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Feedback plays a crucial role in bringing about learning gains. However, Lorrie Shepard (2001), in summarizing Kluger and De Nisi's meta-analysis on feedback research, points out that only in about one-third of the 131 studies examined did feedback improve learning. It turns out that it is not the "giving" of feedback that causes learning gains, it is the "acting" on feedback that determines how much students learn. Unless students know the answer to the question, "Where am I going?", feedback is just a series of instructions disconnected from a learning destination. In this article, the author discusses five characteristics of effective feedback: (1) Effective feedback directs attention to the intended learning, pointing out strengths and offering specific information to guide improvement; (2) Effective feedback occurs during the learning, while there is still time to act on it; (3) Effective feedback addresses partial understanding; (4) Effective feedback does not do the thinking for the student; and (5) Effective feedback limits corrective information to an amount the student can act on. (Contains 3 figures.)

Varying definitions of formative assessment have blurred the meaning of the term and caused confusion among educators. To determine whether a test is formative or summative, write the authors of this article, we need to ask, "How are the results going to be used? and Who is going to use them? The purpose of summative assessment is to make a judgment after the learning process is finished--to assign a grade, measure program effectiveness, or determine whether a school has met adequate yearly progress. Formative assessment, on the other hand, informs the teacher and learner about the status of learning during the instructional process, allowing adjustments to achieve greater learning. A key ingredient of formative assessment is descriptive feedback that identifies the student's strengths and suggests what he or she needs to do to improve.

In recent years, educators have expanded their thinking about what the assessment process can do; they have moved beyond using it simply to judge and grade achievement to using it to make changes in teaching that will lead to greater learning. They have come to refer to this as formative assessment. When used formatively, assessments help students grow rather than merely holding them accountable for their learning. However, in formative assessment as traditionally conceived, it is the teacher whose information needs are met. When formative assessment is cast as a tool for students to use, educators call it "assessment for learning." Both formative assessment and assessment for learning are intended to provide information early enough in the decision-making process to influence student learning. In this article, the authors identify the differences between formative assessment and assessment for learning, and describe how formative assessments can enhance student learning and create profound achievement gains.