Formative assessment and self-regulated learning in primary education: linking evidence from a cross-cultural comparative scoping review

Formative assessment is a promising pedagogy for promoting self-regulated learning (SRL), yet how formative assessment facilitates SRL in primary education and across cultures is understudied. To examine the role of formative assessment in the promotion of SRL across diverse education systems, this review synthesised what the literature demonstrates about the connections between formative assessment and SRL in primary education across studies published in English and Chinese languages. We used a scoping review methodology to select 51 articles from English- and Chinese-language databases and identified six themes: social and emotional development; student autonomy; engagement in learning; feedback and reporting; academic achievement; and self-management/control. Across these themes, how teachers supported student self-assessment in age-appropriate ways appeared to play a central role in supporting SRL. Our review signalled learning cultural differences in how these relationships between formative assessment and SRL are understood, studied, and actualised.