Not every assessment type is right for every partner, and that's by design. The goal isn't to run all five — it's to run the right ones with a clear plan for what happens with the results. This guide walks through each type, how it works in Magma, and what to watch out for.
Common Formative (1–2× / month)
Short, focused check-ins (3–8 questions, 1–2 standards) designed to inform real-time instruction. Not a grade — a conversation starter for teacher teams. CFAs are where Magma's Problem Analysis data really shines, making PLC discussions faster and more concrete.
In Magma: Problem Analysis after a CFA gives teachers a question-by-question breakdown of where students struggled — great for team collaboration and next-day reteach planning.
Best practice: Build CFAs directly into the pacing guide. They're the first thing to get cut when a unit runs long — protecting them in the calendar is what makes the data consistent.
Magma Screener (BOY / MOY / EOY)
Pre-built by Magma's content team — no setup required. Covers prior-year standards to help identify where students are coming in and flag who may need intervention support. Can be paired with Practice Mode to immediately connect students to targeted content.
In Magma: Screeners are ready to assign out of the box. Pair the BOY screener with Practice Mode so students who score below grade level have somewhere to go right away.
Best practice: Use screener data to inform the first few weeks of instruction and intervention groupings — then revisit as you gather CFA and unit assessment data throughout the year.
Unit Assessment (~1× / month)
Covers all standards and skills from a single unit. Intended as a grade. If your district uses Bridges 3rd Edition or Illustrative Mathematics, unit assessments are already built into Magma — no upload needed.
In Magma: IM and Bridges 3rd Ed partners have assessments pre-loaded. For other curricula, assessments can be uploaded, reach out to your Magma contact for support with standards alignment.
Best practice: Keep unit assessments standardized across classrooms. Teacher-by-teacher edits make cross-class data comparisons unreliable.
Benchmark Assessment (2–4× / year)
Cumulative assessments covering multiple units — typically run quarterly, trimester, or semester. Great for tracking grade-level trends and subgroup performance over time. Benchmarks in Magma commonly use released state test items, making them a natural bridge to state assessment prep.
In Magma: Benchmark data supports subgroup analysis and big-picture progress monitoring — useful for admin and curriculum directors reviewing across classrooms or schools.
Best practice: Before rolling out a benchmark, align on what the team will do with the results. Without a response protocol, benchmark day feels like over-testing.
Final Assessment (1× / year)
End-of-year summative covering all grade-level standards. Intended as a grade. Final assessment data in Magma travels with the student — giving next year's teacher a clear picture of where each student landed.
In Magma: EOY data is most valuable when it's the last point in a full-year sequence of assessments — not the only one. Teachers who've used CFAs and unit assessments throughout the year will have the most context to interpret final results.
Best practice: Share final assessment data during end-of-year teacher transitions so the incoming teacher can start the fall with context, not just a screener.
The assessment type is just the tool. What makes it work in Magma is having a clear answer to: who looks at this data, when, and what do they do next? If you're not sure, that's a great conversation to have with your Magma team before the school year starts.