The importance of the voice: the role of orality in training courses in the digital age

Recent data on adults and students’ competences show a growing difficulty in reading and understanding texts. This phenomenon makes us many questions. What is not “working” in training courses? This research aims at analysing this point, starting from a hypothesis: the absence of attention to the quality of oral communication in training courses. Today the system of exams tends to cancel oral presentation that, in the past, was present in schools of every order and level as the only opportunity for learning "the art of the word" and the capacity to argue. The teacher lesson is increasingly being replaced by the study of textbooks or by attending online environments populated by movies and infographics. In order to better understand this situation, we analyzed the habits of students attending university courses, investigating the presence and the role of the “voice” in their educational paths.