Assessment

Formative assessment refers to a process that takes place during learning rather than at its conclusion. It primarily serves a developmental function. Its main purpose is to identify progress and learning difficulties in real time, allowing both students and teachers to adapt their approaches to improve outcomes. In formative assessment, the focus is not on the final grade, but on the learning process itself. We can therefore say that the core components of formative assessment are assessment for learning and assessment as learning. This approach promotes deeper understanding of content and develops awareness of one’s own learning, metacognitive skills and learner autonomy. Formative assessment monitors the teaching and learning process in order to identify student difficulties and develop understanding prior to summative assessment.

This type of assessment includes various forms of feedback, often immediate and concrete. Teachers use comments on draft versions of student work, conduct short quizzes to check understanding, ask students to keep reflective journals, or encourage them to express their doubts and uncertainties. For example, a teacher may provide constructive comments on a draft seminar paper, offer additional explanations after a short digital in-class test, or ask students to record weekly reflections on what they understood and what remained unclear in a learning journal. In contemporary contexts, formative assessment is increasingly supported by digital tools that enable automated and personalised feedback, further increasing its effectiveness and strengthening students’ active role in their own learning.

Examples of formative assessment using Moodle LMS

• Short quizzes with feedback for each question: the teacher creates a quiz in which each question includes detailed explanations of correct and incorrect answers, enabling students to receive immediate feedback and learn from mistakes.
• Reflection or discussion forum: students post their own examples, reflections, or task solutions, while teachers and peers provide comments and suggestions for improvement (peer assessment).
• Assignment with multiple submission attempts: students submit a draft, receive teacher feedback through comments or rubrics, revise their work, and then submit a final version.
• Lesson with branching and feedback messages: students progress through a lesson in which each decision or answer leads to different explanations and advice, encouraging active learning and self-assessment.