Department of Education

Bureau of Learning Delivery

Teaching and Learning Division

National Training
on Literacy Instruction

Bohol Tropics, Tagbilaran City

November 18-22, 2019
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Session 3

The Building of
Communicative
Competence through Oral
Language Instruction
Presented by:
VICTORIA DAGALEA-MANGASER, PhD
Education Program Supervisor
Zamboanga City-Schools Division Office
DepEd Regional Office IX
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

OBJECTIVES:
1. Define oral language;
2. Discuss how oral language affects the
development of literacy skills;
3. Demonstrate understanding of instructional
strategies which explicitly develop oral
language skills through literacy related tasks;
and
4. Demonstrate desirable classroom teaching
practices that reflect gained understanding of
sound methodologies in developing the oral
language skills of learners.
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Activity 1- True or False

1. Oral language is the ability to speak and listen.
2. Oral language problems have little impact on the
reading and writing difficulties of learners.
3. Oral language is at the base of literacy.
4. All children are fortunate to be born into homes
where parents or caregivers provide rich language
experiences. These children enter schools with
good oral language skills.
5. Children who have strong oral language skills often
have strong reading and writing skills.
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Let’s Warm up

That’s good!
That’s bad!
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 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Activity 2- Task Card Activity

1. Each group will be given a task card.
2. The group will work on the activity in the task card for
2-3 minutes.
3. Present the output to the big group.
National Training on Literacy Instruction
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

ORAL LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

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What is oral language?

Oral language is the system
through which spoken words are
used to express knowledge, ideas,
and feelings.
✔At the most basic level, it means
communicating with other
people.
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

What do researches tell us ……..

An integral approach to explicit reading instruction….. is essential to provide
relevant learning connected to other experiences.

The “BIG SIX” Components of READING

Oral Language Phonological

Awareness

The ‘Big Six’

Comprehension Phonics
of Reading

Fluency Vocabulary
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Foundations of Reading in the early years

• Comprehension
•Vocabulary
•Fluency
•Phonics
•Phonemic Awareness
•Oral language
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“Oral language provides the

foundation for learning to read,
and is related to overall reading
achievement throughout the
primary and secondary schooling.”
Snow et.al, 1998, Wise et.al. 2007
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

So......
what is Oral
Language?
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

“Oral Language is the

child’s first, most important,
and most frequently used
structured medium of
communication.”
(Cregan, 1998, as cited in Archer, Cregan, McGough, Shiel, 2012)
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

“Oral language functions as

a foundation for literacy and
as the means of learning in
school and out”
(Fillmore & Snow, 2002)
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Children who have strong oral

language skills often have strong
reading and writing skills. In
contrast, children with oral
language problems are at higher
risk of reading and writing
difficulties.
(Scarborough, 2001).
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“Proficiency in oral language

provides children with a vital
tool for thought. Without fluent
and structured oral language,
children will find it very difficult
to think.”
(Jerome Bruner, 1983)
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■Children need to use oral

language to develop their powers
of reasoning and observation,
prediction, sequencing and other
skills connected with reading.
(FS Exploratory Phase 1997)
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Why Oral language?

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Language to Literacy Model

Martha Cummings, Ph.D. CCC-S

Speech Pathology Australia
National Conference Alice Springs 2002
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Language and Literacy

If children do not have a solid foundation in
oral language, communicating effectively and
learning to read can be a long and difficult process.

“Children’s speaking and listening lead the

way for their reading and writing skills, and
together these language skills are the primary
tools of the mind for all future learning”
(Roskos, Tabors, & Lenhart, 2009).
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Oral Language is an Integral Part of All

Learning Experiences
■ Oral language is not “taught” as a separate
component of a literacy program
■ It is an imbedded component in all content areas
■ Oral language standards, objectives, and
enabling outcomes (learning outcomes) are part
of the language arts curriculum from grade 1-8

(See Archdiocese of Hartford Language Arts Curriculum Standards, 2008)

 National Training on Literacy Instruction

The Language Experience Gap:

Word Poverty
“Children arrive in Kindergarten with
huge discrepancies in oral language
development…. And the gap between
language advanced and language-
delayed children grows throughout the
elementary school years.”
(Moats, 2001)
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Not all children are fortunate to

be born into homes where parents
or caregivers provide rich language
experiences. These disadvantaged
children enter our kindergartens
lacking oral language skills.

(Moats, 2001)
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Explicit instruction in oral language

development provides students with
the foundation for comprehending text
and communicating effectively. Thus,
teachers serve an essential role in
developing students’ reading and
writing skills.
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Oral activities
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“There is evidence that some

teachers may have struggled to
implement this component
because the underlying
framework was unclear to
them”
(NCCA, 2012, p. 10)
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Who needs oral

language
development?
All Students!
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Is it possible for teachers

to design instruction that
will close the language
experience gap?
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Five Components for

Effective Oral Language Instruction
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Component 1

….. how well children develop conversational skills can

influence how well they interact with others.
(Ninio and Snow, 1999 and Weiss, 2004 as cited in Otto, 2006)
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“The vast majority (approximately 80%) of

“teacher talk” in classrooms is focused on tasks:
giving instructions, providing information, or
correcting behavior or information. Of this talk,
80% of it consists of low-level questions that ask
children to recall information rather than open-
ended questions requiring children to think at
higher levels.”

(Kerry, 1982 as cited in Jalongo, 2008)

 National Training on Literacy Instruction

How do Children Learn to Talk?

✔ Encouragement to talk in a variety of
situations with a variety of people
✔ Repetitive language (eg. rhymes, stories)
✔ A purpose for talking
✔ An expectation to communicate
✔ Opportunities to use and practice
language
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In what contexts is oral language taught?

• Social Interaction
• Literacy
• Numeracy
• Sensory Motor Activities
• Developmental Play
• Inquiry –based Activities
• Language Experience Activities
• Content of ALL Learning areas
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Talk with Your Children

Get Close & Listen

Respond and Expand

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Component 2

The primary purpose of language is to communicate

needs, wants, ideas, information and feelings. Many
theorists claim that the different purposes for which
we use language fall under various categories.
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3 Criteria for Oral Language Competence:

Holbrook (1983) sets out three criteria for oral
language competence:

clarity sensitivity
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Component 3

It is important that the classroom environment is supportive and

nurturing where a variety of communication styles are valued, accepted
and accommodated. Teachers can design differentiated teaching and
learning activities that draw on pupil’s interests, knowledge and skills.
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A language learning environment

can be created by focusing on three
key elements:

Element Definition
1. The physical By enriching the physical
environment environment of the classroom,
multiple opportunities for
engaging oral interaction and
development will exist..
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Element Definition
2. Classroom culture By enriching the physical
environment of the classroom
we create multiple
opportunities for engaging oral
interaction and development.
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Element Definition
3. Opportunities for Communication happens all the
communication time in the classroom. By taking
advantage of certain
communication opportunities,
students can be exposed to
multiple oral language contexts
and uses.
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Component 4

As children develop, they need to be able to

draw on different sets of vocabulary and as such
teachers need to be mindful of these different sets
when selecting words for instruction
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Interesting Vocabulary Facts!

It has been found that by the age of three, children from
lower income families know 600 fewer words than children of
the same age from families with higher incomes.
(Hart and Risley, 1995)

In order for children to become proficient readers, they

need to learn five to six new words per day, 38 words per
week, 2000 new words a year, and 10,000 by the age of 6!
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Component 5

Auditory memory involves the ability to assimilate

information presented orally, to process that information, store it
and recall what has been heard. Essentially, it involves the task of
attending, listening, processing, storing, and recalling.
National Training on Literacy Instruction

How to Develop Auditory Memory Skills

✔ Repeat and use information
✔ Recite poems, songs, tales, rhymes, etc.
✔ Memorize and sequence songs
✔ Re-tell stories, e.g. fairytales, myths
✔ Re-tell stories using puppets or by illustrating a map
✔ Recall verbal messages or phone numbers
✔ Play memory games Kim’s game, Guess Who, Simon
Says, ‘My Grandma went shopping and bought me a...’
✔ Chinese Whispers
✔ Recount news events
✔ Use visual cues and mnemonics
✔ Hide an object and give directions for others to find it
✔ Provide organizational tools to assist memory, such as
graphic or visual organizers
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How do students improve their

oral language development?

1. Practice!
2. Practice!
3. Practice!
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I hear and I forget, I listen and I

remember, I do and I understand.
(Chinese proverb)

Tell me, and I’ll forget. Show me,

and I may not remember. Involve
me, and I’ll understand.
(Native American proverb)
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Application:
Write a brief lesson plan using the
given competencies for your respective
grade level.

Develop your own version of the

activities suggested in any of the five (5)
components of oral language component
targeting the competencies given to you.
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Activity 1- True or False

1. True. Oral language is the ability to speak and listen.
2. False Oral language problems have little impact on
the reading and writing difficulties of learners.
3. True Oral language is at the base of literacy.
All children are fortunate to be born into
4. False homes where parents or caregivers provide
rich language experiences. These children
enter schools with good oral language skills.
5. True Children who have strong oral language skills
often have strong reading and writing skills.
 National Training on Literacy Instruction

Reflection:

http.//www.ebi

•What went well…..

•Even better if…..
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“Reading and Writing float on a

sea of talk….”
James Britton

“The limits of your language

are the limits of your world….
Ludwig Wittgenstein
National Training on Literacy Instruction