1 MS of Chapter 3 in J. Gardner (Ed) (2012) Assessment and Learning: Second edition. (London: Sage): 3348 Professional learning as a condition for Assessment for Learning David Pedder and Mary James Assessment for learning: practices, values, agency and accountability When teachers and students use assessment information for supporting improvements in learning, they are fulfilling the educational purposes of assessment. The classroom strategies teachers and students develop and use to support learning are commonly referred to as formative assessment or assessment for learning. Five general strategies for promoting assessment for learning in classroom lessons have been identified (e.g., Wiliam and Thompson, 2007): (a) clarifying and understanding learning intentions and sharing criteria for success, (b) promoting and supporting effective classroom discussions and developing activities and tasks that elicit evidence of learning, (c) providing feedback that moves learners forward, (d) activating students as pedagogic resources for one another, and (e) activating students as the owners of their own learning. More specific practices and techniques have been developed in relation to the five broad strategies in different lessons (see Leahy and Wiliam, Chapter 3). Using and developing assessment for learning practices and values in schools and classrooms has been found to be effective not only for raising students’ attainments on standardised tests (Black and Wiliam, 1998; Black et al., 2003; Clymer and Wiliam, 2006), but also for supporting the development of learning how to learn (James et al., 2007): a set of practices that can be developed by students to help them to learn autonomously (Black et al., 2006; James and McCormick, 2009). The Learning How to Learn Project involved large scale research and development with 40 schools, over 1000 teachers and 4000 students using survey, observation and interview methods to examine the use by teachers and students of assessment for learning strategies for promoting Learning How to Learn (James et al., 2007; James and McCormick, 2009). From analysis of large scale teacher survey data from this project, three dimensions of