Talking about Oracy: Developing communication beyond the classroom

This book emphasizes the importance of oracy in improving students' life skills and future aspirations, and encourages educators to bring it back into the spotlight. It questions whether the focus on assessments and curriculum rigor may have a detrimental effect on students who may have been exposed to fewer of the skills they will require in everyday life.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 220 pages
Publication date: 17 December 2020
Publisher: John Catt Educational Ltd

Whether you're exploring the art of debate, delving into dialogic teaching methods, understanding the importance of questioning, or honing your skills in assessing and developing these abilities, this book has been crafted with classroom teachers in mind. Our goal is to bring oracy out of the shadows and recognize its immense significance in enhancing students' life skills and shaping their future aspirations.

When we consider the transferable skills that all students will carry with them beyond academia, oracy, literacy, and numeracy should stand as pillars of strength, side by side. These essential skills are the key indicators of intellectual development in childhood and are further nurtured and instilled in all students throughout their educational journey.

However, as children transition into students and as these students become critical thinkers, a crucial aspect of this vital triad seems to have been neglected in recent years. In 2020, oracy seemed to have even less relevance in academia, with the only supportive provision for both Language and Literature being the erasure of any recorded evidence of this skill. This indicates that oracy has, in some cases, been cast into the shadows and relegated to the realm of subject-specific curricular provisions.

We must acknowledge the reality that oracy is a necessity for success for all learners post-academia. Training students in the art of effective communication with diverse audiences in various contexts is paramount, and it's time to bring this skill back into the spotlight. By recognizing the theoretical underpinnings of communication that will serve as the foundation for this book, we can work towards resolving any misconceptions about oracy's place in the curriculum.

Weight: 288g
Dimension: 148 x 209 x 14 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781913622374