Fast ForWord Providers

Comparing Gemm to a Clinician

Many parents first hear about Fast ForWord through a clinician -- a Speech & Language Pathologist (SLP) or Neurologist -- after an evaluation or through a friend who used a Fast ForWord clinician provider. For the last decade, in areas where it is not in the schools, using a clinician has been the only way for families to benefit from this amazing program.

Gemm Learning is dedicated to providing Fast ForWord to families at home with a focus on service, convenience and affordability for the parent, and fun, rewards and recognition for the student.

This commitment to developing a whole-family service approach for Fast ForWord goes far beyond the role that Fast ForWord plays in most clinician offices. From a client perspective, the key differences between Gemm and most clinicians are:

Gemm Is More Affordable

For a traditional 4-6 month program, Gemm is typically thousands of dollars cheaper than most clinicians. Since this is how we make a living, our service is priced to be affordable. By contrast, Fast ForWord is a minor part of most clinician practices and so their pricing is different. In addition, as a specialist provider, Gemm has efficiencies such as lower software costs versus most clinicians, and while we use teaching professionals to manage participants at home our staff charge-out rate is lower.

We Motivate Students

Outcomes depend on student compliance. We have developed a unique virtual rewards site at Gemm City (www.gemmcity.com) where our students have the ability to cash in rewards for their effort -- gift certificates, sweepstakes, virtual rooms or merchandise sent by mail. We also send by mail (addressed to your child) laminated Completion Certificates at important milestones. This is way beyond what your local clinician can provide.
Unique Gemm City rewards website

Gemm Service Is Sophisticated and Responsive

You will see the difference right at the outset. We will provide remote computer assistance to help with the software set up if needed. Both the high-touch service and the technology of this start is far beyond clinician service.

We serve families at home all day -- it is all we do. In addition to reviewing your child's work as it is uploaded, we will pick up the phone to check in with you regularly. Also, if the phone rings at Gemm Learning we answer it. If you send an email we reply right away. This upgrade in service was a founding principle for Gemm Learning and a big part of what helps us stand out among Fast ForWord providers.

In addition we are the only Fast ForWord provider in North America that has an online parent resources website, called My Gemm (wwww.mygemm.com). My Gemm has a series of handy help videos on all aspects of the program, points tracking sheets, manuals, scientific research, service tips, reading lists, and all kinds of other resources developed to support and enhance the parent experience.

Everything Is Included

Gemm parents are charged a monthly fee for our service. There are no added fees for the regular assessments, student prizes, etc.

Strong Participation For Strong Outcomes

Because of our student incentives and our service level, Gemm student compliance (attendance and effort) is well above the national average for Fast ForWord students, and above that achieved in the research studies. There is a strong correlation between student effort and outcomes.
Fast ForWord research