Institutionalising formative assessment through school reform: when educational policy and teacher education are misaligned

The interest in formative assessment, which is highly valued in current conceptualisations of teacher assessment literacy, has led to a renewed focus on initial teacher education (ITE) programmes, as well as on the assessment education domain. The conceptual understanding of the theory and practice of formative assessment has been long advocated by scholars. However, most of the research conducted over the years has primarily focused on the effectiveness of pre-service courses in promoting teacher assessment literacy, while the assessment content and pedagogies provided to teacher students have received limited attention. Given the emphasis on formative assessment, recently introduced as a compulsory practice in the Italian school system, this study offers a first scan of educational assessment courses provided by the national (ITE) programmes. Using nationwide data from 74 syllabi of educational assessment courses, a content analysis has been performed to detect if, and to what extent, ITE programmes have been revised to reflect the new formative assessment demands. More specifically, the analysis determined the existence and frequency of formative assessment content. Findings indicate a limited presence of formative assessment (theory and practice) elements across the selected syllabi. Implications and future directions for educational practice, research, and policy are finally discussed.