METRO MANILA COLLEGE

U-Site, Brgy. Kaligayahan, Novaliches, Quezon City

BASIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

MODULE #9: Communicative Strategies and

Tips
Prepared by: Mr. Daryl Eldrin L. Valenzuela
 LESSON #9: COMMUNICATIVE STRATEGIES AND TIPS

=====================================================

CONTENT STANDARD:

The learner…
[CS.ORC.3] recognizes that communicative competence requires understanding of
speech context, speech style, speech act and communicative strategy.

PERFORMANCE STANDARD:

The learner…
[PS.ORC.3] demonstrates effective use of communicative strategy in a variety of
speech situations.

OBJECTIVE:

At the end of the module, you should be able to…

[EN11/12OC-Ia-6] Use various strategies in order to avoid communication
breakdown.
[EN11/12OC-Ifj-20] Employs various communicative strategies in different
situations.
 LESSON 9.1.: COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE AND STRATEGIES
(adapted from all content sources cited in the Bibliography, but mostly adapted from Hermosa,
Hernandez, and Vergara, 2019)

===============================================

Communicative Competence

Hermosa, Hernandez,
and Vergara (2019) define this
as “the cluster of abilities that
enable humans to convey and
interpret messages and to
negotiate meanings personally
within specific contexts”.
Basically, our communicative
competence allows us to
effectively participate in
the communication
process.

=====================================================

From Linguistic Competence to Communicative Competence

Noam Chomsky (1957, as cited by Hermosa, Hernandez, and

Vergara, 2019) posited that linguistic competence is determined
by one’s ability [1] to understand and [2] produce the
language. These abilities translated to the concepts he
proposed: competence (understanding language forms) and
performance (putting language into use).

After some time, Dell Hymes (1970, as cited by Hermosa, Hernandez, and Vergara,
2019) saw that linguistic competence should be distinguished from communicative
competence – being an expert in a language does not automatically translate to being an
expert in communication. For him, linguistic competence is being knowledgeable
about a language and communicative competence is having good command and
utility over the target language and other related media used in communication.
The Four Subcategories of Communicative Competence:

1. GRAMMATICAL COMPETENCE (on syntax and morphology)

• SYNTAX – study of the arrangement and placement of words, phrases,

and/or clauses to create sentences
• MORPHOLOGY – study of the forms of words

2. DISCOURSE COMPETENCE (on coherence and cohesion)

• COHESION – proper use of words to connect ideas within a sentence

• COHERENCE – appropriate combination of ideas, sentences, and other
properties that makes the overall composition semantically sound.

3. SOCIOLINGUISTIC COMPETENCE (on appropriateness of terms used in certain

social situations)

If you are in someone else’s house, it is customary that you use formal /
“demure” language. You don’t act as if you own the house. If you are in a situation
that prompts you to talk to a lot of older people, you use respectful language (e.g.
“po” and “opo”). Adapt accordingly.

4. STRATEGIC COMPETENCE (on one’s ability to repair and sustain communication

and make it interesting and enjoyable)

If the conversation is becoming a little dull or uninteresting, it falls to the

participants to apply various communicative strategies to sustain the conversation.

Six Types of Communicative Strategies:

1. NOMINATION (being CREDIBLE and RELIABLE by [1] being knowledgeable in

the subject matter, [2] presenting facts, statistics, and other relevant information,
[3] knowing the nuances of a language, and [4] using an appropriate language in
delivering the content)

Listeners will be confident in speakers who “know their stuff”. If you present
yourself as credible and reliable in front of others, they will easily accept and try
to understand what you want to say.

2. TURN-TAKING (speaking when it is your turn to speak; not monopolizing the

conversation)

As the saying goes, “it takes two to tango”. The same applies in
communication. Be sure that you and the person you talk to take turns. Don’t let
 the other party feel that you are monopolizing the conversation. Alternatively, if
you feel that the other party is monopolizing the conversation, just be honest and
say so.

3. TOPIC CONTROL (asking relevant questions and providing relevant answers)

When your topic is about food, talk about food. Don’t suddenly talk about
your favorite Korean drama series or politics. Keep your messages and feedbacks
relevant to the current topic.

4. TOPIC SHIFTING (introducing a new topic / jumping from one topic to another)

In relation to the explanation about topic control, if you want to change the
topic to your favorite Korean drama, be sure to use “signals” or “transitional
devices. Be sure to shift the topic as naturally as possible.

e.g.
Leona: I really want to eat samgyeopsal right now.
Diana: Oh, speaking of samgyeopsal, there was a scene in this Korean
drama that I recently watched that featured that. It looks delicious!
Leona: Interesting! What drama is it?

Voila! You successfully changed the topic in quite the elegant way.

5. REPAIR (preventing communication breakdown by keeping the conversation

active, interesting, and relevant)

There are times that the conversation suddenly takes an awkward turn,
causing one or both parties to lose interest in the conversation. Keep the
conversation interesting by injecting fun or talking more about interesting stuff. If
you see that the person is tired of the current topic, change the topic. If the person
got confused because the topic is complicated, explain accordingly.

6. TERMINATION (closing the communication process properly)

Don’t end the conversation awkwardly. Be sure to end the conversation

properly by saying goodbye or that you’ll catch each other later! Also, be
perceptive of signals that the other party drops consciously or unconsciously (e.g.
being restless, looking at their wristwatch, face facing you but feet facing the other
way, and the like). These are prompts to end the conversation!
 [ACTIVITY 9.1.] LET’S TAKE NOTE!
DIRECTIONS: Answer the following questions. Write your answers on the
space provided. Please answer in no less than THREE sentences. (3 pts.
each)

1. What is communicative competence? What is its effect on the communication

process?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

2. According to Noam Chomsky, what factors determine linguistic competence? What

concepts have been evolved from these factors?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

3. How has Noam Chomsky’s views on linguistic competence been translated into
Hymes’ concepts of linguistic and communicative competence?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

4. What are the four subcategories of communicative competence? What areas of

communication do they focus on?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

5. What are the six types of communicative strategies that one can use? Highlight one
of them and describe how this can be used to better communication.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
 [ACTIVITY 9.2.] LET’S IMPROVE OUR GRAMMATICAL COMPETENCE!
PART I: SYNTAX

DIRECTIONS: Arrange the given words and punctuation marks to create a

grammatically correct sentence.

1. likes / Jamie / food / . / eat / to

2. David / friends / . / Jonathan / and / best / are
3. president / his / State / Nation / of / The / delivered / Address / yesterday.
4. interested / you / going / space / Are / ? / in / to
5. compliment / Complement / and / two / words / are / . / different

PART II: MORPHOLOGY

DIRECTIONS: Form new words by adding or subtracting morpheme(s) to the words

written in the table. The first has been done as an example for you.

ROOT WORD Noun Verb Adjective

Courage (n.) Encouragement Encourage Courageous
Cloud (n.) Cloudscape Clouded [1] ______________
Friend (n.) Friendship Unfriend [2] ______________
Erase (v.) [3] ______________ [4] ______________ Erasing (adj.)
Clean (adj.) [5] ______________ Cleaned Unclean

[ACTIVITY 9.3.] LET’S ANALYZE FACTS!

DIRECTIONS: Write TRUE if the statement true and FALSE if it is false. Use
CAPITAL letters only. (1 pt. each)

___________ 1. People will find your words easy to believe if you are credible.
___________ 2. Noam Chomsky is the one who proposed the concepts of linguistic
competence and communicative competence.
___________ 3. Syntax is the study of the form of words.
___________ 4. Linguistic competence is defined as one’s knowledge about a language.
___________ 5. If the other person is “lost” in the communication process, you can use
the communicative strategy of turn taking to avoid communication breakdown.
___________ 6. If a student wants to talk to a teacher, by merit of sociolinguistic
competence, he/she/they must use respectful language.
___________ 7. Cohesion is about proper use of words to connect ideas in a sentence.
___________ 8. One must transition to another topic in a natural way.
___________ 9. As much as possible, prioritize yourself in the communication process.
Give yourself more time to speak.
___________ 10. If one is good in a language, one is automatically good in
communication.
 LESSON 9.2.: TIPS TO IMPROVE ONE’S COMMUNICATION SKILLS (Part 1)
(adapted from all content sources cited in the Bibliography, but mostly adapted from Hermosa,
Hernandez, and Vergara, 2019)

=====================================================

As we have learned so far, communication is important. We must do our best to

initiate, sustain, and end the conversation in an appropriate and respectful way in order
to create a great experience for ourselves and for the people we talk to.

Written below are some of the strategies one can use to become better in communication:

1. BE AN EFFECTIVE LISTENER!

When we think of listening, we immediately think about using our ears to

perceive and receive the message sent by the sender and allow our brain to process
that message. Little did we know that such an act is simply called hearing.

Listening is done in a smart way. This active process prompts us to listen with
our ears (to perceive the message and the nonverbal components of the message
like tone of voice, inflections, and the like), eyes (nonverbal actions like gestures,
facial expressions, and the like), mind (the use of logic to process and understand
the message), memory (the use and linkage of previous knowledge and information),
and heart (the hidden meaning in the words of the speaker, the use of empathy and
openness to feel as if you are the speaker).
 STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE LISTENING:
A. STOP – Focus on the speaker. 100%. Don’t do anything else.
B. LOOK – Pay attention to all nonverbal cues the speaker uses.
C. LISTEN – Be active in listening. Take note of important information to
immediately grasp what the speaker wants to say.
D. EMPATHIZE – Put yourself in others’ shoes and try to see what they would
say and how they would say things.
E. TAKE NOTE – If possible, keep a pen and paper handy. If not, be sure to take
a mental note of what is communicated or discussed by the speaker.
F. ASK QUESTIONS – Ask for clarifications. One’s curiosity can be sated by
allowing yourself to see the answer. Be careful, though, as curiosity kills the
cat! Be careful in asking questions. Don’t ask inappropriate questions and be
sure to phrase the questions as respectfully as possible.

2. ORGANIZE YOUR IDEAS WELL

It is good to have the right things to say, but knowing how to order and present
the right things is equally important. One may be knowledgeable in a topic, but if one
does not organize ideas for easier understanding, the message will not be successfully
delivered to the listeners. All details must be well-connected, and one can use the
following methods to organize ideas:
 A. CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER – In this order, details in the speech are
arranged from the earliest to the latest detail (how they happened as time
ebbed and flowed)

e.g.

When I got out of the workplace, I immediately went to the terminal

to catch a jeep back home. I just wanted to go home because I’m tired.
During the ride back though, the idea of going to the park near my house
played in my mind. I entertained it. As soon as I got off the jeep, I let my
feet bring myself to the park. As I walked towards the playground to
unwind, I saw an overly familiar face in the arms of another person. I was
so furious with myself. I trusted her too much. I left the park, defeated and
dejected. I drowned my face with tears. That overly familiar face is now a
stranger in my mind.

The chronological order is akin to telling the events in a story – you

tell them according to the order they happened in time.

B. EMPHATIC ORDER – In this order, you put the most important detail and
the end. As they say “save the best till last”.

e.g.

I have failed a lot in life. I was a high school dropout. My parents

were always furious at me for wreaking havoc wherever I go to the point
that they disowned me. I wandered around aimlessly, feeling desperately
hopeless. But where am I now? My life is great. That one opportunity given
to me by a person I respect saved me. Honestly, I can’t thank him enough.
God bless him always. Recognize these opportunities and be thankful for
them. They don’t come easy.

The emphatic order drops the most important thing like a bomb –
when you least expect it, or when there is enough buildup that leads to it.

USING TRANSITIONAL WORDS

In speeches and compositions, transitional words are used to move from

one idea, sentence, or paragraph to another. This facilitates better cohesion and
coherence within the composition. If one does not use transitional words, the shift
from one point to another will become awkward and incomprehensible to a degree.
 TYPES OF TRANSITIONAL WORDS
(Hermosa, Hernandez, and Vergara, 2019):

A. ADDITION SIGNALS (one, first, second, third, also, next, another in addition,
moreover, furthermore, finally, last)
B. TIME SIGNALS (first, then, next, after as, before, while, meanwhile, soon,
now, during, finally)
C. SPACE SIGNALS (next to, across, on the opposite side, to the left, to the
right, above, below, near, nearby)
D. CHANGE-OF-DIRECTION SIGNALS (on the other hand, but, however, yet,
in contrast. Although, otherwise, still, on the contrary)
E. ILLUSTRATION SIGNALS (for example, for instance, specifically, as an
illustration, once, such as)
F. CONCLUSION SIGNALS (therefore, consequently, thus, then, as a result, in
summary, to conclude, last of all, finally)

=====================================================

[ACTIVITY 9.4.] LET’S TRANSITION CORRECTLY!

DIRECTIONS: Complete the paragraph by writing the appropriate
transitional words in the blanks after the number. Choices are in the
box below. Choices may be used more than once.

CHOICES:
like / before / on / but / so / Otherwise / Finally / near / Second / in / in contrast / First

Personalizing your room while keeping it organized is easier than you think it is!
Just follow these simple steps. [1] ___________, identify the things that are most
important to you. Place them [2] ___________ a table or [3] ___________ a space that
you normally use or occupy. [4] ___________, put your essentials like clothing, personal
care products, and the like [5] ___________ a cabinet or a drawer close to your most
important things. You use these things regularly, so it’s just proper that you put them [6]
___________ something that allows for ease of access. Third, put away your not-so-
important things [7] ___________ compartments or containers and label them
appropriately. Sure, they may be your things, [8] ___________ you don’t use them a lot,
___________ be sure to identify them properly. [9] ___________, you’ll bring them all
out to search for just one thing out of the numerous stuff that you don’t normally use.
[10] ___________, “own” your room. Personalize your room. Put posters, stickers, and
the like. Hope these helped you!
 [ACTIVITY 9.5.] LET’S TAKE NOTE!
DIRECTIONS: Answer the following questions. Write your answers on the
space provided. Please answer in no less than THREE sentences. (3 pts.
each)

1. What are the differences between hearing and listening? What human faculties are
involved in these processes?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

2. Why is it important to ask questions? How does this make us a better listener?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

3. How can one organize ideas? What are the two primary orders that people use in
making and delivering speeches?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

4. Why is the use of transitional words important in a composition or a speech?

___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

5. What are the six types of communicative strategies that one can use? Highlight one
of them and describe how this can be used to better communication.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
 [ACTIVITY 9.6.] LET’S CREATE!
DIRECTIONS: Select one for each set of choices written below.
Create a speech draft (of at least 5 sentences / 75 words each) which
makes use of the organization techniques in this module.

Set A (Chronological Order) – Choices:

1. A normal day in school
2. Your favorite trip to a great place
3. Unforgettable moments

Set B (Emphatic Order) – Choices:

1. The most valuable lesson you learned in life
2. Why you should be an inspiration to other people
3. Not wasting the chances life gives you

BIBLIOGRAPHY (LESSON 9)

===============================================
Content References:

Main Reference (Book):

Hermosa, A.L., Hernandez, M.R., & Vergara, S. (2019) Oral communication: for senior high school
(V. M. Victorio, Consultant). Educational Resources Corporation.
Supporting References (Books and Websites):
Anonat, R. (2016). Oral communication in context: Grade eleven – senior
high school. Books Atpb. Publishing Corp.

Apolonio, J., & Basilan, M.L.J. (2017). Oral communication in context (R. Aceron, Ed.). Unlimited
Books Library Services & Publishing, Inc. (Original work published 2017)

Fernandez, E., Masong, A. & Samillano, R. (2016). Oral communication in

context: For senior high school. C & E Publishing, Inc.

Sipacio, P.J., & Balgos, A.R. (2016). Oral communication in context: For senior high school. C &
E Publishing, Inc.

Book Cover:

StudioGStock (2019). Group of people with speech bubbles [Digital Image]. Retrieved 4 Jul 2020
from https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/group-people-with-speech-
bubbles_5825572.htm#page=1&query=people%20talking&position=1
Pictures for Lesson 9:

Freepik (2019). Asian woman doing presentation in front of coworkers [Digital Image]. Retrieved
23 Jul 2020 from https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/asian-woman-doing-presentation-front-
coworkers_4989642.htm#page=1&query=listening%20to%20others&position=0

Freepik (2019). Multiracial group of coworkers listening to speaker [Digital Image]. Retrieved 23
Jul 2020 from https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/multiracial-group-coworkers-listening-
speaker_4989633.htm#page=1&query=confidence%20in%20communication&position=3

Pch.Vector (2020). Quick tips flat labels collection [Digital Image]. Retrieved 23 Jul 2020 from
https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/quick-tips-flat-labels-
collection_8610332.htm#page=1&query=tips&position=3

Starita, A. (2015). A portrait of linguist Noam Chomsky in 2015 [Digital Image]. Retrieved 23 Jul
2020 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Noam_Chomsky_portrait_2015.jpg

Stories (2020). Scrum board concept illustration [Digital Image]. Retrieved 23 Jul 2020 from
https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/scrum-board-concept-
illustration_7273247.htm#page=1&query=organizing%20ideas&position=6
Logos Used:

Milano83 (2017). Check and cross signs paint. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 23 Jul 2020 from
https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/check-cross-signs-paint-
design_1136697.htm#page=1&query=check&position=24

YAWD (n.d.). Light Bulb. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 15 Jul 2020 from https://ya-
webdesign.com/explore/idea/

YAWD (n.d.). Note with thumbtack. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 15 Jul 2020 from https://ya-
webdesign.com/explore/note/

YAWD (n.d.). Pencil and note pad. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 15 Jul 2020 from https://ya-
webdesign.com/explore/writing/

YAWD (n.d.). Painter with a picture. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 15 Jul 2020 from https://ya-
webdesign.com/explore/draw/

YAWD (n.d.). Perplexed female #1. [Digital Image]. Retrieved 15 Jul 2020 from https://ya-
webdesign.com/explore/thinking/
Special Fonts Used in the Title Page:
“Almendra” by Anna Sanfelippo Vernon Adams. https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Almendra
“Norican” by Vernon Adams.
https://www.1001fonts.com/norican-font.html