Formative Instructional Practices
FIP includes a multitude of strategies that teachers can make use of in order to assess and improve the learning of students in the course of the instruction. Basically, these practices are made through the continuous feedback and active participation of students, along with the adjustments to teaching that are made based on the need of the students which altogether creates a more efficient learning environment.
The major elements of Formative Instructional Practices are the continuous assessment, giving feedback, engaging students, and making necessary adjustments in instruction. Such as, teachers can utilize quizzes, talks, and observations to measure the comprehension of students and give on-time feedback, which helps them primarily identify their strength and also the areas that require improvement.
By integrating consistent assessments, utilizing a variety of techniques such as exit tickets and peer evaluations, and promoting a classroom environment where feedback is cherished, teachers can efficiently put FIP into practice. To illustrate, a teacher could conduct a brief poll to determine the students' comprehension level of a given topic before progressing, thus enabling teaching alterations based on the outcome.
Involving students in giving feedback is a critical aspect of the formative assessment in FIP, as it is a way to empower them to own the learning process. The self-reflection practice as a way of sharing opinions with the whole class about their understanding of a topic can be utilized by the teacher to learn about the students' needs, which in turn can help him/her in making the necessary adjustments in his/her instruction. A case in point would be to have the students fill in self-assessment forms or join reflective journals through which they can express their views on their learning journey.
Formative Instructional Practices are the means by which student outcomes are enhanced by creating a learning environment that is responsive to student needs. For example, if a teacher recognizes through formative assessments that a particular group is finding a certain concept difficult, he/she can introduce small-group instruction aimed at that particular skill. This kind of specific intervention serves to significantly close the weekly gaps that have been found in the students' previous topic learning, which in turn helps them to get much better understanding and perform well on the summative assessment. Thanks to this, the students understand better and excel in the tests.