Tutoring in Maryland
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in Maryland, and we have no office there. If you want a person, this page says how we would look for one. If the question is which skill is missing, we can help with that part.
Maryland is partway through replacing its tests. In spring 2027, students in grades 3 through 8 take the new MSTAR in English language arts and math, a computer-adaptive test that takes over from MCAP in those grades. The first window runs from March 29 to May 28. Everything else keeps the MCAP name for now. That covers the science test in grades 5 and 8 and the high school exams, which are tied to courses. A student takes those at the end of Algebra I, English 10, life science and American Government, in a winter or a spring window. The state plans to move the remaining tests to MSTAR in later years.
What Maryland tests, and when
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
| Math | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | MSTAR | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
| Science | Not tested | Not tested | MCAP Science | Not tested | Not tested | MCAP Science | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
- MSTAR (Maryland System of Testing Academic Readiness): reading and writing, math, grades 3 through 8
- MCAP Science (Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program, Maryland Integrated Science Assessment): science, grades 5 and 8
- Main testing window
- late March to late May
- Standards
- Maryland College and Career Ready Standards
- Exams tied to a course
- Algebra I, English 10 and Life Science (MCAP)
For students who entered ninth grade in 2023-24 or later, the life science and government exams count for 20 percent of the final course grade. There is no passing score to reach, but the result changes the grade a student needs in class to earn the credit.
Is there a graduation test in Maryland?
No passing score is required, but a student must take the state exams in Algebra I, English 10, life science and government, and the life science and government exams count for 20 percent of the final course grade.
Kolu finds the missing skill and goes back to it
It starts with a skill check, a short test that gets harder or easier depending on the last answer. The result is a map of the subject broken into skills with their prerequisites drawn in, each one marked as solid, still being learned, or a gap.
After that, each session is a handful of activities picked for that student, usually something due for review, a gap to repair and one new skill. When an answer is wrong, Kolu looks at which earlier skill the mistake points to and goes back to it. Here is what that looks like for a sixth grader who can't divide fractions.
The problem on the page
3/4 ÷ 2/5
Dividing fractions
Grade 6
Multiplying fractions
Grade 5 · rests on the one below
Equivalent fractions
Grade 4 · usually where it started
Multiplication facts
Grade 3
Kolu does not call a skill mastered after one right answer. That takes correct work on different kinds of problems on different days, and a skill that fades gets brought back.
Kolu is not test prep for MSTAR. It has no bank of released questions. It teaches the skills the test draws on, and it will not do tonight's homework.
When to hire a person instead
Some students need a person, and software is the wrong purchase for them. That includes a child who shuts down when the work gets hard, a student with a learning disability who needs someone trained in it, and anyone with an exam in ten days.
Ask the school first. Teachers know who tutors, and a counselor can tell you what the district already offers at no cost. A nearby college is the next place to look, since students there took these courses recently and usually charge less than an agency.
Whoever you hire, ask one question before the first session: how will you find out what my child doesn't know? If the answer is that they will go over the homework, keep looking.
Free for one subject, $15 a month for 5
Kolu is free for one subject at a time, with one full skill check every 30 days and up to 4 sessions a day. Plus is $15 a month, or $120 for a year, and covers 5 subjects at once with unlimited skill checks. A learner under 13 needs a parent or guardian to set up the account.