Page 1
Section B: Narrative Paper
Section B: Narrative Paper
Tinatra Carr
Western Governors University
C921: Developing a Formative Assessment
August 18, 2026
, Page 2
B1. Alignment
Each item in the formative assessment aligns directly with the course objectives (COs) and
student learning outcomes (SLOs) listed in Table 2 of the Formative Assessment Template. This
intentional alignment ensures that every question assesses a clearly defined competency that
students are expected to develop throughout the module. The deliberate use of a single,
consistent scenario reflects research-supported principles of experiential learning, which
emphasize the importance of contextual continuity in helping learners build and retain
knowledge over time (Chen et al., 2022). By grounding all four items in the same scenario,
students can concentrate on analyzing relevant Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) without
expending cognitive effort on shifting patient information or adapting to multiple clinical
situations. This stability allows learners to demonstrate comprehension, analysis, application, and
culturally responsive reasoning with greater accuracy and instructional relevance.
Furthermore, each assessment item is intentionally structured as a single-action question,
requiring students to perform one clearly defined cognitive task at a time. This design approach
aligns with Moreland's (2022) recommendation that assessment prompts be crafted to match
specific levels of Bloom's taxonomy, ensuring clarity, reducing cognitive overload, and
supporting accurate measurement of student learning. By assigning one discrete skill to each
question—such as identifying an SDOH (Q1), interpreting two SDOH (Q2), applying a
community-based intervention (Q3), or demonstrating culturally responsive care (Q4)—the
assessment maintains a transparent and direct relationship between the task, the aligned CO or
SLO, and the intended cognitive level. This level of precision promotes meaningful evaluation of
student progress and reinforces the module's sequential, developmental learning structure.
Summary Alignment Statement
This assessment aligns systematically with the module outcomes by linking each question to a
clearly identified competency, ensuring that students demonstrate the precise knowledge and
skills articulated in the course objectives (COs) and student learning outcomes (SLOs). Such
intentional alignment is essential for maintaining the validity of formative assessment, as it
ensures that each item produces evidence of learning directly tied to the intended outcomes
rather than peripheral or unintended skills (Stenberg et al., 2021). The progression from
foundational comprehension to higher-order reasoning reflects a purposeful application of
Bloom's hierarchical cognitive structure, which has long served as a framework for scaffolding
learning in nursing curricula (Moreland, 2022). By gradually organizing items to increase
Section B: Narrative Paper
Section B: Narrative Paper
Tinatra Carr
Western Governors University
C921: Developing a Formative Assessment
August 18, 2026
, Page 2
B1. Alignment
Each item in the formative assessment aligns directly with the course objectives (COs) and
student learning outcomes (SLOs) listed in Table 2 of the Formative Assessment Template. This
intentional alignment ensures that every question assesses a clearly defined competency that
students are expected to develop throughout the module. The deliberate use of a single,
consistent scenario reflects research-supported principles of experiential learning, which
emphasize the importance of contextual continuity in helping learners build and retain
knowledge over time (Chen et al., 2022). By grounding all four items in the same scenario,
students can concentrate on analyzing relevant Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) without
expending cognitive effort on shifting patient information or adapting to multiple clinical
situations. This stability allows learners to demonstrate comprehension, analysis, application, and
culturally responsive reasoning with greater accuracy and instructional relevance.
Furthermore, each assessment item is intentionally structured as a single-action question,
requiring students to perform one clearly defined cognitive task at a time. This design approach
aligns with Moreland's (2022) recommendation that assessment prompts be crafted to match
specific levels of Bloom's taxonomy, ensuring clarity, reducing cognitive overload, and
supporting accurate measurement of student learning. By assigning one discrete skill to each
question—such as identifying an SDOH (Q1), interpreting two SDOH (Q2), applying a
community-based intervention (Q3), or demonstrating culturally responsive care (Q4)—the
assessment maintains a transparent and direct relationship between the task, the aligned CO or
SLO, and the intended cognitive level. This level of precision promotes meaningful evaluation of
student progress and reinforces the module's sequential, developmental learning structure.
Summary Alignment Statement
This assessment aligns systematically with the module outcomes by linking each question to a
clearly identified competency, ensuring that students demonstrate the precise knowledge and
skills articulated in the course objectives (COs) and student learning outcomes (SLOs). Such
intentional alignment is essential for maintaining the validity of formative assessment, as it
ensures that each item produces evidence of learning directly tied to the intended outcomes
rather than peripheral or unintended skills (Stenberg et al., 2021). The progression from
foundational comprehension to higher-order reasoning reflects a purposeful application of
Bloom's hierarchical cognitive structure, which has long served as a framework for scaffolding
learning in nursing curricula (Moreland, 2022). By gradually organizing items to increase
