In any form of learning, there are always different ways to achieve the same result. The field of language learning, in particular, can benefit from well-made strategies that can improve the student’s overall acquisition of skills.
Strategies for language acquisition are typically divided into two main areas: learning strategies and communicative techniques. They vary greatly in their overall implementations and are largely geared towards different things.
Learning Strategies
Learning strategies comprise of techniques we usually employ for language learning, such as using cue cards to review vocabulary terms, following exercises given by your language learning software or memorizing phrases grouped by function. Their aim is pretty straightforward: to provide a more effective manner for the student to acquire the language.
While learning strategies typically vary in their overall effectiveness depending on the student, there’s no denying their importance. A good set of learning strategies will allow you to gain facility in a language much faster and in a much more robust manner than a poor one.
Communicative Strategies
Communicative strategies are a set of techniques that help non-native speakers hold interactions in a language they are not yet well-versed in. Carrying a card of common phrases to read to people on the street (e.g. “Where is the bus stop?”), for instance, helps you carry out very basic interactions in a community whose language you don’t yet have the ability to speak. Similarly, using gestures and pro-forms serve the same purpose.
Your Language Acquisition
For the purposes of actual language acquisition, you should focus on learning strategies, while employing communicative strategies when trying to communicate with native speakers. The first expands your knowledge while the second can help improve your confidence when applying the foreign language. As such, employing both sets of strategies can be beneficial to your overall success.
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