The Greate Debate: Teaching Oral Communication

Ontario's curriculum for language emphasizes the importance of oral communication skills. Based on what we've learned in class and heard anecdotally from classmates, this strand can sometimes be too easy to take for granted and is not always given the attention it deserves and requires.

I, like many of my classmates, remember addressing this strand through speeches. I particularly remember delivering speeches about topics that were important to me at the time - the Toronto Blue Jays and my favourite baseball player, Ty Cobb.  I can see the logic behind using speeches to address this strand. Students spent time speaking and they spent time listening, both important oral communication skills, but at the same time it got old quickly. I'm not saying I don't enjoy a good speech, but many of students became tired of hearing about the same classmate's summer trip to Myrtle Beach every year.

The most motivational speech ever?

I never thought debate could be used as a tool for teaching oral communication skills. I had always thought of it more as an exhibition of oral communication skills, that is until I read Debate: Where Speaking and Listening Come First by Dee Burek and Carol Losos.

Debate as a Learning Tool

Burek and Losos make a great case for using debate as a multidimensional learning tool. For starters, it really does reflect the inquiry-based teaching method. It requires students to research both sides of an argument and prepare their own position as well as prepare for the position of their opponents. There are aspects of both independent work and individual contributions as well as collaboration. Even though the debate itself is a product of much hard work, becoming a skilled debater is as much a process as the debate is product. Effective debating occurs when students can not only make their case effectively, but listen and respond to the points of their opponents.  The careful listening as well as fluidity of thought processing and effective speaking make no two debates alike.  This unpredictability has made for some memorable moments in U.S. political debates.

One of the main benefits to debating, as told by the authors, is the development of critical thinking skills that the student can take out of the classroom with them. They can learn to become effective questioners of information, effective researches, effectively structure and communicate their points of view and most importantly, develop effective listening skills.

Fear of Public Speaking

Going back to speeches in school for a moment, they were at best entertaining or informative, while at worst they exposed students' deadly fears of public speaking.  Fear of public speaking is a severely limiting factor to being an effective debater since most organized debates don't happen behind closed doors. Here and here are a couple resources to help students with any fear of public speaking they may have.

A former middle school debate champion? Clearly no fear of public speaking here...

Wrap Up

The benefits of using debate as a learning tool for the oral communication strand offer students the opportunity to develop a lifelong skill they can benefit from well beyond their classroom years.  Burek and Losos effectively tie in debate with inquiry-based learning and the development of critical thinking skills, linking them with the fundamental learning skills and work habits like collaboration, responsibility and initiative to reflect the content and performance standards of Ontario's language curriculum. 

So, when it comes to teaching the oral communication strand, whatchya gonna do?