Formative for whom? : How formative assessment is used in the English Classroom of an upper secondary school in Sweden.

This study looks deeper into the concept of formative assessment. Formative assessment is described by Black and Wiliam (Developing the Theory of Formative Assessment, 2009) as being a process using tools. The mindset of formative assessment can be difficult to grasp. Therefore, this study takes up the question if and how an understanding of the formative assessment mindset is reflected in the teaching practice of teachers in the English Language Acquisition classroom. Five lectures were observed of different teachers and groups of students, in an upper secondary school in Sweden. An additional questionnaire gave insight into the mindset of the participating teachers concerning the meaning of the term formative assessment as well as their teaching practice. The definitions the teachers gave varied in complexity and this was also reflected in their teaching. Only one teacher embedded the process of formative assessment with all the 5 key strategies of formative assessment in her lecture. By comparing classroom practice and the understanding of the teachers of what formative assessment entails, I found that the more inclusive of the 5 key strategies the understanding of the teachers was, the more their teaching practice was formed by it. Furthermore, to be able to use the 5 key strategies of formative assessment needs skill and practice, and therefore training of teachers is necessary.