Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020).

Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -

Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 TYPES OF COMMUNICATIVE STRATEGY

Content Standards

The learner recognizes that communicative competence requires understanding of speech

context, speech style, speech act, and communicative strategy.

Performance Standards

The learner demonstrates effective use of communicative strategy in a variety of speech

situations.

Learning Competency
At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:
1. employ various communicative strategies in different situation

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 Lesson Types of Communicative Strategy
1

Discussion of the Lesson

“Communication is your ticket to success, if you pay attention and learn to do it effectively.”
- Theo Gold

Conversation is interactive
communication between two or
more people, and it is a significant
part of our everyday life. Speech act
is a tool in engaging to a
conversation. In the previous lesson,
you have learned that a speech act is
an utterance that a speaker makes to
achieve an intended effect. It is how
you express yourself to
communicate your wants and needs,
to achieve a desired goal. We are
attuned in everyday conversation not primarily to the sentences we utter to one another, but to the
speech acts that those utterances are used to perform such function. Some of the functions which
are carried out using speech acts are giving opinion, offering an apology, greeting, request,
complaint, invitation, compliment, or refusal.

Talking with the family during a meal, listening to a confiding friend on the phone,
participating in discussion at school, and presenting report in a meeting at work are some instances
of the communicative situations that we are usually engaged in and it is essential to understand the
role of different communicative strategies that we can employ for an effective communication.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 Engaging in a conversation is not just a simple process of talking and listening. Cohen
(1990) states that it is bound by implicit rules that requires strategies to be able to start and maintain
conversation.

Types of Communicative Strategy

The following are some strategies that people use when communicating:

1. Nomination
A speaker carries out nomination to collaboratively and productively establish a topic.

You use this strategy to open a topic and start a conversation. Nomination is usually employed at
the beginning of interaction to set the purpose of conversation.

Examples:

You may start off with making inquiries, giving compliment, asking for opinion, or offering help.
This could efficiently signal the beginning of a new topic in the conversation.

 “Have you heard about “the new normal”?

 “I saw your TikTok post on Facebook. It’s really great.”
 “What can you say about our new plan for the project? Do you think it will
work?”
 You are the new student, right? Would you like me to tour you around the
campus?

Remember to avoid questions that are too personal like asking about how much money the person or
his parents are earning. This may make the person you are talking to uncomfortable and may refuse
to talk with you. Topics like politics and religion should also be avoided because these may cause
quarrel or disagreement.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 2. Restriction
Restriction in communication refers to any limitation you may have as a speaker.

It is a strategy used when responses need to be within the set categories or instructions. These
instructions confine you as a speaker and limit what you can say.

Examples:

 In your class, you might be asked by your teacher to brainstorm on peer pressure or
deliver a speech on digital natives. In this case, you cannot decide to talk about
something else.
 You are invited to the police station to answer some questions about what you know
about the accident.

3. Turn-taking
It pertains to the process by which people decide who takes the
conversational floor.

Turn-taking strategy allows all participants in the conversation a chance to speak. You can use this
strategy to avoid taking over the whole conversation.

Examples:

 You can employ this strategy by making your response shorter yet informative
enough to express your ideas and feelings.
 Spoken cues such as “What do you think?” or “You wanted to say something?”
provide others a chance to speak. Pausing is a nonverbal cue that will do as well.

Remember to listen to the other person talking instead of just waiting for your turn to talk. This way,
you can have a meaningful and productive conversation. Also, always show politeness when you
need to take the conversational floor from the person currently speaking.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 4. Topic Control
Topic control covers how procedural formality or informality affects the development of topic
in conversations.

This is a strategy used when there is a need to control and prevent unnecessary interruptions and
topic shifts in a certain conversation. Using this strategy makes the conversation to stay focused on
the topic throughout the discussion and keeps the development of the topic going by asking
questions.

Examples:

 During a board meeting, the director manages the communication and directs who
may speak to collectively develop the topic of conversation.
 In the senate session, the senate president presides the meeting. Senators who wish
to speak asks permission from the senate president.
 Expressions like “Okay, so much for that… “Let's go back to the topic.” and “Going
back to what we are talking about…” can be used to keep the conversation within
the topic when there is a sudden shift.

5. Topic Shifting
Topic shifting involves moving from one topic to another.

This strategy is used to change the topic to a new one which helps communication keep going.

Examples:

 You may use conversational transitions that indicate a shift like “By the way...”,
“Before I forget...”, “Which reminds me of,” and the like.
 In a report presentation you may use expressions like “Moving on to the next
topic…”, “Now, let’s talk about…”, “This time, let me tell you about…”
Remember that Topic shifting requires a good timing. So, make sure that topic is
adequately discussed before changing it to another one. There may be a need to
shift topic when there’s a pause in conversation, minimal response like nodding and
smiling.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 6. Repair
Repair refers to how speakers address the problems in speaking, listening, and comprehending
that they encounter in a conversation.

Repair is the self-righting mechanism in any social interaction (Schegloff et. al, 1977). We can
employ this strategy whenever we encounter problems in communication to prevent a breakdown.

Examples:

Speaker may use recasting or changing the form of message to a more understandable one
using the following expressions:

 “What I mean is….”

 What I am trying to say is that…”

The speaker may repeat his/her statements using the following expressions:

 “Let me repeat myself.”

 “Again…”
 I would like to reiterate that…”

Repair strategies also include requesting clarification or making a clarifying question, request for
repetition, and request for definition, translation or explanation.

 I am sorry but what do you mean by “new normal?”

 “Does it mean that we do not need to come to school if there are no face- to-face
classes?
 “Can you please repeat the last part of the instructions?”
 “Doc, can you please explain what a ferritin test is?”
 Could you please clarify your state?

Repair may also include addressing physical and physiological issues affecting communication.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 7. Termination
Termination refers to the conversation participants’ close-initiating
expressions that end a topic in a conversation.

This strategy is used to end an interaction or close a topic. Most of the time, the topic initiator or the
person who opened the topic takes responsibility to signal the end of the discussion as well.

Examples:

You may use the following expressions to end a conversation:

 “It’s nice catching up with you. I must be going.”
 Thanks for your time. See you around.
 Regards to your wife. See you soon.”

In other situation, you may end the topic by sharing what you learned from the conversation.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.
 ASSESSMENT
Movie Mo ‘To!
Directions: Think of three scenes from your favorite movies where different communicative
strategies were employed in one conversation. Watch each scene and evaluate if it employs
acceptable, polite and meaningful communicative strategy. Use the table below for your evaluation.

Reason why it is an
acceptable, polite, and
Movie (scene, context, Communicative
meaningful
and characters) strategy used
communicative
strategy
1.

2.

3.

Be guided by the rubric below.

5pts 4pts 3pts 2pts 1pt

if the given scene, if the given scene, if the given scene, if the given scene,
if the given scene,
context, and context, and context, and context, and
context, and
characters characters closely characters characters slightly
characters did not
completely matched the idea moderately matched the idea
match the idea of
matched the idea of the matched the idea of the
the
of the communicative of the communicative
communicative
communicative strategy used. communicative strategy used.
strategy used.
strategy used. strategy used.

Adapted and modified from Suba, K. & Robis, F. (2020). Oral communication in context (Quarter 2 -
Module 1: Types of Communicative Strategy). Department of Education.