Why do we Review EVERY chapter in Math???

Why do we review?  What should it look like?  What is the real issue...

I have been teaching math for 17 years and at the end of every chapter we go through a review of questions.  Early in my career this looked like a "test" that wasn't "the test."  Now, it looks like a writing assignment.  My latest review was designed to have students working in groups discussing questions geared at conceptual understanding.  It them forced them to write in sentences describing what they knew about the questions.  

My theory, if they can explain in depth about the topic, they can perform the skill.  

But why do we even review?  

The focus in education is on formative assessment to drive our instruction.  Lets assume our assessment is quality - asking depth questions in support of skill, forcing students to explain their understandings.  If we teach a lesson or two, give a small formative assessment and determine student needs.  Then meet with these students that are struggling to remediate.  Continue this process...through the end of the chapter.  Under this scenario would two things clearly happen...

1.  Our students would understand the depth and skill we need throughout the chapter.  When they reach the summative assessment it would just be confirming what we know they already know allowing us to extend the summative assessment into a performance task (essentially making the summative assessment moot other than extending learning).

2.  Students who could struggle on the assessment...we would clearly know who they are and be able to meet with them to "review" topics, and put the interventions in place in order for this child to have the best opportunity to succeed.  

I know it isn't this easy but are we making it harder than we have to.  By reviewing we are "allowing" students to not necessarily pay attention or do what is necessary to learn the material until the very end.  Thus we are partially setting them up for failure because if they do wait until the end to "learn" the material...they will more than likely fail the assessment.  Would we have this problem if we didn't review...or would we have additional problems?

Why do we review?  Because our students don't have the academic behaviors to succeed without the review.  We have built a system that not only allows a student to not prepare themselves but encourages it.  Think about that for a little while...

By not reviewing will this change...I doubt it...but test scores will fall.  Not reviewing is one piece that we should be able to implement but at minimum lets start with changing out review.  Don't make it a pre-test.  Make it conceptual.  Make it something students need to think about.  Make it different and group oriented.  Make it about depth and don't necessarily concern yourself with "will they get an A on the test tomorrow (or pass)?"  Worry more about - how can I help them know this for the next 10 years?  

Maybe a small step will slowly move things forward.