The
FastForWord Program
FastForWord, researched and developed by Scientific Learning
Corporation, has been described as "glasses for the ears."
It attacks the underlying difficulties that an individual may
have understanding and using language. The program utilizes a
series of graduated mental drills that ultimately enable the required
learning skills to become automatic.
The FastForWord Program is an intensive cognitive retraining
program designed to improve language, auditory processing and
reading skills. The program is based on the premise that many
individuals who are experiencing language processing difficulty/delays
and/or auditory perceptual difficulty do so because the brain
does not accurately process the acoustic information. Through
adaptive training the brain can be taught/retained to process
information faster and accurately. The changes made are permanent.
The Fast ForWord program is individualized to provide as much
acoustical modification as the student needs and to adapt the
next exercise accordingly. As progress continues, the brain learns
how to process acoustical signals at a faster and faster rate,
moving the student to a level of speech more consistent with his
or her age.
Wasdell Centre for Innovative Learning offers the Fast ForWord
series of programs:
1. Fast ForWord Language – for children at pre-reading
stages
2. Fast ForWord Language to Reading – for students making
an oral-written language connection
3. Fast ForWord Reading – for elementary students who
would benefit from improved reading skills
4. Fast ForWord Middle & High School – for senior
elementary and high school students who would benefit from improved
reading skills.
5. Fast ForWord Basics – newly introduced for pre-school
and early-school children ages 4-7 years.
6. Reading1 -- for Grade 1 skills
7. Reading2 -- for Grade 2 skills
8. Reading3 -- for Grade 3 skills
9. Reading4 -- for Grade 4 skills
For more information please go to An Introduction to Fast ForWord
and/or www.scientificlearning.com
.
For admissions, registration and tuition please go to Admissions
& Registration on this web site.
An Introduction to FastForWord
Fast ForWord, is a program series that has been described as
"glasses for the ears." It attacks the underlying difficulties
that an individual may have understanding and using language.
The program utilizes a series of graduated mental drills that
ultimately enable the required learning skills to become automatic.
The FastForWord Program is an intensive cognitive retraining
program designed to improve language, auditory processing and
reading skills.
The program is based on the premise that many individuals who
are experiencing language processing difficulty/delays and/or
auditory perceptual difficulty do so because the brain does not
accurately process the acoustic information. Through adaptive
training the brain can be taught/retrained to process acoustic
information faster and accurately. The changes made are permanent
The FastForWord family of programs and products are for anyone
who wants to improve language, reading and overall communication
skills from children who struggle with basic language skills or
attention problems to adults who want to improve reading comprehension
and organizational skills.
Based on over twenty-five years of neuroscience research, the
FastForWord family of training programs uses patented technology
to target the language and reading skills widely recognized as
the keys to all learning. Each program's interactive exercises
integrate proprietary CD-ROM and Internet technology to create
an optimal learning environment that adapts to the level of each
student. Patented Web-based tracking tools provide ongoing monitoring
of each student's progress. Because each individual's needs are
different, the FastForWord Program series has a number of tools
to help measure an individual's specific skill set.
The range of options for addressing different needs is broadening:
In March of 1997, after an extensive field trial with almost
500 children at 35 sites, Scientific Learning launched its first
training program, FastForWord Language™, an Internet and
CD-ROM program that develops the fundamental language skills that
are the building blocks for reading success. Later that year,
a second field trial, with almost 500 students in 19 schools across
the U.S., replicated earlier results with the program, showing
gains of 1-2 years in 4 to 8 weeks of training.
Fast ForWord Language to Reading™, a program designed to
rapidly build the skills critical for learning to read or become
a better reader, was released in 1998.
In 1999, the Company introduced FastForWord Middle & High
School™, an interactive program designed for middle and
high school students and adults to reinforce and strengthen basic
language skills and develop critical reading skills.
In 2000, the Company introduced Fast ForWord Reading™, a
flexible training program designed to build reading skills and
correlated to curriculum standards. Grades 1, 2, 3, 4, and
5 curriculum options are now available.
Other skill-building software products, including Fast ForWord
Basics™, Fast ForWord Bookshelf™ and Reading Edge™,
are designed to evaluate and develop early reading skills through
a series of games and stories on CD-ROM.
The Fast ForWord training programs are offered through The Wasdell
Centre for Innovative Learning private school. Students spend
90 to 100 involved minutes a day, five days a week, for four to
eight weeks with these adaptive exercises, which train the brain
to develop language and reading comprehension, phonological awareness,
organizational skills, and overall communication skills.
To date, tens of thousands of individuals throughout the U.S.
have achieved gains of one to two years on average, in language
or reading skills with the Fast ForWord training programs. Numerous
independent studies as well as detailed research and outcomes
data consistently confirm the effectiveness of these programs.
Publications such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times,
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Newsweek, Time and others have reported
on the powerful science behind the Company's programs as well
as the success experienced by students across the country. This
information is
Courtesy www.scilearn.com
Options across the FastForWord Programs include:
FastForWord for Language
Before children can learn to read they need strong language and
listening skills.
Fast ForWord Language is a computer-based training program that
rapidly develops the foundational skills known to be pre-requisites
for reading.
Based on over 25 years of research on how the brain learns, the
seven exercises of Fast ForWord Language use patented technology
to develop oral language comprehension and listening skills. The
program's fun, focused exercises help students quickly and efficiently
make dramatic, lasting gains in the skills that will help them
learn to read. On average, students who train with Fast ForWord
Language make language gains of 1-2 years in just 4-8 weeks.
With Fast ForWord Language, students build a solid foundation
that makes other learning skills easier to acquire, and ultimately
leads to increased self-esteem in and out of the classroom.
Who is Fast ForWord Language for?
Pre-reading children, and students who need to develop the basic
language and listening skills that are building blocks for learning
to read.
Fast ForWord Language to Reading
For students, understanding the connection between spoken words
and written language is a critical component for learning to read
or reading better.
Fast ForWord Language to Reading is a computer-based training
program that rapidly develops the skills that help students make
the link between spoken and written language.
Based on over 25 years of research on how the brain learns, the
five exercises of Fast ForWord Language to Reading use patented
technology to help students learn to associate language sounds
with the letters of the alphabet, and introduce language structures
like grammar and syntax.
FastForWord Language to Reading is a great follow-up to FastForWord Language as it continues to develop the attention, working
memory, listening comprehension and other foundational skills
required for learning to read or reading better.
Who is Fast ForWord Language to Reading for?
Students who are ready to make the connection between oral and
written language, and are ready to take the next step toward learning
to read or reading better.
Students at computers listen through headphones and use the computer
mouse as they interact with the game-like exercises of FastForWord
Language to Reading. With each click of the mouse, FastForWord
Language to Reading adapts to the individual student's progress,
providing efficient, targeted training.
What Skills Are Trained?
FastForWord Language to Reading targets the skills that help
students make the critical link between spoken and written language,
including:
- Sound-letter recognition
- Decoding
- Vocabulary, grammar and syntax
- Listening comprehension
- Beginning word recognition
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Academic Program 
