Tutoring in Massachusetts
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in Massachusetts, 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.
MCAS is given in grades 3 to 8 and again in grade 10, and the spring comes in two waves. English language arts is first, from late March to mid-April in grades 3 to 8. Math follows from late April to late May, along with the science and technology/engineering test in grades 5 and 8. Tenth graders take English in late March and math in mid-May. High school science is tied to a course. It is a Biology or Introductory Physics test, given in early June with another sitting in February. Students still take the grade 10 tests, but since voters passed Question 2 in November 2024 the scores no longer decide who gets a diploma. That now rests on coursework.
What Massachusetts tests, and when
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | Not tested | MCAS | Not tested | Not tested |
| Math | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | MCAS | Not tested | MCAS | Not tested | Not tested |
| Science | Not tested | Not tested | MCAS Science and Technology/Engineering | Not tested | Not tested | MCAS Science and Technology/Engineering | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
- MCAS (Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System): reading and writing, math, grades 3 through 8 and 10
- MCAS Science and Technology/Engineering: science, grades 5 and 8
- Main testing window
- late March to late May, with high school science in early June
- Standards
- Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks
- Exams tied to a course
- Biology and Introductory Physics (MCAS High School Science)
The grade 10 MCAS still carries money. The John and Abigail Adams Scholarship, a tuition credit at Massachusetts public colleges, goes by a student's first attempt at those tests and by where the combined score falls within the district.
Is there a graduation test in Massachusetts?
No. Since the 2024 ballot question, a passing MCAS score is no longer required, and the Competency Determination is earned by passing specified courses in English, math, science and U.S. history.
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 MCAS. 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.