Fast ForWord® is an adaptive online program that trains the brain functions behind English reading and listening. ClearFluency™ is its companion reading tutor: it listens while the child reads aloud and corrects pronunciation in real time. Together they close one loop — hear it right → say it right → hear yourself → self-correct. Both programs are developed by Carnegie Learning (formerly Scientific Learning) and provided in Austria by BrainGames (Braingames.at GmbH, Vienna).
Training runs on a fixed protocol — 30, 40, 50 or 90 minutes per session, three or five days a week — chosen for each child, in a modern browser: at home, at school, or both.
The Method
Fast ForWord follows the order in which humans naturally acquire language: sounds first, then sound combinations, then words, then text. Most school instruction runs the opposite way — letters and rules first. For many children, especially non-native speakers, that leaves a gap: they can decode a text on paper but cannot follow it by ear or pronounce it confidently. The programs close that gap at its source — auditory processing.
Why regular practice matters
The auditory system learns through frequent, repeated practice — regular short sessions build and keep new neural connections far better than occasional long ones. Fast ForWord therefore runs on fixed training protocols: 30, 40, 50 or 90 minutes per session, three or five days a week. The protocol is selected at the start, based on the child’s age, goals and schedule; for most young learners the recommended choice is 30 minutes, five days a week.
Prepare — Practice — Reinforce
Every programme follows a three-part approach. First it prepares the foundation — targeting what Scientific Learning calls the hidden culprits of slow reading progress: memory, attention and processing speed. Then it practises language and reading in adaptive exercises that climb a fixed ladder: individual sounds → phonemes → words → sentences → paragraphs → complete texts. The third step is reinforcement — skills are consolidated so they last: the publisher’s own data notes that students continue to make gains even after completing the programme.
Fast ForWord®
What it is: an adaptive reading and language intervention for learners from pre-school to grade 12, built on more than 55 patents in neuroscience and education. Exercises look and feel like games; underneath, each one trains a precisely chosen skill.
What it trains
Two layers at once:
- Language and reading skills — phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, grammar, fluency and comprehension of English;
- Cognitive capacities that reading depends on — memory, attention, processing speed and sequencing.
How it adapts
Every learner starts from a placement assessment and gets an individual path. Exercises adjust to each answer, so the child always works at the edge of their ability — never bored, never lost. It is one-on-one instruction, delivered by software.
What a session looks like
The child puts on headphones, logs in and plays through short exercises — distinguishing sounds, matching sound to symbol, following spoken instructions, reading and answering. A session lasts 30 to 90 minutes, depending on the chosen protocol; progress is recorded automatically.
Coverage
Fast ForWord spans the full school range — elementary (K–5), middle (6–8) and high school (9–12) — with exercises matched to age and level. Everything runs in the mySciLEARN platform, where parents, teachers and providers manage access, demos and reports in one place.
ClearFluency™
What it is: a guided oral-reading tutor (formerly named Reading Assistant Plus) built on patented speech-recognition technology. The child reads a real text aloud; the program listens and corrects mispronunciations at the moment they happen — not a recording someone reviews later, but a tutor reacting in real time.
The library
A constantly growing library of over 300 high-interest texts — fiction, non-fiction, poetry, biography, history, science and culture — organised by reading level, so every child reads material that is genuinely interesting and genuinely at their level.
Vocabulary before reading
Built-in Word Wall activities pre-teach the key vocabulary of each text and model its pronunciation before the child starts reading, so new words support fluency instead of breaking it.
Progress you can hear
The program keeps recordings of oral reading over time. Parents and teachers do not just see a chart — they can hear the difference between September and May.
Assessment & Progress Reports
Every child starts with the Reading Progress Indicator — an assessment of phonological awareness, decoding, vocabulary and comprehension. The result places the child at their own starting level: an individual plan, not a one-size-fits-all package. The same instrument is used again later, so progress is measured against a fixed baseline.
During training, the programs report automatically:
- Parents see weekly usage and progress, plus the oral-reading recordings;
- Teachers and schools (site licences) see progress per child, per class and per school, with reading-level trends — including children a teacher could never listen to individually in a 25-pupil classroom;
- Learners see their own streaks and achievements, which keeps motivation up.
The Science Behind It
Fast ForWord was created in 1996 by researchers who did foundational work on brain plasticity and language processing, and has been developed continuously for more than 30 years. According to Carnegie Learning, the programs are covered by more than 300 research studies and 55 patents, and have been used by over 3 million learners in more than 50 countries.
Findings from independent university research include:
- Harvard Medical School — Fast ForWord can foster neural plasticity that enhances the brain’s responsiveness to rapid auditory transitions, improving language and reading skills;
- Stanford University — training resulted in improved reading and ameliorated disrupted function in brain regions associated with language;
- Rutgers University — after training, children with dyslexia showed brain activity much closer to that of typical readers, and their reading scores improved significantly;
- Cornell University — the intervention produced measurable changes in brain function in children with dyslexia while improving reading ability.
On outcomes, Carnegie Learning reports that consistent use — 40 to 60 hours — can produce one to two years of reading growth. Published results come mainly from English-language school populations in the United States; we say this openly, and it is why placement assessment and measured progress are part of every BrainGames engagement.
Results in Practice
Beyond laboratory research, schools publish their own measured results. Four documented examples from the Scientific Learning case-study library:
- Lafayette Parish, Louisiana — 1,770 students showed a one-year improvement in reading skills after four months of use, measured with the Reading Progress Indicator; the district recorded its largest single-year performance gain since 2001. Read the case study
- Starkville, Mississippi — 1,047 struggling readers (grades K–10) gained an average of one year and three months of reading level in 68 school days; over the programme years the district’s graduation rate rose from 66% to 87.5%. Read the case study
- Franklin City, Ohio — kindergarten pupils rose from the 29th to the 83rd percentile in MAP reading within a single school year. Read the case study
- St. Mary Parish, Louisiana — across a ten-year programme (2006–2016), the district’s performance score climbed from 60 to 99.2 points, moving its state rating from “D” to “B”. Read the case study
Source: case studies published by Scientific Learning / Carnegie Learning (2014–2019), from US school populations using the programmes on fixed protocols with local teachers. They show what consistent implementation can produce — not a guarantee for an individual child.
Practical Details
| Devices | Any modern browser — Windows, Mac, iPad or Chromebook. No installation. |
| Schedule | A fixed protocol chosen at the start: 30, 40, 50 or 90 minutes per session, 3 or 5 days a week. Most young learners: 30 minutes × 5 days. |
| Equipment | Headphones for Fast ForWord; a headset with a microphone for ClearFluency. |
| Where | At home, at school, or split — for example listening exercises at school and reading aloud at home. |
| Language | The programs train English reading, listening and pronunciation. Learners do not need prior English — the assessment starts each child at their level. |
| Getting started | Free demo → placement assessment → individual plan → daily training with weekly reports. |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Fast ForWord?
Fast ForWord is an adaptive online reading and language program developed by Carnegie Learning (formerly Scientific Learning). It trains English reading skills together with the cognitive functions reading depends on — memory, attention, processing and sequencing.
What is ClearFluency?
ClearFluency (formerly Reading Assistant Plus) is an online oral-reading tutor. Using patented speech recognition, it listens while a child reads aloud and corrects mispronunciations in real time.
How quickly will we see results?
When used consistently, Carnegie Learning reports one to two years of reading growth after 40–60 hours of use. On the most common protocol — 30 minutes, five days a week — that is roughly four to six months. Many parents notice changes in focus, confidence and homework within the first weeks.
How much time does the training take?
Fast ForWord runs on fixed protocols: 30, 40, 50 or 90 minutes per session, three or five days a week. The right protocol is chosen at the start for the child’s age, goals and schedule — for most young learners it is 30 minutes a day, five days a week.
Does my child need to speak English already?
No. The placement assessment starts every child at their own level, and the programs are used by English-language learners worldwide. The training content itself is in English.
Is it suitable for children with dyslexia or learning difficulties?
The programs were designed as an intensive intervention for struggling readers, including children with dyslexia. They do not “cure” anything — they train the auditory and cognitive skills that reading depends on, and university studies (Rutgers, Cornell) have documented improved reading and changed brain activity in children with dyslexia after training.
What equipment do we need?
A computer or tablet with a modern browser and stable internet, headphones for Fast ForWord, and a headset with a microphone for ClearFluency.
Does it help with writing and school tests?
Indirectly, yes. Writing and test performance rest on the same foundations — vocabulary, grammar, comprehension, processing speed and memory — and those are exactly what the programs train.
Who provides Fast ForWord and ClearFluency in Austria?
BrainGames (Braingames.at GmbH, Vienna) is the authorised provider of Fast ForWord and ClearFluency for Austria, working with families and schools. A free demo can be booked via the contact page.
Try It With Your Child
The fastest way to understand the method is to see it: book a free demo and we will walk you through a live session.
Schools & learning centres — request a conversation.