Why Fast ForWord was endorsed as one of the most powerful reading tools on the market – Council of Administrators of Special Education

The Fast ForWord program was initially endorsed by CASE in 2015 after undergoing a rigorous evaluation of a wide range of criteria, including the product’s research base, application with students who have learning differences, application in diverse settings, performance in field tests, and customer satisfaction.

Each endorsement period lasts three years, and the Fast ForWord program has continuously qualified for two re-endorsements by demonstrating ongoing product enhancements.

Improvements to Fast ForWord optimize the program’s ability to accelerate a student’s return to Tier 1 instruction in as little as 40 hours, reducing special education referrals and maximizing the amount of time students spend in the classroom engaging with grade-level content. The most recent updates to Fast ForWord include the brand new Elements I and Elements II components specifically designed for secondary learners. All Fast ForWord exercises now include more targeted, embedded interventions to help students when they struggle.

Chief Literacy Officer Barrie Olson states, “This CASE re-endorsement confirms that Fast ForWord continues to be one of the most powerful reading tools on the market for at-risk students and English language learners as well as students with a wide range of special needs and abilities. It is the only reading intervention program to teach cognitive skills, rather than just depend on them. This explicit focus on cognitive skill development within the context of literacy instruction means that we aren’t just building better readers; we’re building better learners.”