What distinguishes formative assessment from summative assessment?

The distinction between formative and summative assessment primarily lies in the timing and purpose of each assessment type within the educational process. Formative assessment occurs during the instructional period and is designed to monitor student progress and understanding in real time. This type of assessment helps educators identify learning gaps and adjust instruction to better meet the needs of students.

On the other hand, summative assessment takes place at the end of an instructional period and serves to evaluate what students have learned over that time frame. This assessment is typically used to measure student performance against established benchmarks or standards, summarizing their knowledge at a specific point in time.

In this context, option C accurately captures the essence of both assessment types, making a clear distinction between formative assessment's role in ongoing evaluation and the summative assessment's purpose of final evaluation at the conclusion of a learning phase. It illustrates the sequential nature of learning and assessment, highlighting how formative assessments inform instruction and summative assessments quantify cumulative learning outcomes.