Checking for Understanding: Formative Assessment Techniques for Your Classroom

by Doug Fisher, Nancy Frey

In Checking for Understanding, Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey show how to increase students' understanding with the help of creative formative assessments. When used regularly, formative assessments enable every teacher to determine what students know and what they still need to learn. Fisher and Frey explore a variety of engaging activities that check for and increase understanding, including interactive writing, portfolios, multimedia presentations, audience response systems, and much more.

Genres: Education, Teaching, Professional Development, Nonfiction

200 pages, Paperback

First published December 16, 2014

Reviews

[Sabrina Williams]

I had to read this book for an education class this semester. I couldn't really ever seem to get into it. Yes, it had a lot of useful information, but it felt like such a chore to read.

[Eco]

What can you say about a textbook?

It had some interesting ideas, but most seemed to be common sense: keep the students as the focus. Or maybe I have been immersed in the Girl Scout mission of Girl led, girl driven so long that there was nothing much new to learn from the book. Okay, I shouldn't say nothing much because I still need to research the Danielson Framework for Teaching, plus I was introduced to the language and vocabulary of teaching (which calls to mind a certain song entitled Synergy by Weird Al).

One book down; eight to go. These books and the subsequent classes and coursework are going to put a big dent in my personal reading time.

[Eric Nelson]

I thought this book had lots of good, practical ways for teachers and students to assess for understanding all along the way through the school year.

[Steve]

Will be a good reference resource to go back to in the future.

[Sharrice]

helpful

[Jace]

Good reference text for explicit strategies for formative assessment. Very informative book.

[Angela]

This is actually a hard book to review, simply because its usefulness will depend on the reader.

There are solid, research-based strategies presented in a mostly concise format. Formative assessment is extremely important in education. As a teacher, I learn so much about my students in the formative stage that the summative stage becomes a formality, rather than a necessity.

As a veteran teacher, there was nothing much new. However, reading the book was a good refresher, and having all of the strategies in one place is handy.

I think this would be a great read for a beginning teacher--maybe 1-2 years of experience (it would be overwhelming for a first-year teacher who is trying to figure out so much already). It could also be useful in a collaborative group of teachers.