Collaborations
The Oracy Shift has collaborated with a range of educational partners. Our founder, Mike, is always seeking opportunities to share our mission, whether that involves guesting on a podcast, writing a thought leadership piece or providing insights in the oracy community.
Interested in collaborating? Get in touch via our contact page.
Our founder, Mike, speaks with Bedrock’s Teaching Lead, Andy Sammons, about the barriers facing effective CPD in education today. They unpick the challenges, such as: passivity, weak evidence and the standalone nature of CPD. Mike outlines how his work at Maritime Academy Trust is innovating teacher
training through the application of best practice and quality research-based approaches.
Bedrock Talks (Episode 25): Death by Powerpoint
Bedrock’s TEA Advisory Group
As part of Bedrock’s Transforming Education Alliance
(TEA), Mike is a member of their TEA Advisory Group.
Working with a diverse range of experts across England,
the group will shape Bedrock’s approach to tackling the
literacy challenges facing the education sector today.
TTS Blog Thought Leadership
Collaborating with TTS Resources, Mike has guest
featured in their TTS Blog for 3 articles all revolving
around Oracy in education. The blogs examine the
importance of oracy as part of a teacher’s toolkit, in
Early Years as well as across the wider curriculum.
TTS Talking Podcast Series
Mike joined TTS Talking host, Dr Shaddai Tembo, for a four-part mini podcast series. Across the episodes, Mike discusses the power of oracy for social mobility, wellbeing and learning. They explore the ways in which communication and language skills have become even more vital post-pandemic in narrowing the gap between the ‘language-rich’ and ‘language-poor’.
Myatt&Co Podcast - The Oracy Shift
Mike, and colleague Omar Jennings, reflect on the fascinating evolution from their school's focus on reading resulting in an intentional and powerful oracy approach. They explain the concept of 'Number Talks' and the use of Kagan structures to promote equity and support cognitive development. These pedagogical tools, structuring conversations in the classroom they found not only enhanced learning but also engagement.
Mike joins Twinkl’s Jon Cripwell to dissect a typical maths lesson, from the warm-up to the exit ticket. They explore where purposeful talk can really strengthen learning at each stage, including:
• Using talk to engage pupils at the start of a lesson
• Retrieval that goes beyond hands up and quick answers
• Modelling maths by thinking aloud
• Why stem sentences and repetition are so important
• How pupil talk can reveal understanding
Oracy in maths is not about making lessons noisier. It’s about making thinking visible.
Primary Maths Podcast - Making Thinking Visible
I am delighted to be a selected winner for the Small Business Sunday in mid January 2026.
More updates to follow soon once we join the SBS community!
Winner of Theo Paphitis’ Small Business Sunday #SBS
Schools Week (Edition 418, January 2026)
My debut opinion article in Schools Week titled ‘Talk isn’t cheap: it sets up a child to thrive in the classroom’. In this piece, I explore the urgent need - off the back of the Curriculum and Assessment Review - to place oracy as a priority in all schools as a level for social mobility. The review rightly positions oracy as the “fourth R”. Social inequality is complex, but the poverty of language is fixable. Oracy is no longer a “nice-to-have”; it must be a non-negotiable that is nurtured across all settings.