Somehow I'm surprised that "rhetoric" wasn't referenced in this article. The classic Trivium accounts for "oracy" as part of a balanced education.
As a related tangent, though, *completely apart from this article*, folks refuse to make historical cases these days. The Science of Reading folks won't address centuries of phonics from hornbooks to primers to readers. Nope. We gotta pretend phonics is new. Which is how the whole word folks call phonics a fad. Neither apparently knows or cares about the humble books which forged literacy from the Reformation through the early twentieth century.
“Virtually all children learn (to talk) without explicit instruction” isn’t accurate. Seven percent of children have developmental language disorder (DLD) - aka receptive/expressive language disorder - and it significantly affects their skill development in reading and writing (as well as speaking and listening).
I am so glad you have brought attention to the development of oracy, and especially its reciprocal relationship with writing.
As an educator of multilingual learners, I focus on supporting development of academic oral language as well as writing, reading, and listening proficiency. In WIDA states, students who are learning English and learning in English (classified as ELs or MLs) are assessed annually on their Speaking skills. The ACCESS test is based on the WIDA Standards Framework for English Language Development across 5 standards that reflect the discourse structures required to interpret and express disciplinary knowledge: https://wida.wisc.edu/teach/standards/eld/2020
Last school year, when I focused ELD instruction (in grades 3-5) on writing, incorporating The Writing Revolution strategies, I expected that Speaking proficiency would increase as well. That turned out not to be the case. Student writing scores did increase, but Speaking scores still lagged. There are many factors that contribute to this, including the nature of the assessment- speaking into a microphone on a timed assessment task in a standardized test. However, I think another major factor is that students (especially MLs) are not systematically supported in oracy development as part of their daily classroom experiences. It is not part of the culture of classroom life. It would be truly revolutionary to have oracy focused upon in all classroom learning across content areas.
In my classroom, I have a poster on the wall:
I can show what I know.
If I can think it, I can understand it.
If I can understand it, I can explain it.
If I can explain it, I can write it.
If I can write it, I can show what I know.
In reality, oracy skills are higher leverage for career readiness than writing skills, given the myriad technological tools available to support writing. Maybe my logic was wrong- maybe I should rethink the sequence to reflect writing as the path to oracy, rather than oracy as the path to writing.
Thank you for your pivotal work in support of literacy.
How would you suggest to teach writing prior to speaking? My line of thought goes: they need to think first; THEN speak; THEN write. Although the order might differ based on the classroom context, I find it to be generally accurate.
I'm not suggesting teaching writing PRIOR to speaking; I'm saying that teaching writing can make oral language (and thinking) more complex.
I basically agree with the order you lay out, but I also think there's a cyclical, reciprocal relationship between thinking, speaking, and writing. It makes sense to think before you speak, but in the process of speaking (and listening to others) you might arrive at new thoughts. Similarly, it can help to discuss ideas before writing about them, but -- if students are being taught to write in a manageable way that doesn't overwhelm their cognitive capacities -- the process of writing can also spark new ideas and insights.
I haven’t taught writing K-12, but I’m coauthor of the book The Writing Revolution (the method was created by my coauthor, who is a veteran educator). I have seen the method in action and spoken to many teachers who have used it, and I’d say it’s probably the most effective method out there!
Brilliant article. So insightful. I've never considered writing in this way, as a 'second language', and it's given me so much more empathy for those who find writing difficult in an instant. I'm going to go into writing teaching with more patience in future!
I don't think that's quite the point. Writing formally supports speaking formally. But it can be used in the reverse. Kids with dysgraphia can be introduced to formal speaking that can then help inform their writing.
Thank you for this excellent explanation of the importance of integrating literacy components. Here's how I explain the difference between "conversational" and "presentational" speech in my instructional guide:
We know the importance of vocabulary knowledge to facilitate reading comprehension. Oftentimes, students fail to differentiate between what is conversational and what is presentational, and their written pieces end up sounding the way they speak—colloquial and imprecise. Teaching synonyms through semantic gradients like word scales allows the creation of a word bank where definitions change through nuance and precision. Therefore, activities using word scales not only increase a student’s reading lexicon but also enhance their writing as they are guided toward refining and presenting a piece of writing with words that change by intensity in order to convey the intended tone and precise meaning. This activity can be done at any grade level with choices offered that are appropriate for the developmental level of the student. A pocket chart with rotating sets of words affords an opportunity to introduce new vocabulary with the Hear-It, Say-It, Write-It, Read-It, Use-It routine, and then students can utilize these vocabulary words during subsequent writing activities.
Somehow I'm surprised that "rhetoric" wasn't referenced in this article. The classic Trivium accounts for "oracy" as part of a balanced education.
As a related tangent, though, *completely apart from this article*, folks refuse to make historical cases these days. The Science of Reading folks won't address centuries of phonics from hornbooks to primers to readers. Nope. We gotta pretend phonics is new. Which is how the whole word folks call phonics a fad. Neither apparently knows or cares about the humble books which forged literacy from the Reformation through the early twentieth century.
“Virtually all children learn (to talk) without explicit instruction” isn’t accurate. Seven percent of children have developmental language disorder (DLD) - aka receptive/expressive language disorder - and it significantly affects their skill development in reading and writing (as well as speaking and listening).
I am so glad you have brought attention to the development of oracy, and especially its reciprocal relationship with writing.
As an educator of multilingual learners, I focus on supporting development of academic oral language as well as writing, reading, and listening proficiency. In WIDA states, students who are learning English and learning in English (classified as ELs or MLs) are assessed annually on their Speaking skills. The ACCESS test is based on the WIDA Standards Framework for English Language Development across 5 standards that reflect the discourse structures required to interpret and express disciplinary knowledge: https://wida.wisc.edu/teach/standards/eld/2020
Last school year, when I focused ELD instruction (in grades 3-5) on writing, incorporating The Writing Revolution strategies, I expected that Speaking proficiency would increase as well. That turned out not to be the case. Student writing scores did increase, but Speaking scores still lagged. There are many factors that contribute to this, including the nature of the assessment- speaking into a microphone on a timed assessment task in a standardized test. However, I think another major factor is that students (especially MLs) are not systematically supported in oracy development as part of their daily classroom experiences. It is not part of the culture of classroom life. It would be truly revolutionary to have oracy focused upon in all classroom learning across content areas.
In my classroom, I have a poster on the wall:
I can show what I know.
If I can think it, I can understand it.
If I can understand it, I can explain it.
If I can explain it, I can write it.
If I can write it, I can show what I know.
In reality, oracy skills are higher leverage for career readiness than writing skills, given the myriad technological tools available to support writing. Maybe my logic was wrong- maybe I should rethink the sequence to reflect writing as the path to oracy, rather than oracy as the path to writing.
Thank you for your pivotal work in support of literacy.
JC teacher from Singapore here.
How would you suggest to teach writing prior to speaking? My line of thought goes: they need to think first; THEN speak; THEN write. Although the order might differ based on the classroom context, I find it to be generally accurate.
I'm not suggesting teaching writing PRIOR to speaking; I'm saying that teaching writing can make oral language (and thinking) more complex.
I basically agree with the order you lay out, but I also think there's a cyclical, reciprocal relationship between thinking, speaking, and writing. It makes sense to think before you speak, but in the process of speaking (and listening to others) you might arrive at new thoughts. Similarly, it can help to discuss ideas before writing about them, but -- if students are being taught to write in a manageable way that doesn't overwhelm their cognitive capacities -- the process of writing can also spark new ideas and insights.
Thanks for the reply.
What has been the most effective way of teaching writing for you been?
I haven’t taught writing K-12, but I’m coauthor of the book The Writing Revolution (the method was created by my coauthor, who is a veteran educator). I have seen the method in action and spoken to many teachers who have used it, and I’d say it’s probably the most effective method out there!
Thanks Natalie, will take a look :)
Brilliant article. So insightful. I've never considered writing in this way, as a 'second language', and it's given me so much more empathy for those who find writing difficult in an instant. I'm going to go into writing teaching with more patience in future!
I love this concept: If you can’t write it, you can’t say it.
I don't think that's quite the point. Writing formally supports speaking formally. But it can be used in the reverse. Kids with dysgraphia can be introduced to formal speaking that can then help inform their writing.
Thank you for this excellent explanation of the importance of integrating literacy components. Here's how I explain the difference between "conversational" and "presentational" speech in my instructional guide:
We know the importance of vocabulary knowledge to facilitate reading comprehension. Oftentimes, students fail to differentiate between what is conversational and what is presentational, and their written pieces end up sounding the way they speak—colloquial and imprecise. Teaching synonyms through semantic gradients like word scales allows the creation of a word bank where definitions change through nuance and precision. Therefore, activities using word scales not only increase a student’s reading lexicon but also enhance their writing as they are guided toward refining and presenting a piece of writing with words that change by intensity in order to convey the intended tone and precise meaning. This activity can be done at any grade level with choices offered that are appropriate for the developmental level of the student. A pocket chart with rotating sets of words affords an opportunity to introduce new vocabulary with the Hear-It, Say-It, Write-It, Read-It, Use-It routine, and then students can utilize these vocabulary words during subsequent writing activities.