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As Rufus says … “Make #oracy the fourth 'R' of education”: wise words from the Artistic Director of ⁦National Theatre, Rufus Norris ⁦The Telegraph⁩ [£]: telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/12/2…

Tune in to LBC at 9.20 to hear Geoff Barton talking about why oracy should be the fourth 'R'.

Last year, lots of us were talking about #oracy. Here’s a quick retrospective: Oracy isn’t new. A useful discussion of what oracy means and why it matters to children’s learning and personal development is here, via our ‘Speaking Volumes’ papers 1/8 oracyeducationcommission.co.uk/wp-content/upl…

Revisiting #oracy in 2024 felt timely, partly because it was 50 years since the completion of the all-encompassing Bullock Report, ‘A Language for Life’, which said: education-uk.org/documents/bull… 2/8

Also … last year, as Leader of the Opposition, Keir Starmer signalled that #oracy would be a key part of the Labour Party’s future ‘Opportunity Mission’ … labour.org.uk/updates/press-… 3/8

So in April 2024, we established our independent Commission on the Future of Oracy Education in England, initiated and supported by the charity, Voice 21. This is its wide-ranging and diverse group of Commissioners: 4/8 oracyeducationcommission.co.uk/who-we-are/

Between April & October 2024, the work of the Commission was supplemented by podcasts called ‘Commission Conversations’. The idea was to explore the many dimensions of #oracy - disciplinary oracy, inclusion, storytelling and much more. Explore here: open.spotify.com/show/5UwEJKkQr… 5/8

In October 2024, we launched our report, ‘We Need to Talk’. It was well received and led to (mostly) constructive debate about the implications of #oracy education. We called oracy ‘the fourth ‘R’ – as fundamental as reading, writing & arithmetic: oracyeducationcommission.co.uk/wp-content/upl… 6/8

Now we’re talking about our recommendations at conferences, at school & trust training events, and behind the scenes with officials & policy-makers. We’ve fed into the Curriculum & Assessment Review; and will do the same with reviews of leadership & teaching standards 7/8

But, in truth, if we’ve learnt anything over recent years, it’s that great practice in classrooms can’t be mandated from Whitehall. Instead, it’s now over to us - the teaching profession - to make it happen. Let us know your #oracy priorities, as we move from talk to action. 8/8

Recap: why an #Oracy Commission in 2024 ... and where next for oracy in 2025?

James A. Furey I’m happy to be able to fully agree on all of this! If you don’t know about it Oracy Education Commission did a whole range of podcasts recently on Oracy, published a pamphlet & great report. Voice 21 Oracy is a valuable source of ideas, as is Oracy Cambridge.

Very much looking forward to being on this panel and sharing thoughts with the other contributors about whether/how oracy should be assessed, something I talked a bit about in my Oracy Education Commission conversation with Geoff Barton

As we discussed within the Commission, there’s an urgency to increasing #oracy education - helping all young people to listen actively & critically, to disagree agreeably, and to engage in democracy …

🎉 Last night Voice 21 was celebrated as a finalist for the PRCA Public Affairs Third Sector Campaign of the Year Award 2025 for our work with the @OracyCommission to define oracy education, outline a framework, and make recommendations for a national entitlement. 🧵👇

The #Oracy Conversation continues ... Recorded in an echoey corridor at this week's Voice 21 Oracy Speaking Summit, here's Geoff Barton’s conversation with Tim Oates, Alison Peacock, Baz Ramaiah and Beccy Earnshaw … open.spotify.com/episode/3IHczJ…

As part of our series of ‘Commission Conversation’ podcasts, last year Geoff Barton talked to Oli de Botton - today confirmed as new expert adviser on education & skills to the PM - about the value of #oracy, curriculum reform, and social justice: open.spotify.com/episode/3ummcw…

💬 'The arts must be brought back from the curricular margins, and the EBacc measure that consigned them there needs to be scrapped' Geoff Barton buff.ly/N4oXUqU

As Professor ⁦Neil Mercer ⁦Oracy Cambridge⁩ says: “I think oracy is still not properly understood. I don’t think policymakers always recognise what is involved and why it matters …” tes.com/magazine/analy…

This morning The Guardian has thrown its weight behind the campaign for oracy education. This is an important moment for the oracy movement. eu1.hubs.ly/H0m0Ght0