A Human Education for an Artificial World: Rachel Higginson on oracy, belonging and what schools must protect in the age of AI episode artwork

EPISODE · May 2, 2026 · 53 MIN

A Human Education for an Artificial World: Rachel Higginson on oracy, belonging and what schools must protect in the age of AI

from Thinking Deeply about Primary Education · host Kieran Mackle

Get your tickets for the⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TDaPE Conference Online⁠⁠⁠⁠For show notes, links, and a summary episode, sign up for the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hey! What You Reading For ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter. Mondays at 7am BST - https://tdape.beehiiv.com/subscribe⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AI For Teachers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ newsletterFor maths curriculum questions contact us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or via [email protected] Learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Story of Maths⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - www.alta-education.com/tsom-overview Finding my voice - https://findingmyvoice.co.uk/Episode 287: This week I’m joined by Rachel Higginson for a wide-ranging conversation about what it might mean to offer children a genuinely human education in an increasingly artificial world.We discuss why the rise of AI should prompt us to think not only about how technology might be used in schools, but about what kind of human capacities education now needs to protect and develop. Rachel argues that schools need to pay renewed attention to purpose, self-awareness, relatedness, autonomy, competence, dialogue and the conditions that allow young people to find and use their voice.Along the way, we explore the relationship between oracy and self, the ideas behind Finding My Voice, the dangers of reducing oracy to a set of performative speaking techniques, and the importance of listening as a serious educational act. We also discuss cognitive science, professional judgement, disciplinary language, inclusion, social mobility, code-switching, authenticity and the role of schools as places where children can experience the kinds of human connection they may not always find elsewhere.It is a conversation about oracy, but it is also about much more than oracy. It is about what education is for, what teachers can protect, and why the human work of schooling may matter more than ever.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published May 2, 2026

Embed this episode

Ready to play

A Human Education for an Artificial World: Rachel Higginson on oracy, belonging and what schools must protect in the age of AI

0:00 53:12

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Thinking Deeply about Primary Education?

This episode is 53 minutes long.

When was this Thinking Deeply about Primary Education episode published?

This episode was published on May 2, 2026.

Can I download this Thinking Deeply about Primary Education episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!