Group Talk
‘We thought we were hallucinating when we witnessed groups of teenage boys
talking animatedly in French about sport, cars and school uniform. The conversations
were organic and the pupils were clearly not speaking from a script.’
CILT EAL judges
¿Cuántos años tienen? / Quel âge ont-ils? /
Wie alt sind sie?
83
27
46
Was kostet das?
€109
der Wii
€249
€69,95
das PS3 Spiel
das Handy
der Laptop
die BarbiPuppe
€29,99
das BMW Auto
€499,99 €63,000
Use the language of conjecture
Give pupils opportunities to:
• Think
• Suppose
• Estimate
It can be like this …
• Opportunities for MFL pupil talk can be
limiting in scope and inherently finite.
• The emphasis can often be misplaced on
the completion of a mundane task where
only specific language structures seem
valid.
• Transactional role playing can build a false
perception of language in pupils’ minds.
Group Talk in action!
Why is Group Talk different?
• Only the target language is spoken
• Interaction between a small group of
pupils
• Tasks demand opinion, conjecture
and debate
• Language is often colloquial
• Responses are spontaneous
• There is no set finishing line
The stages of Group Talk
1. Exchanging and responding to simple
opinions
2. Taking part in a short discussion
3. Exchanging reasons and preferences
Talking across time frames
4. Developing a line of thought
Balancing an argument
Group Talk in action!
Launching and developing
Group Talk
• Agree on Group Talk as departmental focus
• Build Group Talk objectives and opportunities into
existing schemes of work
• Make Group Talk an integral part of short-term
planning
• Offer regular enforcement of Group Talk scenarios
(starters/plenaries)
• Build up and keep centrally Group Talk resources (cue
cards / PP / props)
• Use support structures for pupils
• Display and update Group Talk phrases
Extending Group Talk
(Stages 3/4)
• Incorporate more advanced language
and structures
• Increasingly complex scenarios
demanding more balanced views
• Use picture and text stimuli
• Allow preparation for task / note taking
• Use model dialogues / podcasts
The impact
• Pupils (particularly boys!) of all abilities and
ages are motivated to speak
• Pupils talk more confidently and
spontaneously
• Oracy skills are developed
• Questioning skills are improved
• Fulfils the Talking Together sub-strand of
the new KS3 framework
• Improvement in GCSE Speaking Test results