A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN LARGE-ENROLLMENT INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS

Abstract

Implementing formative assessment in large-enrollment statistics courses is recommended by mathematics and statistics education communities. Yet research maintains that large-enrollment courses employ few, if any, formative assessments, exacerbating negative attitudes toward statistics and low student achievement. This conceptual essay applies an andragogical approach to the theories of self-efficacy, self-regulation, and formative assessment. A literature review explicates the associations between formative assessment with feedback and reassessment with student attitudes and achievement. Resulting from the review, a conceptual framework is proposed that illustrates the relations between the elements of formative assessment cycles and student attitudes and achievement. The implications of this conceptual framework suggest a comprehensive transformation of assessment practices to provide pathways for student success in statistics courses.