Future of Oracy in Schools

By : Konstantina Katsikari | October 24, 2024

Speakers Trust are delighted to welcome the publication of the Oracy Education Commission’s report this month.

What the report says:
This landmark document advocates for an increased role of oracy in education, recognising its importance alongside reading, writing, and arithmetic—the traditional “three Rs.”

The report calls for an increased emphasis across all aspects of oracy:  learning to talk, learning through talk, and learning about talk, arguing that each of these elements are crucial for developing articulate, confident, and engaged young citizens and by ensuring that every young person benefits, can contribute to greater social mobility.

Here are our three takeaways:

1. Oracy as a Foundational Skill

The report emphasizes that oracy should be considered as fundamental as reading, writing, and arithmetic in education. It argues that oracy is essential for developing critical communication skills that are necessary for personal and professional success. By advocating for oracy to be integrated across all levels of education, the report suggests that it can help bridge achievement gaps and promote social equity by ensuring all students have the opportunity to develop strong speaking and listening skills 

2. Benefits Beyond the Classroom

Oracy education is linked to enhanced employability, well-being, and civic engagement. The report highlights that employers highly value communication skills and that proficiency in oracy can improve job prospects and career advancement. Additionally, strong oracy skills contribute to students’ self-confidence and ability to engage in civic life, making it an important tool for fostering active citizenship and social cohesion.  The report places public speaking as an important aspect of this, and values enrichment opportunities like those provided by Speakers Trust.

3. Need for Systemic Change

The report calls for systemic changes to embed oracy into the educational framework. This includes revising curricula to include oracy education, providing enrichment opportunities, providing teacher training focused on developing these skills, and creating assessment tools to track progress in oracy. These changes aim to ensure that all students benefit from high-quality oracy education, which can support their overall academic achievement and personal development.


Our response 

As the UK’s leading public speaking charity, we are pleased to see the importance placed on giving young people the confidence and skills to share their ideas, and the recognition of young people’s entitlement to high quality enrichment programmes like Speak Out Challenge. 
The Speak Out Challenge, a flagship programme of Speakers Trust, aligns perfectly with these goals. It provides students with opportunities to practise and refine their communication skills in supportive environments. By participating in this challenge, students not only learn to express themselves effectively but also gain the confidence to engage in meaningful dialogue—skills that are essential for their future success.

We are excited about the report’s recommendations and will be playing an active role in the discussions of what this may mean for the ongoing curriculum and assessment review.  One area we want to see looked at more is the assessment of oracy.  After a decade of not being meaningfully assessed, it is clear to us that something needs to change, to ensure that speaking skills are valued as highly as writing skills in schools.

Speakers Trust expanding nationally  

As oracy gains recognition as the fourth ‘R,’ we are committed to ensuring that every student has access to high-quality oracy education.

We will be expanding our schools offer, so that it is available to every state secondary school in England. Our aim is to provide students and schools with access to high quality training, resources, and opportunities for young people to have their voices heard.

We are keen to collaborate with schools and MATS who are keen to refresh how young people can develop their speaking and listening skills and look forward to collaborating with educators, policymakers, and communities to realise this vision.

Read the full report here

 

Register for our webinar: Supporting Oracy Education in your School

We are hosting a webinar to share insight into ways teachers can support oracy approaches in schools and hear how the Speak Out Challenge can make a difference to students’ confidence and communication skills. For teachers in secondary schools.

Date & time: 21st November, 16:30-17:30

Sign up here