Massachusetts Adult Proficiency Tests (MAPT)

MASSACHUSETTS ADULT PROFICIENCY TESTS (MAPT)
(ABE Reading & Mathematics)

The Massachusetts Adult Proficiency Tests (MAPT) comprise ABE reading and math tests at several levels. The knowledge and skills measured by the MAPT come directly from the Massachusetts ABE Curriculum Frameworks. MADOE/ACLS maintains an official manual at www.doe.mass.edu/acls/assessment/MAPT/teachermanual.doc, which provides policy and administration guidelines. Information for this site has been culled mostly from that document.

The tests are web-based, with test takers working at laptops or desktops with an Internet connection. The tests are adaptive in that the software tailors each sequence of items to specific learners by tracking their performance as they test. No separate forms of the test (e.g., TABE) are needed because test-takers are given different items each time they test.

Trained teachers are given a login to use the MAPT system, but they cannot view the actual tests. After intake at their programs, learners with a SMARTT ID can login and access the complete MAPT system: Sample Questions, Practice Tests for both reading and mathematics, and the operational tests for reading and mathematics.

The Sample Questions include four questions in each subject area that walk the students through some basic tools and terms needed to take the assessment. Twenty-item Practice Tests are available at every learning level for each subject area. These are designed to help learners and teachers see sample content at each level, as well as to double-check whether they are starting at an appropriate test level. They also provide a way for teachers to ensure that the technology in their classroom or computer lab is ready to go for MAPT.

The 50-item reading and 41-item mathematics tests each and take about 60 minutes to complete. There are currently four levels of math tests (from Beginning ABE through GED/College Transition) and three levels of reading tests (from Emerging through Advancing) Literacy level tests are not yet available for either area as yet.

When a learner completes a MAPT, a score report is displayed on the screen that includes their scale score, the MAPT subject, and their frameworks level. Scores are automatically uploaded to the SMARTT system so they no longer need to be manually entered and sent.

MAPT TESTS AND THEIR CORRLEATIONS TO CFs and GLE & NRS Levels

The table below indicates how the math and reading test levels correlate with the Massachusetts ABE Mathematics/Numeracy & the Reading Strand of the English Language Arts Curriculum Frameworks. The table also indicates how MAPT test scores correlate with GLE and NRS levels.

MAPT for Math Test Name

MAPT Scale Score

N/A (use TABE Level L)

Math 2 (Beginning ABE)

Math 3 (Intermediate ABE)

Math 5 (GED/College Trans)

* Note: Learners who enter a program in the High ASE level by scoring 600 and above on their MAPT pre-test are considered to have completed their federal level if they got their GED. They are excluded from the pre/post test performance standard. Programs may choose to post-test these learners if they wish, but are not required to. If they do, then they are included in the Learning Gains Performance Standard.

MAPT for Reading Test

ELA Reading CF Strand

MAPT Scale Score

N/A (use TABE Level L)

Reading 2 (Emerging)

Reading 3 (Transitional)

REQUIRED STAFF TRAINING

Only staff who have attended an ACLS/UMass or SABES training may administer the MAPT. At least two staff per program must be ACLS/SABES trained to administer the tests. Trained MAPT administrators may train other staff at their programs, but the training must be thorough to avoid real-time testing problems and unreliable score data. Programs must maintain two staff trained by ACLS/SABES at all times.

ADMINISTERING THE MAPT

Follow these steps at your program to ensure effective testing and reliable results:

Align your intake/placement instruments with MAPT test levels. This is best accomplished by asking staff involved with placement and learning gains assessment to review the twenty-item Practice Tests for each level of the reading and mathematics tests. In this way, they are more likely to assign learners to the correct test level.
Do not start your test taker at an artificially low test level. This practice will lead to scoring swings that will undermine data reliability.
Make certain that the test taker has a student ID generated via a complete SMARTT intake. Watch for duplicate IDs or other problems that will lead to report errors. Learners should have only one SMARTT ID.
Before any learner first takes a reading or math MAPT, she or he must go through the Sample Questions. Note that the questions are different for reading and math and prepare them in different ways.
While the Practice Tests are optional, they help both learner and administrator make sure that the learner is testing at the correct level.
Make sure the computers you will use for testing can handle practice questions flawlessly. This step will avoid problems during actual test administration.
The MAPT must be proctored. Provide a quiet area for testing with enough time for completion, 90-120 minutes. While MAPT can handle starts and stops, avoiding them will lessen the likelihood of scoring problems.
After a learner begins a test, he or she will have two weeks to complete a given test (math or reading). If more time is needed, use the "Send Message" screen to ask for additional time.
To ensure the quickest response time, use the "Send Message" screen for any questions you have during a learner's test or to resolve any difficulties you encounter.

TESTING ACCOMMODATIONS

Accommodations may be given to learners who have a documented formal diagnosis of a learning disability carried out by a licensed professional--a medical doctor, psychologist of psychiatrist or, in some cases, specialists for whom they have signed off. Overlays to increase display contrast and paste-on magnifiers have been known to help. In the case of math tests, teachers may read questions aloud for reading-impaired learners. If you have any questions about possible accommodations, please contact Jane Schwerdtfeger at: janes@doe.mass.edu

SMARTT "PARTIAL INTAKES"