ABSTRACT
While the major emphasis in secondary schools seems to be on high-stakes testing, teachers have the most immediate impact in student learning through their use of assessments that are directly linked to the activities of the classroom. ese classroom-based assessments can be summative (e.g., end-of-unit tests) or formative (e.g., teacher observations of students as they collaborate on inquiries). Formative assessments of inquiry-based science instruction and learning are most productive in ascertaining the success of student comprehension. In addition to teacher observations, deeper understanding of science concepts can also be attained through the use of writing tasks that require students to articulate their newly acquired knowledge and skills. e NSES highlight how science teachers can be more eective in their use of classroom-based assessments by changing the aspects of the assessments (both summative and formative) that are emphasized.
