Formative Assessment (FA)
Formative assessment refers to the continuous, low-stakes evaluation carried out while teaching is in progress, such as quizzes, class assignments, projects and oral questions. Its purpose is to monitor understanding and improve learning rather than to grade finally. Under CCE, formative assessment scores contribute to the overall result alongside summative exams.
Ongoing, low-stakes assessment during teaching — quizzes, projects, class work — used to guide learning.
Why it matters
Internal assessment marks reach the board under the principal's signature, so formative assessment is not only pedagogy — it is the evidence behind a reported score. Schools that do not record it as it happens end up back-filling marks the week before upload, which is academically useless and indefensible if a parent or an inspector asks how a mark was arrived at. Subject teachers record; the exam cell consolidates.
In practice
- In CBSE's Classes IX–X scheme, each scholastic subject carries 20 internal-assessment marks against an 80-mark annual or board paper.
- Those 20 marks are split across periodic tests, multiple assessment, portfolio and subject enrichment — confirm the current split against the year's CBSE circular.
- Schools commonly conduct three periodic tests in the session and carry the average of the best two into the periodic-test component.
- Subject teachers enter marks through the term; the exam cell consolidates and uploads within the board's submission window.
- NEP 2020 pushes assessment toward regular, formative and competency-based; NCERT's PARAKH unit has published stage-wise Holistic Progress Cards.
Common mistakes
- Generating internal marks in bulk at upload time instead of recording them as the term progresses.
- Awarding near-full internal marks to every student, which destroys the diagnostic value and invites scrutiny.
- Keeping formative records only in a teacher's personal diary, so they vanish when the teacher leaves.
Common questions
Is formative assessment the same thing as CCE?
No. CCE was CBSE's earlier named scheme built on Formative and Summative Assessment labels, and CBSE discontinued it for Class X from the 2017-18 session when the board examination was restored. Formative assessment as a practice continues — it now sits inside the internal-assessment component of the current scheme.
How much does formative work count toward a CBSE board result?
In the current Classes IX–X scheme, internal assessment carries 20 marks out of 100 in each scholastic subject, with 80 from the annual or board examination. The weightage and component split vary by class, subject and board, and CBSE has revised them before — check the circular for the current session.
Who decides what counts as a formative assessment in a subject?
The subject teacher, working within the framework the board sets. CBSE deliberately leaves the type and frequency of multiple-assessment activities to the teacher so that the method suits the learning outcome — class work, oral questioning, projects, practicals or short written tasks — rather than prescribing one instrument.
Edutris turns entered marks into grades, CGPA and finished report cards automatically — one entry, no transcription.
Related terms
Summative Assessment (SA)
The end-of-term or year examination that formally measures and grades what a student has learned.
CCE (Continuous & Comprehensive Evaluation)
An evaluation system assessing students continuously across scholastic and co-scholastic areas, not just in final exams.
Internal Assessment
School-conducted marks — periodic tests, notebook, subject enrichment — that feed into the final board result.
Scholastic vs Co-Scholastic
Scholastic covers academic subjects; co-scholastic covers arts, sports, health and life-skill areas.
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