{"id":17041,"date":"2025-05-07T15:46:55","date_gmt":"2025-05-07T19:46:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/progresslearning.com\/?p=17041"},"modified":"2025-05-30T17:23:03","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T21:23:03","slug":"everything-is-formative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/progresslearning.com\/news-blog\/everything-is-formative\/","title":{"rendered":"Everything Is Formative: Rethinking Feedback and Assessment for Real Student Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"

How often do we pour time and energy into grading student work, only to watch them glance at the score and toss the assignment aside? In too many classrooms, summative assessments signal the end of learning when they should be an opportunity to start a new cycle of reflection and growth.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the heart of <\/span>Everything is Formative<\/i><\/a><\/strong>, a webinar hosted by Progress Learning and led by veteran educator Amy Wolford. With 26 years of teaching experience and a relentless focus on student learning, Wolford has redefined how assessment can work in K\u201312 classrooms. Her approach centers on a deceptively simple truth: <\/span>when you treat all assessments as formative, students learn more, period.<\/b><\/p>\n

From \u201cEnd Point\u201d to \u201cStarting Line\u201d: A Feedback Revolution<\/b><\/h2>\n

Wolford\u2019s strategy began years ago when, like so many teachers, she found herself drowning in stacks of essays. She spent hours providing detailed comments, only to watch students skim the score, ignore the feedback, and repeat the same mistakes on the next assignment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI would be so proud of myself that I got the essays back in two days, and then I\u2019d hand them out, and they\u2019d look at the grade, and stuff it in the backpack. No learning was happening,\u201d she recalled. Her frustration led to a breakthrough. What if students had to engage with feedback <\/span>before<\/span><\/i> they saw a grade? What if the grade wasn\u2019t the end, but just one part of a larger learning loop?<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s when she created her formative feedback system, a multi-step process that puts reflection, peer learning, and accountability at the center.<\/span><\/p>\n

Amy Wolford\u2019s 4-Part Formative Feedback Cycle<\/b><\/h2>\n

At the core of Wolford\u2019s strategy is a simple twist: <\/span>don\u2019t put the grade on the work.<\/b> Instead, she uses a sticker or symbol that only she understands. The grade is hidden temporarily. Why? To force students to interact with the feedback before focusing on the score.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how the process works:<\/span><\/p>\n