The new assessment creation experience is currently in Controlled Availability. Submit a PowerSchool Support ticket to request access and receive next steps for enablement. Participating districts can use the redesigned assessment creation experience while retaining access to existing workflows. Some options may not be available in Controlled Availability.
To create an assessment, you must define the properties, add items, define administration windows, and define security features for the assessment.
Define properties
The Properties step is where you define the assessment's core information. These settings describe the assessment and help classify it correctly for reporting, search, and organization.
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From the main navigation menu, choose Tests, then New Assessment.
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On the New assessment page, enter the assessment properties.
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Enter an Assessment title.
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Choose an assessment Category.
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Choose one or more Course types and Grade levels.
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Select the Assessment access.
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By default, assessments are Public and shared with others. Select Private if you want to limit access to the the assessment and student results to yourself.
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Choose the Delivery method.
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Online assessment: digital delivery, uses varied question types.
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Scan sheet: printed delivery, uses predefined fields. Technology enhanced items are not compatible with scan sheets.
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Select the Performance band or create a new band.
Add items
The Items step is where you build the assessment content. In this step, add items to the assessment by searching available item banks, creating new items,or generating items using AI. After adding items, review and organize them in the desired sequence, then use sections to format the assessment layout.
Manage sections
Use assessment tools to format sections.
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Select Tools. Alternatively, select the section menu (three-dot icon), then select Edit.
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On the Assessment tools page, enter the section details and select section tools as needed.
Organize items
Arrange items in the order students should see them. If the assessment includes multiple sections, place items in the correct section and review the structure for clarity and flow.
Tip: Review the assessment from a student perspective before moving to Administration. This helps confirm that items are complete, readable, and organized logically.
Define administration windows
The Administration step is where you prepare the assessment for delivery. This includes settings that control access, assignment, student experience, and security.
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Enter the administration window start and end dates and times. Be sure the test window administration times are set to end when the testing time is over to prevent students from accessing the test URL outside of class and altering their answers.
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If the test window spans multiple weeks, select Exclude weekends and holidays to ensure the test is available to students only on instructional days.
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Optionally, limit access to specific schools and courses.
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To update the student population on the OLA student status for a same-day assessment, select the Refresh student population icon.
Student eligibility is updated during the nightly update process. Use this option only if the assessment is being administered on the current day.
Important: Refreshing the student eligibility for a list of over 10,000 students may result in performance issues on the district site.
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Optionally, select whether to Show student score after submission and whether to Restrict item results from the portal. Student scores will display for tests that contain machine-scorable items only. Scores for items that contain weighted points, partial credit, or rubric scores will not immediately display.
Assessment settings
Review the following settings for additional information about how they work and interact with other assessment options.
Delivery
Online assessment options
Navigation
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Prevent return to previous question - Students cannot return to previous questions. The item navigation menu and item flagging tool are also unavailable.
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Require complete answer per question - Students must answer the current question before moving to the next question.
Security
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Performance Matters secure test lockout - Students are locked out of the assessment if they navigate away from the browser window containing the assessment.
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Several keyboard shortcuts are disabled to help prevent capturing assessment content but do not lock students out of the assessment.
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Respondus LockDown Browser - Requires students to use Respondus LockDown Browser and access the assessment through the organization's secure portal URL.
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Students receive a warning the first time they swipe away from the assessment or their device enters sleep mode. The assessment locks after a second occurrence.
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Allow pause - Cannot be used with Performance Matters secure test lockout or Respondus LockDown Browser.
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Allow online assessment impersonation - Determines whether the student can be impersonated in Online Testing by a Performance Matters user. This option is selected by default for tests set as private.
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Cannot be used with Respondus LockDown Browser.
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Users with Administrator permissions can impersonate students for any online assessment available for online administration, even if an assessment’s settings do not explicitly have this option enabled.
Reporting
Show points (Baseball card) - display additional options for the test in Baseball Card to include the points earned as a data point.
Weighted average - include assessment results in reports tied to state test subjects. Recommended only for major benchmark assessments.
Restrictions
Restrict access to download assessment - hide the download option from users who do not have download permissions. If selected, users cannot download the test through Assessment Manager. If a user needs to download a copy of the test, they must access it from the search page or the edit test page, and they must have Read permissions to the test.
Set assessment as high-stakes - Hide the assessment and associated items in search results from users who do not have high-stakes administrator access.