Lifelong learning across the curriculum is contingent on understanding the language and concepts of the subject disciplines and the ways in which achievement in each subject is captured and evaluated. Academic standards can be elusive to students so the nurturing of literacy in the language and concepts of assessment and feedback are key to lifelong engagement and attainment in learning.
This paper is based on a PhD. study which explored how formative assessment is used in Irish post-primary school classrooms to support student learning and develop student understanding of the concepts of disciplinary language, achievement and agency in education.
This was a qualitative multiple case-study comprising classroom observation of practice and interviews with students and teachers to examine the interplay between assessment language and the sociocultural concepts of identity, agency and community of practice.
One of the main findings of the study is that assessment literacy has the potential to enhance students’ confidence and agency in education as well as their capacity for autonomous and self-directed learning. Assessment literacy shapes the positioning and identities available to teachers and students in the assessment process and defines learning opportunities and the recognition of achievement in education. The findings of this study reveal the impact of formative assessment practices on students’ identity-building, agency and their capacity to evaluate their own potential and achievements in learning. The findings of this study are timely in that formative assessment is an increasingly important element of curriculum reform and a policy priority in secondary education.