Addressing Uneven Access Between Education and Expression

Uttar Pradesh has one of the largest and most diverse educational systems in India, providing education services to millions of students. In recent years, extensive efforts have been made to improve enrollment, infrastructure, and access to foundational learning.

Across schools, there is a large variation in the types of access that students have to regular spoken English practice and structured opportunities to communicate. This variation is not due to any differences in the ability of students, but rather the varying levels of exposure to platforms that allow for speaking, articulating, and building confidence. With a lack of consistent opportunities to practice communicating, many students with academic ability have very limited participation in discussions and presentations.

CSR Interventions

To provide equal exposure to communication, Oratrics developed a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative designed for students in Uttar Pradesh focusing on improving spoken English, articulation, confidence and personality development. This programme serves as a complementary educational support system, providing supplementary support to the academic curriculum, whilst also developing important life and future skills relating to the way students express themselves and their ability to participate in society.

A CSR Commitment Anchored in Uttar Pradesh

The CSR programme supports and complements the school's current educational programmes. Schools are focused on teaching academic subject matter to their students; however, Oratrics’ CSR programme is helping students develop spoken English, become more articulate and confident.

Oratrics has developed a programme that includes communication activities developed for the classroom and implemented as part of the school’s day-to-day operations. Oratrics’ CSR programme incorporates the communication activities into their existing curriculum and will be able to do this through a practice-based approach. Meaning that students will learn about and develop skills in communication as a practical life skill as opposed to learning about and developing skills in communication as a subject matter.

Module examples include:

1. Spoken English practice and articulation exercises
2. Storytelling and Vocabulary Development
3. Group discussion, debate, and presentation
4. Arrangement of learning resources to help with classroom activities
5. Confidence Building Activities in Areas of Self Expression/Presentations

During these sessions, students are encouraged to talk frequently, pose questions, and be engaged in other interpersonal interactions under a conducive classroom setup.

Teachers are supported by learning about the benefits of interactive communication pedagogy and activity based tools that they could easily incorporate into their existing teaching routine.

Expanding Exposure Beyond the Classroom

The programme provides opportunities for students to build their confidence while developing foundational speaking and debate skills through participation in inter-school debates and speaking events. Students are also able to participate in moderated virtual speaking exchanges with students from over 20 countries including the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, and Singapore.

These structured speaking interactions allow students to use spoken English within a variety of contexts, engage with perspectives from around the world, and develop communication skills beyond the walls of their classroom.

Teachers have noted that students are exhibiting:

●      An increased willingness to engage in discussion and share ideas in classroom activities

●      Higher levels of participation in both group exercises and discussions

●      More confident presentations and interactions with peers in a speaking context

●      Increased comfort with engaging in structured spoken English communication

Exposure to national and international speaking platforms has allowed students to apply classroom learning in real-world and cross-cultural contexts.

Way Forward

Through a collaborative effort between educators, community partners and schools, the CSR program will develop a systematic approach to improving educational outcomes based on existing priorities. The program will continue to focus on developing communication skills and personality development. This will occur in conjunction with the ongoing development of the academic foundation of schools while maintaining the existing structure of learning.

Oratrics plans to build on its current efforts with the classroom, with continued support for students' development of communication skills through structured and ongoing engagement. By providing students with opportunities to continue to develop articulation, discussion skills, and self-expression within their schools, the program will assist in developing socially responsible citizens.

In addition, Oratrics intends to extend this collaborative CSR model to other schools in Uttar Pradesh and beyond by working with educational institutions that are committed to improving student communication readiness and confidence within the existing academic framework.

About Author

Samad Shoeb is the Co-Founder and CEO of Oratrics. An alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, he works at the intersection of communication, education, and youth development. Through classroom-embedded programmes, he focuses on strengthening spoken English. His work emphasizes communication as a foundational life skill that influences educational outcomes, employability, and social mobility.

Under his leadership, Oratrics has collaborated with schools across India and facilitated cross-cultural speaking exchanges connecting students with peers from multiple countries. His approach centers on scalable, classroom-embedded models that align with institutional priorities and long-term developmental goals.