Oracy has been a fundamental priority at Turves Boys Green School, with significant emphasis placed on equipping staff with specialised training to foster oracy development within classrooms. It sits at the core of our curriculum, ensuring that students are not only able to articulate their thoughts clearly within the school environment but also develop the skills necessary for effective communication in broader societal contexts. This year, both within the English department and across the school, one of our central objectives is to nurture pupils’ confidence in public speaking.
In line with this, Class 9X2 has been studying Heroes by Robert Cormier, a novel that grapples with intricate themes surrounding war. As part of their oracy development, the students were presented with a provocative statement and assigned specific roles within their groups to stimulate a structured debate. This exercise, centred around the question: Should boys be allowed to enlist for the war at the age of 15?, invited students to engage in thoughtful discourse, critically examining the moral and ethical dimensions of the topic. The discussion was highly engaging, with all pupils contributing meaningfully, embodying our school’s core value of valuable contribution and taking their roles within the debate with great seriousness.
The boys demonstrated considerable dedication and effort, engaging in thoughtful discussions within their groups to produce well-crafted arguments. These were later presented to the class, fostering an environment where their peers could further contribute and enrich the dialogue.
