Carnegie Learning’s ClearTalk Wins Prestigious “Language Learning Innovation Award” in 2025 EdTech Breakthrough Awards
Carnegie Learning, a leader in educational technology, has been recognized for its groundbreaking work in language learning with the prestigious “Language Learning Innovation Award” at the 7th annual EdTech Breakthrough Awards. The award honors ClearTalk, Carnegie Learning’s AI-powered speaking practice tool, which is transforming how middle and high school students develop confidence in learning new languages. Conducted by EdTech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization, the awards program celebrates the top companies and solutions shaping the global educational technology landscape.
ClearTalk is redefining language education for grades 6–12 by providing an innovative, AI-driven platform that fosters meaningful speaking practice in real-world scenarios. The tool creates a safe, low-pressure environment where students can engage in conversations with lifelike virtual partners. Whether practicing ordering food at a restaurant, navigating travel experiences, or engaging in everyday dialogues, students are immersed in authentic interactions that mirror real-life communication.
What sets ClearTalk apart is its ability to provide immediate, personalized feedback after each interaction. Rather than focusing solely on perfect pronunciation, the platform emphasizes communication and comprehension, helping students improve their skills in real time. Teachers benefit as well, gaining access to full recordings and transcripts of student interactions. This allows educators to track progress, assess growth, and tailor instruction without the added burden of manual evaluations. By reducing teacher workload and enhancing the learning experience, ClearTalk is proving to be a game-changer in language education.
A Seamless Integration into Language Curriculum
ClearTalk is fully integrated into Carnegie Learning’s core Spanish and French programs, appearing throughout each unit as built-in practice activities, formative assessments, and summative tasks. These exercises are directly tied to classroom content, ensuring alignment with instructional goals. Additionally, ClearTalk is available through Carnegie Learning’s Destinations Library, a supplemental language resource offering flexible, ready-to-assign tasks. This versatility empowers teachers to customize assignments based on their specific teaching objectives, making it a valuable asset for both core and supplemental instruction.
“ClearTalk’s use of AI offers students invaluable speaking practice and immediate, personalized feedback,” said Steve Johansson, managing director of EdTech Breakthrough. “Timely, effective feedback is essential for boosting speaking skills, but traditional world language curricula often fall short in providing opportunities for unprompted, realistic conversations. ClearTalk addresses these challenges by prioritizing meaningful interaction over perfection, equipping students to confidently navigate real-world conversations. Its innovative approach distinguishes it from other AI-powered tools focused solely on pronunciation accuracy, making it our choice for the 2025 ‘Language Learning Innovation Award!’”
Bridging Gaps in Traditional Language Learning
One of the most significant challenges in language education is the lack of opportunities for students to engage in authentic conversations with native or fluent speakers. In traditional classroom settings, students typically converse with peers who have similar linguistic abilities, which limits exposure to realistic dialogue and feedback. ClearTalk bridges this gap by leveraging Carnegie Learning’s extensive background in AI and instructional design. Developed by a team of expert instructional designers and engineers, the tool simulates dynamic, real-world interactions that prepare students for practical language use outside the classroom.
Barry Malkin, CEO of Carnegie Learning, expressed his pride in receiving the award and highlighted the company’s commitment to expanding its language learning offerings. “We’re thrilled to take home this award from EdTech Breakthrough,” Malkin said. “ClearTalk reflects our dedication to innovation and excellence in education. Moving forward, we’ll continue to enhance our platform with impressive libraries of listening activities, ancillary resources, AP-aligned activities, and more to ensure every student achieves success in language proficiency.”
Celebrating Excellence in Educational Technology
The EdTech Breakthrough Awards aim to recognize excellence and innovation across a wide range of educational technology categories, including Student Engagement, School Administration, Adaptive Learning, STEM Education, Remote Learning, Career Preparation, and many others. This year’s program attracted thousands of nominations from over 15 countries worldwide, underscoring the growing importance of technology in reshaping education.
ClearTalk’s recognition as the “Language Learning Innovation Award” winner highlights its unique contribution to the field. By combining advanced AI with pedagogical expertise, Carnegie Learning has created a tool that not only enhances speaking skills but also drives engagement, builds fluency, and supports educators in delivering high-quality instruction. The platform’s emphasis on meaningful interaction and personalized feedback ensures that students are equipped with the confidence and competence needed to thrive in real-world language scenarios.
About Carnegie Learning, Inc.
Pittsburgh-based Carnegie Learning is at the forefront of edtech companies using data and AI to dramatically improve learning outcomes for students. A leader in K-12 education for 26+ years, Carnegie’s award-winning math, literacy, world languages, professional learning, and high-impact tutoring solutions products are used by over 5.5 million students and educators in all 50 states and Canada. Born out of Carnegie Mellon University, the company continues to conduct research with more than $90M in grant funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Walton Family Foundation, Department of Education, among others. Visit carnegielearning.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
About EdTech Breakthrough
Part of Tech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence and recognition platform for global technology innovation and leadership, the EdTech Breakthrough Awards program is devoted to honoring excellence in educational technology products, companies and people. The EdTech Breakthrough Awards provide a platform for public recognition around the achievements of breakthrough educational technology in categories including e-learning, student engagement, school administration, career preparation, language learning, STEM and more. For more information, visit EdTechBreakthrough.com.
Tech Breakthrough LLC does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our recognition programs, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with award designations. Tech Breakthrough LLC recognition consists of the opinions of the Tech Breakthrough LLC organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Tech Breakthrough LLC disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this recognition program, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
