Formative Assessment and Self-Assessment
The primary purpose of assessment is to support students' learning and development
We focus on the research and application of formative student assessment and self-assessment, including portfolio work and the development of a new type of report card. Additionally, we conduct self-evaluation of our own teaching in teacher education.
Our current efforts are primarily concentrated on applied research in the innovation of elementary school report cards. Our extensive research group includes both academic professionals and practicing teachers. Over a three-year experimental development period, we have created a proposal for a new type of report card and verified its effectiveness in practice. The DIFFERENT report card (“VYSVĚDČENÍ JINAK”) combines formative and summative assessment, providing a holistic evaluation of behaviour and specific key competencies. It is based on the requirements of the Framework Educational Program for Basic Education, thus representing a "standards-based" report card that combines various assessment methods and allows students to actively participate in their assessment.
Our research group also supports teachers who wish to implement the new type of report card in practice, which necessitates changes in ongoing assessment. To assist with this, we provide the website "JINAK Report Card," offering comprehensive methodological support and a long-term ten-month training program that integrates formative and summative assessment into a cohesive system. The most significant finding from our research is that if teachers want to implement the JINAK report card, they must also change ongoing assessment, thereby transforming the overall learning culture. The JINAK report card has also caught the attention of the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports and is expected to become one of the official report card options in the Czech Republic.
We are also focused on other research topics such as the development of professional competencies in formative assessment within teaching staff (learning communities), the impact of self-assessment on students' motivation to learn, and more.
Research projects
Development and implementation of a pilot design end-semester /school certificate: Innovation of final pupils' assessment in the elementary schools based on comprehensive concept of assessment (TL05000360, 2021–23)
Analyzing the determinants of self-reported English language knowledge and motivation for English language learning in Czech lower secondary students (GA20-05484S, 2020–24)
Selected publications
Grombířová, J., & Kratochvílová, J. (2024). Innovation in the Final Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes (Report Cards): The Process of Change and Its Impacts on School Practice. Studia paedagogica, 29(3), 106–141. https://doi.org/10.5817/SP2024-3-5
Kratochvílová, J. (2015). Pupil self-assessment and assessment of the teacher – two closely related processes. Przegląd Pedagogiczny, 2015(1), 19–29. https://doi.org/10.34767/PP.2015.01.02
Kratochvílová, J. (2013). Inclusive education and teachers' self-evaluation in Czech primary schools. American International Journal of Social Science, 2(5), 17–22.