How should formative and summative assessments be used to guide instruction?

• A. Only summative assessments are used for instruction.
• B. Formative assessments are used for ongoing feedback and adjustment; summative assessments are used for end-of-unit evaluation.
• C. Formative assessments should be ignored in planning.
• D. Assessments have no impact on instruction.

Answer: (B)

Formative assessments provide ongoing feedback during instruction, letting you see what students understand or struggle with in real time. This information lets you adjust pacing, reteach concepts, modify activities, and tailor instruction to meet student needs. Summative assessments occur after a unit and measure what students have learned overall, helping you gauge mastery and plan future units. Together, formative assessment guides day-to-day teaching decisions; summative assessment provides a larger-picture check of learning outcomes and informs next steps. The other options miss the ongoing feedback role, suggest ignoring formative data, or claim assessments don’t affect instruction, which isn’t true because teachers use this data to improve teaching and learning.