A professional development program in formative assessment for mathematics teachers – Which changes did the teachers do and why?

Overview & Synopsis

This study is part of a larger research project about a comprehensive professional development program (PDP) in formative assessment for mathematics teachers. The aim of the study is to investigate in which ways the teachers' classroom practice change, with respect to formative assessment, after participating in the PDP, and which some of the reasons may be for these changes. Fourteen randomly chosen grade-seven mathematics teachers participated in the PDP. The teachers were interviewed and their classroom practices observed, before and after the PDP. They also answered two questionnaires about the PDP. Preliminary results show that all teachers were motivated to change and did change their practice, but to varying degrees.