Examples of what can be expected from the assessment of students...

There are two types of assessments that schools use. The first being formative and the other being summative. It is said that a student cannot learn by summative assessments only but that a student can learn by formative assessments only. The reason for this is because formative assessments happen throughout the year and can be monitored frequently. Summative assessments occur at the end of a unit lesson, therefore once a summative assessment has been given, it is almost too late to go back to make corrections. It is like teaching a student how to add and subtract and then giving them a summative assessment at the end. If a student tested badly, by the time the teacher discovered the problem, the student would be far behind the rest of the class. So, through formative assessments, students who are having problems can be discovered more quickly and efficiently without falling behind.