Formative assessment  is an ongoing process for providing feedback to students throughout the duration of a course. Authentic assessment is often classified under this heading and would include formats such as portfolios, journals, Power Point presentations, and project based assignments.  According to Muirhead (2002), the variety of these learning opportunities enables students to gain a greater depth of knowledge and advances reflective and critical thinking skills.  

Summative assessment  occurs at the end of a unit to determine how much students have learned and is usually administered through the use of  tests and exams. While testing can provide efficient feedback on students' factual knowledge in a subject area, their use may not indicate higher level skills (Mogey & Watt, 1998, p.51). 

Further Readings

Listed below are articles related to the issues and theories of assessment:

Assessment guru Grant Wiggins shares his thoughts on the importance of assessment as well as some examples of assessment on the George Lucas Educational Foundation website.

Flinders University. has a website which explores assessment design strategies.

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References

Erwin, T.D. (1991). Assessing Student Learning and Development, San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass,  p.14-19.

Mogey, N. & Watt, H. (1998).  The use of computers in the assessment of student learning.  Retrieved November 1, 2003 from http://www.icbl.hw.ac.uk/ltdi/implementing-it/using.htm