Today, Voice 21 are releasing the summer 2024 edition of The Talking Point. This annual journal comprises practical guidance on implementing different aspects of oracy education in schools. This year’s edition of the journal focuses on ‘disciplinary oracy’.

The journal includes the impact and outcomes of an exciting pilot course, Voicing the Visual – developed in collaboration with The National Gallery. It explores the relationship between oracy and art, what it means to talk about art, and how to engage students in talking about art in an academic context.

Dr Kate Paradine, CEO at Voice 21, says: “I was inspired by reading the articles in this edition of The Talking Point, from detailed case studies to new thinking and The National Gallery research. The journal is a vital part of how Voice 21 channels the research and learning from our network of around 1000 schools into improving understanding of a high-quality oracy education on a practical level across the whole education system.”

The journal also features unique research into how oracy can improve behaviour and student wellbeing, and how oracy has improved analytical writing skills in a secondary setting. It includes insights into how to best support and nurture students who speak Creole dialects in UK classrooms.

The Talking Point 2024 also includes the winning entrants of the Douglas Barnes Award, our  annual prize which celebrates teachers using their classroom to carry out small-scale research which furthers understanding of oracy.