Marshall Independent School District Students Achieve Test Score Gains After Completing Fast Forword® Products
Struggling readers improve scores on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills
11/17/2008
Media Contact:Jessica Lindl
Vice President of Marketing
Scientific Learning Corporation
(510) 625-6784
jlindl@scilearn.com
Investor Contact:
Dale Hill
Director of Finance
Scientific Learning Corporation
(510) 625-2245
investorrelations@scilearn.com
Oakland, Calif. - Nov. 17, 2008 - Students in the Marshall Independent School District (ISD) who completed at least one Scientific Learning® (NASDAQ:SCIL) Fast ForWord® course achieved measurable gains on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). In addition, on average, students showed more than a year's gain in reading skills, closing the gap between their reading level and their grade level. Fast ForWord is a family of educational software products that accelerate learning by developing the student brain to process more efficiently.
"We have a population of at-risk students," said Deputy Superintendent Melinda Jones. "We saw students struggling to read. We also weren't seeing the gains we wanted to see in our state assessment in reading, which affected math, science and social studies as well. We selected the Fast ForWord program to help us address these challenges because it is a research-based, proven program."
Marshall ISD began using the Fast ForWord products in the 2007-08 school year as an intervention for at-risk students in 10 schools. An evaluation of the products' impact on the reading skills of students in third through 11th grade showed that students who completed at least one Fast ForWord product prior to the 2008 TAKS Reading test made large and statistically significant improvements, achieving an average gain of 25.5 scaled score points in their TAKS Reading score. Conversely, students who did not complete a Fast ForWord product did not experience statistically significant improvements on the 2008 TAKS.
Similar results were observed when reading skills were measured in terms of proficiency level. Students who completed at least one Fast ForWord product were more likely to increase their proficiency level and less likely to decrease in proficiency. Among study participants who did not meet the TAKS proficiency standard in 2007, 50 percent of those who completed a Fast ForWord product crossed the proficiency threshold in 2008, compared to 39 percent of students who did not complete a product.
"We've seen students who have been successful in the Fast ForWord program become successful on the state exam," said Jones. "We have students who have continuously struggled to read who are now on grade level or above. It gives kids a chance they might not otherwise have had, especially at the middle and high school levels. The Fast ForWord program is so student-friendly. Students become completely engaged in it. It's something we can offer during the school day that can make drastic changes in a student's ability to read. This is a program we highly recommend to help struggling students."
About Marshall Independent School District
Marshall Independent School District serves more than 6,000 students in 11 schools. Sixty-two percent of the student population is eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The mission of Marshall ISD is to create and maintain an environment that ensures every member of the school community reaches a high level of academic achievement. Success in academic achievement is verified by objective measures and continues over long periods of time to improve intellectual, physical, moral and social development in all students and staff.
About Scientific Learning Corp.
Scientific Learning creates educational software that accelerates learning by improving the processing efficiency of the brain. Based on more than 30 years of neuroscience and cognitive research, the Fast ForWord® family of products provides struggling readers with computer-delivered exercises that build the cognitive skills required to read and learn effectively. Scientific Learning Reading AssistantTM combines advanced speech recognition technology with scientifically-based courseware to help students strengthen fluency, vocabulary and comprehension to become proficient, life-long readers. The efficacy of the products has been established by more than 550 research studies and publications. For more information, visit http://www.scientificlearning.com/ or call toll-free 888-452-7323.
See all press releases