Oracy is an incredibly important part of our school provision. Oracy at Borlase is an intrinsic part of our teaching and learning pedagogy, you will see high level discussion and debate in all classrooms from Year 7 to 13. Higher tier vocabulary is learnt and used in topical debates and rhetoric is explicitly taught in English lessons and also in whole school tutor time.

We run annual whole school house public speaking and debate competitions. In addition, every year we run whole year group competitions for ‘Shakespeare by Heart’ and ‘Poetry by Heart’. We enter national competitions for both these events and also national public speaking and ESU competitions. Students often lead lectures and assemblies and speak at school events.

Oracy is an integral part of tutor time and many activities are based around discussion and debate of current affairs.  Oracy also has another role at Borlase, and that is to allow and encourage students to express themselves and have the necessary tools to express their feelings. We have, and continue to develop Oracy as a vehicle to teach a range of social, emotional and interpersonal skills, including self-confidence, self-awareness, resilience and empathy. Enabling students to learn the skills and confidence to speak up and believe in themselves is, we believe, vital in  enhancing students’ sense of happiness and well-being.