Oracy at London Fields

Oracy can best be defined as:

“Articulating ideas, developing understanding and engaging with others through speaking, listening and communication.”

Oracy education helps pupils in learning to talk; in learning through talk and in learning about talk. Oracy holds a central place at London Fields Primary School, underpinning our whole school vision of contributing to a better world, having minds that can both think well and feel well. In school, our pupils

• Learn to talk: they develop their speaking, listening and communication skills
• Learn through talk: the use of talk and dialogue fosters and deeps their learning
• Learn about talk: they build knowledge and understanding of speaking, listening and communicating in many different contexts.

 From the moment our pupils begin at our school, they quickly learn the social skills of turn taking, learning about partner talk in which they will engage throughout the rest of their educational journey.

Vocabulary is explicitly taught: two tier words, to enhance the pupils’ vocabulary and assist their comprehension skills as well as subject specific three tier words, ensuring our pupils articulate their understanding eloquently.

Pupils’ thinking and understanding is extended through talk and pupils are taught explicitly how to build on each other’s ideas, to challenge others’ ideas and to justify their own idea: sound and robust arguments are expected along with the ability to change one’s mind on hearing other viewpoints. At the same time, pupils are taught how to engage in discussion and debate politely showing respect to others at all times and mastering the skill of disagreeing politely.

Our pupils learn about language: the differences between Standard and non-Standard English, the importance of dialect and accent, recognising the connections between power and language. We want to ensure that all our pupils have a voice and are confident to express their opinions and ideas.

As well as enhancing the development of academic skills (ensuring our minds think well), oracy education assists our pupils’ minds to feel well. Having the ability to express oneself and articulate one’s feelings and emotions, vastly increases self-confidence, self-regulation and self-esteem. Because our pupils can ask for help and positively engage with others, they feel understood and valued. In brief, our pupils can solve problems collaboratively in Maths; they can dissect arguments in history; they can talk through conflicts in the playground. Good oracy skills are a sure route to social mobility, empowering all students to find their voice to succeed in school and in life. In an increasingly fractured world, these skills are urgently needed and we are proud to be equipping our pupils with the tools they need to engage productively, meaningfully and thoughtfully in a rapidly changing world.