Democratic talk: from discussion to deliberation
Five Nations Network Conference 2018 | Saturday 27 - Sunday 28 January | London, England

Workshop Choices Form

Participants will have the opportunity to participate in two workshops on Sunday 28 January. Please select which two you would like to attend. The workshop descriptions are at the bottom of the page. Please complete this form by 9.00am Tuesday 23 January.

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Workshop Descriptions:

1. You’re all talk… strategies & approaches for embedding critical oracy and dialogue across the curriculum

Based on the evidence from recent EEF (Education Endowment Fund) trials and case studies from UK schools, this workshop will introduce strategies to develop oracy, deliberation and dialogue across the curriculum and throughout a school’s culture - enabling every child to find their voice. The session will explore how to plan for purposeful talk, create meaningful contexts for deliberation, methods to encourage participation and engagement of all students, frameworks for identifying key competencies and skills for oracy and whole school approaches to dialouge  and oracy. Participants will leave with research highlights, practical techniques, inspiration and a toolkit of resources.

Workshop leader: Beccy Earnshaw, Voice21, Stratford, England

​2. Using drama strategies to explore political issues

Using drama, theatre and spoken word we will explore what local, national and global politics means to us both on a day to day basis and on a deeper more philosophical and ideological perspective.  How does one link the personal with the events and issues which seem beyond our grasp on a day to day basis. Participants will try out drama strategies during the session and discuss how they can use them in their teaching.
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​Workshop leader: Abdul Shayek, FIO, Wales

3. Controversial issues

This session will be both practical and discursive. The aim will be firstly to reaffirm why we think political literacy through controversial topics is important and through recent research evidence consider the positive impact such learning has on values and attitudes of pupils in schools. Second we will examine a teaching approach from a pedagogical perspective discussing both the possible pitfalls and the best ways of using it in the classroom, drawing on experiences so far of different teachers.

Workshop leader: Henry Maitles, School of Education, University of the West of Scotland, Scotland

4. Developing 'Political Generosity' through Classroom Deliberation

This workshop will provide participants with the opportunity to experience a number of active classroom methodologies (such as deliberative discussions, socratic questioning and 'structured academic controversy') aimed at enhancing young people's ability to deliberate with others on issues relating to the politically complex worlds in which they live. In particular, participants will explore how we can move our students from debate/discussion towards deliberation and, in particular, towards an understanding of the 'reasonableness' of perspectives outside their own world view.  Participants will also be introduced to the concept of 'political generosity' (a rights-based approach to political identity) which encourages young people to move beyond 'tolerance' to understanding and legitimising multiple perspectives. Participants will also be provided with access to a wide range of practical resources to support deliberation in the classroom.

Workshop leader: Lesley Emerson, School of Education and Centre for Children’s Rights, Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland