A NEW GCSE exam rule is set to be rolled out across English schools in a major shake-up to the curriculum.
With the rise in AI, the education secretary is set to announce a change for classrooms that will prioritise skills “that make us human”.
Speaking skills are set to be given “equal status” to reading and writing following revisions to the curriculum, the Education Secretary will announce today (Thursday, September 15).
In a speech to the Confederation of School Trusts (CST), will detail how oracy – the ability to articulate coherently – will be “hardwired” into the curriculum and be assessed up to GCSE level.
The classroom shake-up will mean that “nobody” is “left out because they can’t speak up”, according to Ms Powell, who believes that fluent communication has long been “a marker of privilege”.
She is expected to say that spoken language will “become the right” of all children in UK schools.
Ms Powell will continue: “I can announce today that I will give oracy equal status to reading and writing, as a brand-new strand of the English curriculum.
“Working with you, working with , and as part of our curriculum review, oracy will light up every classroom.
“Both in content and assessment, speaking, listening and communicating will be a core part of every child’s education, through primary up to and including .”
The education secretary will also lay out why focus needs to be placed on “human” skills in schools following the rise in AI.
She will argue that in-person communication will only become more important with the advancement of technology and needs to be prioritised across UK schools.
As part of her speech, she will say: “In this new age, too few children are getting what they need.
“Practical skills are disappearing from practical subjects, just when the world demands the opposite.
“That isn’t or ideology; it’s a fact.
“And with AI on the rise, we need to go harder on the skills that make us human, like oracy.”
The curriculum shake-up follows the recent announcement and access to work experience as part of an overhaul of the secondary school exam system.
The new qualifications aim to replace the existing Technical Awards, and could include subjects like Business Management and Finance, Creative Media Production, Digital Tech, Child Development, Building and Construction.
