Missouri MAP Test Prep

About the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP)

If you have a child in elementary, middle or high school in Missouri, then you need to know about the standardized tests your child will be taking. To comply with the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, Missouri administers standardized tests to students beginning in 3rd grade through high school.

Time4Learning, an online education service that teaches many of the skills these exams test, offers this page to help you understand Missouri’s standardized tests and how you can help your children prepare.

Missouri schools administer the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) to students from third through eighth grade and high school. The MAP is a standards-based test, which means that test items are based on grade-specific Missouri academic content standards. However, the MAP also includes items from the TerraNova, a norm-referenced test that compares students’ test scores in Missouri to test scores of their peers throughout the U.S.

MAP tests are administered as follows:

• 3rd through 8th grade students in communication arts and math
• 5th and 8th grade students in science

Prior to the 2008-2009 school year, MAP tests were also given to students in the 10th grade (math) and 11th grade (communication arts), but these were recently replaced with End-of-Course exams.

End-of-Course Exams

Beginning in the 2008-2009 school year, Missouri replaced the MAP math test given in 10th grade and the MAP communication arts and science tests given in 11th grade with end-of-course exams for Algebra I, English II and Biology, respectively.

In the 2009-2010 school year additional end-of-course exams in Algebra II, Geometry, Integrated Math II and III, English I, Government and American History will be introduced.

What do the MAP Test Scores Mean?

For the MAP, students will receive one of four scores for each subject area tested:

• Advanced
• Proficient
• Basic
• Below basic

MAP test scores may or may not determine if a student is promoted to the next grade or held back. Missouri does not mandate that MAP test scores be a criterion for promotion or retention, but schools have the option to use test scores when making such decisions.

Preparing for Missouri’s MAP Tests

For general tips on test preparation, please visit our standardized test overview page. The real preparation for the MAP and all standardized tests that assess a wide range of fundamental skills, is to steadily build and master skills in math, reading and writing fundamentals.

Parents can help students succeed in school by making a special effort to get involved in their children’s education. You should ensure your children are doing their homework every night and reading and writing on a daily basis. In addition, families can hire tutors or use online learning programs such as Time4Learning to supplement their children’s schoolwork and help to build fundamental skills.

To help your children prepare for state standardized tests such as Missouri’s MAP, you can enroll your children in a test prep program or buy books to help them become familiar with test formats and terminology, to learn test-taking strategies (when to guess, when not to), to become comfortable with time restrictions, and to practice answering different types of questions.

For instance, when a reading passage is followed by comprehension questions, many test prep programs teach students to scan the questions prior to reading the passage so that they can pay special attention to the areas addressed by questions.

Most states release copies of tests or sample test questions from previous years. Parents can use these released test questions as resources to help students practice test skills and students can spend the majority of their time reviewing the key concepts within the sample test questions.

Time4Learning is not a test prep program; instead, it is a program that builds the skills that will be tested.

Time4Learning is a new approach that takes advantage of today’s technology. It’s a convenient, online home education program that combines learning with fun educational teaching games.

The online language arts and math curriculum comprise a comprehensive program for preschool, elementary school, and middle school. Science and social studies programs are provided for most grades.

Kids like using the computer to learn and to develop their skills. Time4Learning’s educational teaching games give students independence as they progress at their own pace.

Parents like that it tracks progress and helps kids advance by teaching through individualized learning paths that assure mastery of the skills and concepts that makes kids succeed.

Have a child with math and reading skills at different grade levels? No problem, just tell us in the online registration process.

Time4Learning is proven effective, has a low monthly price, and provides a money-back guarantee so you can be sure that it works for your family, risk free!

For more information or resources on the MAP and Missouri education, visit:
Missouri Department of Elementary & Secondary Education
Missouri Homeschooling Information