Yeah, I'm with Rilla on that one. While it wasn't a disagreement here, it will totally be a disagreement in the future.

Though I'm thinking more along the lines of three schools of magic.
Reactive: Activates in response to stimuli and is less powerful than actives and less convenient.
Passive: Is always active so is often the weakest of the three.
Active: You have to charge before using it, though with the highest possible damage output.