A curated collection of books, articles, research and practical resources that I have found useful in thinking about assessment, feedback, progression and examination practice. The collection includes both wider assessment thinking and resources specifically related to assessing geographical knowledge, understanding and progress.
Assessment design, formative assessment, feedback, progression and question design
Assessment Links
Books
Websites and Articles
Tim Oates — What Makes Great Assessment?
Cambridge Assessment
A useful discussion of the principles that underpin high-quality assessment, including the challenges involved in designing assessments that produce meaningful and dependable information about learning.
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https://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/insights/what-makes-great-assessment/
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Tim Oates — Opening the Door to Deeper Understanding
Cambridge Assessment
An accessible exploration of assessment that focuses on whether pupils have secured important concepts and ideas rather than simply reached a particular level. Particularly useful for thinking about the relationship between curriculum depth and assessment.
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https://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/insights/national-curriculum-tim-oates-on-assessment-insights/
Tim Oates — Education, Assessment and Developing a Comprehensive Qualifications Framework
Cambridge Assessment, 2013
A broader examination of the purposes and management of assessment and qualifications. Useful for anyone wanting to move beyond classroom assessment into the wider principles underpinning assessment systems and qualification design.
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https://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/Images/130106-tim-oates-paper-education-assessment-and-developing-a-comprehensive-qualifications-framework-.pdf
Dylan Wiliam — Formative Assessment and the Regulation of Learning
An influential exploration of formative assessment and the ways evidence of pupil learning can be used to regulate and adapt teaching and learning.
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https://www.dylanwiliam.org/Dylan_Wiliams_website/Papers_files/AAMT%2005%20paper%20%28US%29.pdf
Education Endowment Foundation — Teacher Feedback to Improve Pupil Learning
An evidence-informed guidance report on effective feedback. Particularly useful in shifting attention away from the method of feedback towards the principles that make feedback more likely to improve learning.
Explore guidance →
https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/guidance-reports/feedback
Education Endowment Foundation — Embedding Formative Assessment
Useful evidence relating to sustained formative-assessment approaches and their implementation through teacher professional development.
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https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and-evaluation/projects/embedding-formative-assessment
Geographical Association — Assessment in Geography
A useful hub bringing together guidance on assessment, progression, formative and summative assessment and assessing geographical learning
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Explore resource →
https://geography.org.uk/ite/initial-teacher-education/geography-support-for-trainees-and-ects/learning-to-teach-secondary-geography/assessment-in-geography/
Dylan Wiliam — Embedded Formative Assessment
Wiliam, D. (2018). Solution Tree Press.
A key text on formative assessment and the use of assessment evidence to adapt teaching and support learning. Particularly useful for thinking about how teachers can build assessment into everyday classroom practice rather than treating it as something separate from teaching.
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https://www.solutiontree.com/embedded-formative-assessment-second-ed.html
Michael Chiles — The CRAFT of Assessment: A Whole School Approach to Assessment of Learning
Chiles, M. (2020). John Catt Educational Ltd.
A practical exploration of assessment design and implementation at classroom and whole-school level. Particularly useful for thinking about how assessment can provide meaningful information about what pupils know and can do, while avoiding approaches that create unnecessary workload or unreliable conclusions.
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https://www.hachettelearning.com/teaching-strategies/the-craft-of-assessment
Daisy Christodoulou — Making Good Progress? The Future of Assessment for Learning
Christodoulou, D. (2017). Oxford University Press.
A highly useful exploration of the relationship between formative and summative assessment, curriculum progression and the development of complex performance. Particularly valuable for thinking about the difference between assessing final performance and assessing the component knowledge and skills that underpin it.
View book →
https://global.oup.com/education/product/making-good-progress-9780198413608
Sarah Donarski (ed.) — The researchED Guide to Assessment: An Evidence-Informed Guide for Teachers
Donarski, S. (ed.) (2020). John Catt Educational Ltd.
A useful collection of evidence-informed perspectives on assessment, bringing together contributions from researchers and practitioners. Particularly helpful for exploring assessment purpose, formative and summative approaches, feedback and the effective use of assessment information in schools.