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ParaPathways facts, with their official sources

The exam facts behind this site and our study book, each next to the official document it comes from and that document’s exact words. If something here looks wrong to you, the source is one click away. State-by-state passing scores have their own page.

Sources checked:

The exam

Reading & Writing is about 30 reading and 21 writing questions. Mathematics is 18 Numbers & Operations and 18 Geometry, Measurement & Data. #

Reading & Writing questions can ask you to pick one or more answers. Mathematics has single-answer and numeric-entry questions. #

At home there are no scheduled breaks, and the clock does not stop. #

Scores and passing

In each subtest, 6 questions are unscored tryout (pretest) questions, and the number of questions per content area can vary a little from one form to another. #

Your state sets the passing score, and some set it lower than ETS recommends. Missouri is 322 on Reading & Writing on ETS’s list; Arkansas’s memo sets 322 and 325. Every state’s published scores are on our passing-score-by-state page. #

Your raw score is the number of questions you answer correctly. ETS publishes no penalty for a wrong answer, so never leave a question blank. #

Registering, fees and retakes

Some school districts and regional offices are ETS test centers; you register with them directly. #

You can retake once right away. After that, wait 21 days after your most recent attempt, then you get 2 more attempts, and the 21-day wait repeats after every 2. If you took both subtests together (5757), you cannot retake one subtest more than once before the 21-day wait. #

Registering gets you a free interactive ETS practice test for that subject. #

After the test

ETS keeps a score available for reporting for 10 years. How long a school or state accepts it is their rule. #

Some states accept the ParaPathways Bridge for candidates who score just below the state’s passing score. Check whether yours does. #

The change from ParaPro

State documents (Indiana, Connecticut) give the dates: both exams from September 1, 2025 through August 31, 2026, and only ParaPathways from September 1, 2026. We found no ETS page that states them. #

Federal law (ESSA) gives instructional paraprofessionals three routes: an associate degree, two years of college, or passing a state or local assessment. States and districts choose the test. #

Classroom-application questions are not new. About a third of the ParaPro was already about applying skills in the classroom. #

What ETS does not say

People often assume these. We could not find any of them in an official document, so we do not state them.

  • That both subtests must be taken in one sitting, or that they may be taken on different days. ETS sells them together or separately and says neither.
  • That a score is “valid for 10 years.” ETS says it keeps a score available for reporting for 10 years. Whether a state still accepts it is the state’s rule.
  • That a subtest you passed earlier still counts once you pass the other one later. ETS does not publish that rule; your state does, if it has one.
  • That the Study Companion is free. We have found no official statement of its price.
  • That classroom-application questions are new on ParaPathways. They were part of the ParaPro too.

Where official sources disagree

Official documents sometimes contradict each other. We record the conflict rather than pick the answer that suits us.

  • Retake wait: ETS’s scores page still shows a 7-day rule, which is the ParaPro rule. The 2026–27 Bulletin gives ParaPathways the 21-day rule above, and it is the dated document for this testing year.
  • Score timing: the Bulletin says official scores go out about 1 week after the test; ETS’s score pages say about 2 to 3 weeks.
  • Arkansas: ETS’s state list and the state’s September 2026 memo both give 322 for Reading & Writing; an earlier memo and an older ETS Praxis page said 324.
  • Some ETS product pages still describe the old ParaPro (90 questions, 150 minutes) under the ParaPathways name, and still sell the ParaPro. The state documents above give the discontinuation date.

All sources

The documents behind this page. State documents are included where ETS itself publishes nothing on the point.

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Your state and your district set the rules that decide your job. When in doubt, confirm with them before you register.

Passing scores for every state The study book built on these facts

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Lessons for every official skill, five full practice tests, and a worked explanation for every question. English and Spanish editions.

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