"Speaking and listening is extremely important: it's a voice into pupils' writing, it helps them to develop and make sense of their reading, and it also does wonders for their self esteem, building confidence for the outside world."
Claire Taeger, English teacher at Plumstead Manor School, Greenwich, concluding a Key Stage 3
National Strategy training video.

Why is oracy a fundamental part of literacy education? Research shows that exploratory talk is an
effective way of using language to think and is one of the building blocks of literacy. Where there is effective discussion in English it can lead to significant gains in pupils' ability to recall, understand and
respond to aesthetic elements in literature. But, at key stage 3, where students encounter a wide range of subjects with distinctive ways of organising information and ideas, developing their oral skills helps
them achieve in all areas.

While most teachers would agree with this, more recent evidence from sources such as Qualifications and Curriculum Authority curriculum reviews and Ofsted reports, tell another story. Although teachers believe they give prominence to discussion, observational research does not support this. And although pupils may have plenty of opportunities to talk, teachers are often unsure about how to organise and
manage it so that the talk is fruitful. A further concern is over what to teach. Whereas reading and writing are well-established features of literacy education, teaching speaking and listening is still, for
many, uncharted territory.

The Key Stage 3 National Strategy has taken up the challenge presented by these findings. The Framework for Teaching English in Years 7, 8, and 9 contains a set of teaching objectives that build progressively year on year. Teachers are encouraged to build explicit attention to these objectives both by linking them appropriately with reading and writing objectives, and by planning for specific units which focus on speaking and listening. A 'teaching sequence' encourages
teachers to plan for an investigational approach to talk, using examples and models, and encourages pupils to consider specific language conventions and 'ground rules' as a way of extending their control
over a range of different types of speaking and listening.

While secondary English teachers will be seeking to teach speaking and listening in a planned, progressive way through the key stage, teachers of other subjects are also receiving training and support in managing and organising for effective discussion and group talk. The Literacy Across the
Curriculum training file contains a module on the management of group talk (many will recognise some of the good practical ideas that grew out of the National Oracy Project in these materials) and also a
module that breaks new ground in providing guidance on teaching and supporting active listening. And the training materials developed recently as part of the Foundation Subjects strand of the National Strategy contain a number of planned links to these earlier materials, including a module called 'Thinking Together' which links the management of group talk with some excellent guidance on promoting discussion between pupils that is 'cognitive' rather than 'social'.

The aim of all this activity is simple: research tells us that talk is vital to learning and pupils' social and intellectual growth. The national aspiration to raise standards for all, in all subjects, needs a set of keys to unlock the potential in all pupils to achieve. And talk - the effective teaching and use of talk in all subjects - is one of those keys.

A teaching sequence

1) Teaching objectives which are made explicit to the class
2) Provide an example/model of an oral language text type and use in a class/group investigation/discussion
3) Identify purposes, outcomes, ground rules
4) Define speaking and listening conventions
5) Activity or task that enables pupils to rehearse and explore language conventions
6) Reflection and review refocusing on objectives

Subscribe to Literacy Today