FAA Fundamentals of Instructing (FOI)Assessment and CritiqueEasy

A flight instructor gives a short quiz at the end of each lesson to check whether the student grasped that day's objectives, using the results only to decide what to review next—not to assign a final grade. This is an example of which type of assessment?

  1. ANorm-referenced assessment
  2. BSummative assessment
  3. CStandardized assessment
  4. DFormative assessment
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: D. Formative assessment

Formative assessment occurs during instruction and is used to monitor ongoing progress and guide further teaching, not to produce a final grade. Summative assessment happens at the end of a course of instruction to evaluate overall achievement.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A. Norm-referenced compares students to each other, not to lesson objectives.
  • B. Summative assessment occurs at the end of instruction to evaluate overall achievement, not lesson-by-lesson.
  • C. Standardized testing refers to uniform administration/scoring, not this timing purpose.

Formative Assessment

An assessment conducted during instruction to monitor a student's progress and guide subsequent teaching decisions.

  • Occurs during the learning process, not at the end
  • Used to identify strengths/weaknesses for reteaching
  • Contrasts with summative assessment given at course completion

Memory trick: Diagnose first, Form along the way, Sum it up at the end.

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