The use of formative evaluation with online courses by teachers at the secondary level

This case study investigated the use of formative evaluation by three teachers who designed and delivered online courses at the secondary level. Formative evaluation involves collecting data that could be used to improve the effectiveness of the design and delivery of a course. Teachers were observed teaching the courses they designed for one quarter and then were given a workshop introducing them to formative evaluation techniques. They were observed for another quarter to determine if their delivery or design practices changed. Additional data were collected through interviews and through the analysis of course-related artifacts that included emails, journal entries by the teachers, and threaded web discussions. Data were entered into the ATLAS.ti qualitative analysis software to aid in the linking and reporting of the open and axial coding of the data. The following questions framed the study: (1) To what extent was the process of formative evaluation used by teachers who designed and delivered online courses at the secondary level in an online high school? (2) What changes in online teaching practice or course design resulted following the instruction and application of formative evaluation procedures by teachers who designed and delivered online courses at the secondary level in an online high school? (3) What standards, checklists, or other instructional design framework existed that influenced the use of formative evaluation by the participating teachers?;The results indicated that formative evaluation was used by all three teachers in varying degRees Only a few minor changes were evident in the design or delivery following the workshop. No framework at the school addressed the need for or value of formative evaluation. Due to curricular demands on the teachers, a lack of student compliance, and a lack of a formal or accountable framework, the feedback to improve the courses proved difficult for teachers to obtain. A framework, in the form of a checklist for conducting formative evaluation, was a product of this research