Links to the curriculum

The Talking About Voices project is designed to directly link to the curriculum in Key Stages 3, 4, and 5. It has the strongest links with English, but could also be incorporated into teaching in ICT/Computing, Citizenship, and EAL.

Click below to jump to the relevant subjects:

English Key Stage 3 & 4

The Talking About Voices project meets the following key aims of the English Key Stage 3 & 4 curriculum:

  • acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language  
  • write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences  
  • use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas 
  •  are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate. 

Talking About Voices also addresses the following specific elements of the Key Stage 3 & 4 English curriculum, with particularly strong links to the Spoken Language objectives:

Grammar and Vocabulary

‘knowing and understanding the differences between spoken and written language, including differences associated with formal and informal registers, and between Standard English and other varieties of English’ (Key Stage 3 & 4)  

‘discussing reading, writing and spoken language with precise and confident use of linguistic and literary terminology.’ (Key Stage 3 & 4)  

Spoken Language  

‘giving short speeches and presentations, expressing their own ideas and keeping to the point’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘participating in formal debates and structured discussions, summarising and/or building on what has been said’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘working effectively in groups of different sizes and taking on required roles, including leading and managing discussions, involving others productively, reviewing and summarising, and contributing to meeting goals/deadlines’ (Key Stage 4)  

‘listening to and building on the contributions of others, asking questions to clarify and inform, and challenging courteously when necessary’ (Key Stage 4)  

‘planning for different purposes and audiences, including selecting and organising information and ideas effectively and persuasively for formal spoken presentations and debates’ (Key Stage 4) 

‘listening and responding in a variety of different contexts, both formal and informal, and evaluating content, viewpoints, evidence and aspects of presentation’ (Key Stage 4) 

English Language Key Stage 5 (A Level)

The Talking About Voices project has strong links to the majority of the A Level English Language curriculum, meeting each of the 5 main aims of the subject:

  • develop and apply their understanding of the concepts and methods appropriate for the analysis and study of language  
  • explore data and examples of language in use  
  • engage creatively and critically with a varied programme for the study of English  
  • develop their skills as producers and interpreters of language  
  • In addition, A level specifications must encourage students to develop their interest in and enjoyment of English as they independently investigate language in use

In addition, the project addresses the following more specific aims of the English Language A Level curriculum:

Knowledge and Understanding

‘phonetics, phonology and prosodics: how speech sounds and effects are articulated and analysed’ 

‘lexis and semantics: the vocabulary of English, including social and historical variation’ 

‘grammar including morphology: the structural patterns and shapes of English at sentence, clause, phrase and word level’ 

‘historical, geographical, social and individual varieties of English’ 

‘aspects of language and identity’ 

Skills

‘apply language concepts and methods of analysis appropriately and systematically to data’ 

‘use accurately a range of terminology associated with the study of language’ 

‘critically evaluate attitudes towards language and its users’ 

‘undertake independent investigations of language, selecting appropriate methods and techniques’ 

‘synthesise and reflect on language knowledge and understanding drawn from different areas of their studies of English language’ 

ICT/Computing Key Stage 3 & 4

While Talking About Voices is broadly a linguistics project, it has strong links to the ICT/Computing curriculum, as it has a significant technical competent. This is particularly true if the students take the Option B pathway, where they learn how to do audio editing using Audacity. Overall, the project meets the following two key aims of the ICT/Computing curriculum:

  • can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems 
  • are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology. 

In teaching pupils to use new hardware and software creatively, as well as to engage with issues of informed consent and usage rights, this project also addresses the following more specific aims of the curriculum:

‘understand the hardware and software components that make up computer systems, and how they communicate with one another and with other systems’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘undertake creative projects that involve selecting, using, and combining multiple applications, preferably across a range of devices, to achieve challenging goals, including collecting and analysing data and meeting the needs of known users’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘create, re-use, revise and re-purpose digital artefacts for a given audience, with attention to trustworthiness, design and usability’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘understand a range of ways to use technology safely, respectfully, responsibly and securely, including protecting their online identity and privacy; recognise inappropriate content, contact and conduct and know how to report concerns.’ (Key Stage 3) 

‘develop their capability, creativity and knowledge in computer science, digital media and information technology’ (Key Stage 4) 

‘develop and apply their analytic, problem-solving, design, and computational thinking skills’ (Key Stage 4)

‘understand how changes in technology affect safety, including new ways to protect their online privacy and identity, and how to identify and report a range of concerns’ (Key Stage 4) 

Citizenship Key Stage 3 & 4

The Talking About Voices project provides pupils with an opportunity to engage with and reflect on their connections with their local community, as well as examine the connections between language and social identities. As such, it specifically links to the following aims of the citizenship curriculum:

  • develop an interest in, and commitment to, participation in volunteering as well as other forms of responsible activity, that they will take with them into adulthood 
  • are equipped with the skills to think critically and debate political questions

This project may be particularly relevant to Key Stage 4 students, as it directly addresses the following topics from the Citizenship curriculum:

‘the diverse national, regional, religious and ethnic identities in the United Kingdom and the need for mutual respect and understanding’ (Key Stage 4) 

‘the different ways in which a citizen can contribute to the improvement of his or her community, to include the opportunity to participate actively in community volunteering, as well as other forms of responsible activity’ (Key Stage 4) 

English as an Additional Language

Although the materials for Talking About Voices are all in English, this does not mean that the students need to speak English as a first language in order to participate, or to discuss the English language in their podcast episodes. Indeed, the ‘Being Multilingual’ podcast topic is aimed at students who speak/have experience with multiple languages. We welcome EAL students to participate in the project, and hope it would be beneficial to them. However, they may need a little more input from tutors in working through the materials and (if necessary) recording translations for their podcasts.