Scientific Learning To Expand FreeReading.Net Offerings With Neuroscience Based Activities
Scientific Learning to contribute brain fitness exercises to free, open source reading intervention program to help students improve the cognitive skills essential for reading success
4/2/09
Media Contact:
Jessica Lindl
Vice President of Marketing
Scientific Learning Corporation
(510) 625-6784
jlindl@scilearn.com
Investor Contact:
Robert Feller
Chief Financial Officer
Scientific Learning Corporation
(510) 625-2281
investorrelations@scilearn.com
Oakland, Calif. and Brooklyn, NY- April 2, 2009 - Scientific Learning Corporation (NASDAQ:SCIL) today announced its entry into the burgeoning K-12 open source community with plans to contribute free neuroscience- and technology-based activities from the Fast ForWord® and Reading AssistantTM family of products, as well as newly created lessons, to FreeReading.net. FreeReading.net is a free, research-based open source reading program for the elementary grades.
"We're excited to partner with an open source instructional program developed by leading researchers and curriculum experts to help educators around the world teach kids to read," said Andy Myers, Chief Executive Officer of Scientific Learning. "At Scientific Learning, we believe there are two sides to effective learning - a research-based curriculum and a well-prepared brain that is able to capture, process and retain information. Through this partnership, we can provide teachers with easy access to free curriculum that helps students improve the underlying cognitive skills that build brain capacity and accelerate learning."
Scientific Learning will contribute lessons and activities drawn from its Fast ForWord and Reading Assistant reading intervention software products. Fast ForWord is a family of research-based educational software products that accelerate learning by developing the student brain to process more efficiently. Reading Assistant software combines advanced speech recognition technology with scientifically-based interventions to help students strengthen their reading fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. In addition, Scientific Learning will create and contribute new lessons to FreeReading.net. "We are pleased to welcome Scientific Learning to the open source instructional movement, and know that FreeReading users will welcome these new lessons and activities. Scientific Learning's participation is yet another example of how teachers, administrators, researchers, and organizations are together fostering the growth of FreeReading and open source," said Monique McDonough, General Manager at Wireless Generation, which founded FreeReading.net. "In the education market, companies are realizing that open source materials can complement existing offerings and provide a foundation for developing new products and services."
K-12 educators are increasingly responsive to the open source model for curriculum development, distribution, and use. FreeReading.net is used by educators in all 50 states and in more than 180 countries. FreeReading has been adopted in Florida as a K-1 supplemental reading program, marking the first time that an open source instructional program has been approved through an official state adoption.
FreeReading.net provides instructional content under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License, sometimes referred to as the "wiki" license. This license enables any site visitor to copy, share and distribute the content in any medium, as long as the content includes appropriate attribution, and any changes to the content are similarly shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license terms.
About FreeReading.net
At http://www.freereading.net/, educators everywhere can access a free, sequential, research-based reading intervention program for grades K-3. Open source and Web 2.0 technology enables educators to adapt FreeReading.net content to their needs, contribute their own lessons as supplements, and participate in discussions about early literacy. Open source, coupled with a Web 2.0 platform, offers distinct advantages over the traditional publishing model. Instructional material can be regularly updated to reflect the collective wisdom of teachers and researchers. In addition, open source instructional programs can be produced and distributed inexpensively, significantly reducing or, in the case of FreeReading.net, completely eliminating the high prices that schools pay for traditional textbooks.
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.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to the safe harbor created by the federal securities laws. Such statements include, among others, statements relating to the future development and the future market acceptance of the FreeReading.net site. Such statements are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results may differ materially as a result of many factors, including but not limited to: the success and length of the term of the collaboration between Scientific Learning and Wireless Generation, general economic conditions, trends in the K-12 market, the acceptance of open-source materials and specifically FreeReading.net, the extent to which educators continue to contribute materials to FreeReading.net, and other risks detailed in Scientific Learning's SEC reports, including but not limited to the Report on Form 10K (Part I, Item 1A, Risk Factors), filed March 5, 2009.
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