Tutoring in Nebraska
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in Nebraska, 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.
Nebraska uses two different tests depending on a student's age. In grades 3 through 8, students take NSCAS in English language arts and math, with science added in grades 5 and 8. The 2026-27 window runs March 29 to May 7. High school has one state test, and it is the ACT. Juniors take it at school on a weekday, with the first test date on March 23, 2027 and later dates in April for makeups. That sitting serves as the state's high school test and also produces a score a student can send to colleges. Grades 9, 10 and 12 have no state test.
What Nebraska tests, and when
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | Not tested | Not tested | ACT | Not tested |
| Math | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | NSCAS | Not tested | Not tested | ACT | Not tested |
| Science | Not tested | Not tested | NSCAS Science | Not tested | Not tested | NSCAS Science | Not tested | Not tested | ACT | Not tested |
- NSCAS (Nebraska Student-Centered Assessment System): reading and writing, math, grades 3 through 8
- NSCAS Science: science, grades 5 and 8
- ACT: reading and writing, math, science, grade 11
- Main testing window
- late March to early May
- Standards
- Nebraska's College and Career Ready Standards
- Paid for by the state
- ACT, grade 11, on a school day
Public high school students must complete and submit the FAFSA to graduate, a rule that began with the class of 2025. A parent or guardian can sign an opt-out form instead, and the form stays with the school.
Is there a graduation test in Nebraska?
No, Nebraska has no exit exam, though public school students must complete the FAFSA or file an opt-out form to graduate.
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 NSCAS. 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.