources to support their work in the classroom. Since 2007 the project has been supported by Millgate House Education. This has enabled the project to reach more teachers and incorporate more subjects. The Active Assessment project has led to involvement in other creative projects, for example Rational Food project and Sunshine, Shadows and Stone Circles publication.
The main publications underpinning the project, Active Assessment in science, Active Assessment in mathematics and Active Assessment in English, are now widely used, with the strategies being embedded into teaching programmes in many primary and high schools. Further Active Assessment materials are being developed for the humanities. The science book has been translated into Welsh. Brenda, Stuart and Jane Turner have run CPD for teachers’ groups, and presented keynotes and workshops throughout the UK and internationally.
