Abstract
Formative assessment is a means of unlocking the ‘black box’ of an intervention to explore and understand cause and effect, and is, therefore, vital for improvements that lead to success. However, most funders focus on summative evaluation, and projects with limited resources struggle to meet that requirement, leaving formative investigations ideal, but infeasible. Yet, formative assessment is essential when conducting an intervention that must create results with a small budget. This paper discusses the Formative Assessment Systems for Advanced Technological Education (FAS4ATE) project, which used a high level, theory based participatory approach to address these issues in small grant funded projects.
FAS4ATE brought the leaders and evaluators from a variety of small projects together with experts in formative assessment and evaluation in two webinars and a workshop. Logic models were the core activity and teaching tool used to identify formative assessment needs throughout the life cycle of individual projects. The logic models were then analysed across projects to provide specifications for the development of tools and resources to support formative assessment. The paper describes the project's process, key strategy, products and recommendations. It will be particularly valuable for those who are interested in evaluation capacity building, both in terms of individual learning and creating evaluation systems.
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