It is the last stone in the building of the Blanquer high school, after the end of the courses, the change of programs and the introduction of continuous assessment in first and final ... The progress of the "big oral", highlight of the new bac wanted by the Minister of National Education was clarified this Thursday, February 13, in a memorandum from the ministry.
This new twenty-minute test, which will be taken by all general and technological candidates from 2021, will begin with a five-minute presentation, led by the candidate, standing and without notes, on a question prepared during the year. This will be followed by a question and answer session with the jury and an exchange around the student's orientation project.
Highly symbolic decision: this new meeting will count for 10% of the final grade of the bac. A coefficient higher than what remained until now the queen test of the bachot: the ritual dissertation of philosophy. "A revolution", which Cyril Delhay, professor of public speaking at Sciences-po, and author of the report which foreshadowed the reform, rejoices.
What is the difference in creating a large oral exam?
CYRIL DELHAY. In my opinion, this is a historic social advance: for the first time, we have set ourselves the objective of equipping 12 million students with a new skill, that of knowing how to speak in public. Just as students learn to swim at school, they will learn to express themselves. It is the greatest gift we could give to young people.
What is the difference with the oral that already exists, like that of French in 1st grade?
It is a real oral, not a written replacement. It will not be a question of restoring knowledge, but of making the pupil speak in his own name, on a subject which engages him. It is the maturity of the individual that will take precedence in this exercise. In addition, speaking upright, without notes, for 5 minutes is the essential brick, the one that will then allow anyone to captivate an audience for 10, 20, 30 minutes ...
Newsletter - The essentials of the news
Every morning, the news seen by Le ParisienI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to allow you to receive our news and commercial offers. Find out more
School programs are already heavy. Do you think that the teachers will have time to also tackle public speaking?
Some are already doing it. Concretely, it only takes 3 hours to understand the fundamentals: knowing how to look at your audience, breathing, being aware of your support… It is easier to learn to speak than to learn to swim! You just have to practice. The teachers have all the tools in them for this and training is developing to help them in this mission.
Do you understand that exercise can terrify students?
They should not be afraid, but take this oral as a gift: this learning will serve them for life.
Your advice for taming the exercise?
Train as much as possible. We can start by talking for 30 seconds standing in front of loved ones, filming ourselves, looking at what we have achieved and what needs to be improved. Parasitic movements, "uh" all the time, this is quickly corrected.
What do you think is the key to a successful oral?
The choice of subject. It's 50% of success. The good subjects will be the most singular, the most personal. Young people will spend several months preparing their presentation, the content must please them. It is their interest that will interest the jury.
How can they build a unique project for 35 students per class?
One can imagine many things, for example, groups of students who would coach each other, asking themselves questions. I think that collective work will help high school students a lot to prepare.
