Alignment Between Assessment Processes and Active Methodologies in Primary Education

Abstract

Active Methodologies and formative assessment are two fundamental components of contemporary competency-based educational approaches. Although both have been widely studied independently, limited evidence is available regarding how they are articulated in teaching practice and which factors facilitate or hinder coherence between active methodologies, assessment, and grading in primary education. This study examined such coherence from teachers’ perspectives, as well as the influence of training-related, professional, institutional, and disciplinary factors. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was employed. The quantitative phase involved 500 Spanish primary school teachers and included descriptive, correlational, and inferential analyses using the OCDUMA and MAEV-G instruments. Subsequently, the qualitative phase analysed open-ended responses through Grounded Theory procedures to gain a deeper understanding of the quantitative findings. The results revealed positive associations between favourable perceptions of active methodologies and assessment and grading practices. Specific training in active methodologies emerged as one of the factors most closely associated with greater methodological and assessment coherence. Differences were also observed according to professional experience, school ownership, and teaching area. Qualitative findings indicated positive perceptions of self-assessment, peer assessment, and continuous feedback, alongside barriers related to administrative workload, time constraints, and training needs. The findings suggest that coherence between active methodologies, assessment, and grading is not an automatic consequence of pedagogical innovation but rather a process shaped by training-related, professional, and institutional factors. The study provides empirical evidence on the conditions that promote such coherence and highlights the importance of strengthening assessment literacy and the organisational conditions required for the sustainable implementation of competency-based approaches in primary education.