Oral Communication Blog

Oral Communication Blog

How to enhance a student’s oral communication skills

1. Podcasts, Listen and record podcasts

2. Encourage conversation (debates)

3. Provide strategies to enhance the confidence level for speaking

It is quite obvious that oral communication skills are a fundamental aspect of the development of both thinking and learning. Believe me, when I say that it is the GLUE that puts all components of a language together. Having said this it allows the opportunity for individuals to express their emotions, ideas, and feelings. 

It gives people the ability to empower, inspire and motivate those who listen. Finally, I believe it is used to share knowledge/traditions and lastly, build towards strong self-esteem. Growing up I struggled with the oral communication strand. I was a very shy and quiet student up until grade 6.

In the sixth grade I participated in public speaking and doing so I placed silver out of all Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board students. It enhanced my presentation skills to sound clear, concise, informative and a strong tone. Therefore, this weeks blog post will outline three resources educators can use to enhance a student’s oral communication skills.

Podcasts (Spreaker)

It is hard to deny that in the last few years, creating podcasts has become a very popular communication method for several things. From news headlines to the weather, you can find a podcast for pretty much anything! I like to think of it as a portable radio that is customized to your own individual taste.

Essentially, a podcast is an audio file that is, for the most part, informative and can be downloaded and played anywhere and anytime. Podcasts can be used to provide information in a fun and entertaining way, increasing student engagement. It has an impact on the extent of student learning in different subject areas. Finally, students have the ability to create their own podcasts for which they are able to share their ideas and creations with their classmates.

I believe one of the best ways to use podcasting especially within the classroom, is through student creation. Train your students on how to create a podcast and watch the magic happen. One resource that allows students to create their own podcast is an app called Spreaker.

This is linked to the Ontario Curriculum document (SE 1.1 Purpose) as students must identify the purpose behind recording their podcast. Students must all demonstrate an understanding of the concepts they are recording (SE 1.4 Demonstrating Understanding). Finally, they will learn to enhance their vocal skills and strategies making their podcast clear and concise (SE 2.5 Vocal Skills and Strategies).

Using this app, educators are able to assign students to create their own podcasts that demonstrate their learning of a particular concept or concepts. Their podcast should then be available for other students to download, allowing the students to put their teacher hats on!!!

This evidently proves that podcasts are a useful tool for the growth of oral communication skills for the students.

Encourage Conversation (Debates)

I believe incorporating debates in your lesson plans are essential for developing oral communication skills for students. Briefly, a debate can be described as a process involving formal discussion on a particular subject. Within a debate, opposing arguments are put forward to argue for opposing viewpoints from the other opposing side. The topic of debate will depend upon the age of your students. In order to really grab the attention of your students, you really need to pick an interesting topic. Some topics that are sure to grab your students attention:

·      Smartphones should be banned in school

·      School uniforms should be required

I believe this video “How to run a debate” by Groobles Media is perfect to assist educators in hosting debates within their classroom. This video is great!

It provides several strategies for your students to follow such as what is needed before you start a debate (two opposing sides etc.) and when speakers argue their point, they need to speak loud and with clarity.

For example, in class, we had a debate on what was better Smarties or Coffee Crisp. My team had 12 members which meant 12 different rebuttals. Overall, the debate went really well! (I think Coffee Crisp side won!).

This can relate to the Ontario Curriculum document (SE 2.1 Purpose) as students are able to identify a range of purposes for speaking in a variety of situations. For example, to support the resolution in a debate. It can also relate to (SE 1.7 Analysing Texts), here students will be able to analyze a variety of oral texts and identify the strategies used to persuade their argument for the debate. Finally, this can relate to (SE 2.6 Non-Verbal Cues) as students are able to use gestures and increased volume to help get their point across.

It clearly shows that using debates in the classroom provides students the opportunity to explore real-world topics and issues. Debates also engage students through self-reflection and encourage them to learn from their peers. Finally, debates prepare students to be more comfortable engaging in any type of dialogue related to their beliefs as well as their academics.

Provide Strategies to Enhance Confidence Levels when Presenting

It can be difficult to put ourselves in our student's shoes when it comes to fear of presenting. I believe the fear of public speaking is one of the most common phobias, especially that many of our students feel when teachers ask them to present something or speak in front of the class. I can relate to this because I still often feel nervous to speak in front of a large crowd! 

One a resource that can help strengthen the confidence levels of your students is from a video I discovered on YouTube called

“7 Ways to Teach Public Speaking to kids.”

This video recommends seven strategies for teachers and even parents/guardians to follow. I will not go through all seven, but I will go over two that I found to be the most beneficial taken from the video.

Give sufficient practice time

·       The most common thing that students said improved their confidence was having more time to practice.

·      Students will feel really confident if they have time to rehearse, go over pronunciations of certain words, and to remember to not forget anything out.

Create a positive Atmosphere

·      Creating an atmosphere that is accepting, supportive, and respectful is one of the most important aspects of building confidence in communication skills.

·      Emphasize that everyone in the classroom is there to learn and engage. If by chance a student makes a mistake presenting, as an educator, you must reinforce that making a mistake is totally normal!

This can relate to the Ontario Curriculum document (SE 2.5 Vocal Skills and Strategies) as students are able to have the confidence project their voice when presenting. I can also relate to (SE 1.9 Presentation Strategies) as students will have the confidence to present in a wide variety of ways such as vocal effects and facial expressions. When students obtain the confidence needed, they will realize that presentations are simply an opportunity to showcase their hard work and show off their knowledge and passions