Voice and authenticity: Applying student voice research to teaching oracy

4 min read
BATHSHEBA WELLS DION, ECT TEACHER OF ENGLISH, BRISTOL CATHEDRAL CHOIR SCHOOL, UK ‘I would like to build on what L and J said,’ says T. ‘I think maybe she used that kind of language because she felt small, and sometimes people want others to feel small, so they can feel bigger.’ T is talking about a character from a story called ‘Brownies’, by ZZ Packer, in the English and Media Centre’s Diverse Shorts collection. We are discussing why a girl in the story uses ableist language against another group of girls who have SEND, a group of girls whom she accused of calling her the N-word. T is in her first term of Year 7. In a diverse class of Year 7s, we are talking (not with this terminology) about complex and sometimes debated ideas such as systemic racism, intersecting forms of oppression and the psychological impact of inherited trauma. There are no hands up. Since setting the discussion up, I have not said a word. I started teaching last year, schooled on the bene

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