Research School Network: Oracy Matters: Evidence, Equity and the Classroom Oracy Matters: Evidence, Equity and the Classroom
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Oracy Matters: Evidence, Equity and the Classroom
Oracy Matters: Evidence, Equity and the Classroom
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by East London Research School
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Helen Ralston
Helen is an Assistant Director at the East London Research School with extensive secondary and all-through leadership experience. A former English teacher and headteacher in both specialist and mainstream settings, she now works as a trust leader for teaching and learning in Surrey.
In November 2025 the Department for Education (DfE) published Building a world-class curriculum for all, the final report from the Curriculum and Assessment Review. Feedback from multiple stakeholders – including young people themselves – raised “repeated concerns that certain areas of applied knowledge and skills require more attention within the curriculum” (DfE, 2025, p34).
Oracy was one of those areas.
Oracy matters
The importance of oracy is underscored in two recent reports: the Oracy Education Commission’s We Need to Talk (October 2024) and the Sutton Trust’s updated Life Lessons (September 2024). They both emphasise the long-lasting and wide-reaching benefits of strong spoken language. Firstly, and fundamentally, there are strong correlations with wellbeing and happiness: “59% of children say strong communication skills make them feel happier” (OEC, 2024, p36). We know that oracy skill is valued by employers, in fact, increasingly so: “In an AI-disrupted labour market, spoken language and listening skills are likely to grow in value” (OEC, 2024, p34).
Oracy and Disadvantage
Nevertheless, oracy is an area in which gaps between economically disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils can grow. The Sutton Trust highlights disparities in access to extracurricular opportunities such as Model United Nations and debating: available in 53% of private schools compared to just 18% of state schools (Montacute et al., 2024, p14).
Pupil Premium expert Marc Rowland points to a more fundamental – and often unseen – disparity within classrooms themselves. In a November 2025 webinar he reflected: “Chatty children get lots of chat; language-rich children gravitate towards language-rich children; and all too often less confident practitioners gravitate towards more confident pupils, leaving those with less developed language, isolated” (Rowland and Potter, 202526:42). Perhaps this is unsurprising that given that only 30% of teachers report receiving training in oral language interventions (Montacute, 2024, p1),
When senior leaders were asked how they would spend additional government funding for oracy, 67% said they would prioritise staff training (Montacute, 2024, p15). But is oracy really worth this renewed attention and investment in CPD time and resource?
In short, yes.
The evidence for oracy
Evidence from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) suggests that oracy-focused approaches can significantly improve outcomes. Oral language interventions typically deliver around six months’ additional progress at very low cost, with particularly strong effects for disadvantaged pupils. EEF Promising Programmes reinforce this: Dialogic Teaching adds around two months’ progress across English, science and maths, while the Nuffield Early Language Intervention shows 2 – 3 months’ additional language development in Reception, again with greatest impact for disadvantaged learners. However, the educator’s role remains crucial. As the EEF note: “The practitioner has a key role in setting up productive peer discussions.”
This is also explored in Marc Rowland and Cathy Potter’s development of the below index, building on the work of Lauren Resnick (2018).
In the most effective practice, educators leave little to chance. Talk is carefully planned, explicitly taught, scaffolded, supported and practised.
Into the classroom
Below are three ways educators can provide greater structure for classroom talk.
1. Be precise about who speaks first and how
At Oasis Academy South Bank, educators reduce wasted time and social awkwardness by clearly identifying talk partners as “Windows” or “Doors”, depending on where they sit. The educator specifies who speaks first and provides a sentence starter that must be used. The result is faster, more purposeful talk and greater inclusion.
The below is an example from a Year 7 interaction in English:
2. Use sentence starters that clarify the type of talk
National oracy charity Voice 21 provides helpful scaffolds known as “Talk Tactics.” Programme Lead Helen Hillman explains their purpose is to “build students’ confidence and ability to engage successfully in exploratory talk without inhibition.”
3. Provide subject-specific vocabulary banks
Students are frequently called upon to evaluate their own or a peers’ work – whether in Drama, Art, or Design Technology. A simple, relevant vocabulary bank can significantly reduce cognitive overload and improve students’ verbal contributions. Below is one such example from a Year 9 catering lesson at the Howard of Effingham school in Surrey.
Finally…
Oracy is key to learning, wellbeing and future outcomes. The challenge we face as educators, is not whether to prioritise spoken language, but how to.
Evidence from the EEF is clear: meaningful impact requires intentional, structured practice, underpinned by high-quality, targeted CPD. Investing in oracy is not up for question.
Resnick, L., Asterhan, C & Clare, S. (2018). Accountable Talk: Instructional dialogue that builds the mind.
Rowland, M. & Potter, C. (10 Nov 2025). Addressing Educational Disadvantage: The Quiet Challenge. [webinar] Available at: https://vimeo.com/1135671368?share=copy [Accessed 9. Jan 2026.]
