59

Chapter 4

COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE OF GRADE 11 LEARNERS OF LIBON-AGRO

INDUSTRIAL HIGH SCHOOL

This chapter deals with the presentation, analysis, and

interpretation of the data gathered in this study. This enabled

the researcher to interpret the data to answer the specific

questions.

The topics discussed in this chapter were arranged as

follows:

This study will determine the Communicative Competence of Grade

11 Learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School.

Specifically, it will seek answer to the following sub-

questions:

1. The level of communicative competence of Grade 11

learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School in terms

of:

1.1 Grammatical,

1.2 Sociolinguistic,

1.3 Discourse, and

1.4 Strategic.
 60

2. The significant difference on the rank orders of the

communicative competence of Grade 11 learners between the

Academic and TVL tracks.

3. The activities that were provided by the teachers to

improve the communicative competence of the Grade 11

learners.

4. The significant difference on the rank orders of the

activities provided by the teachers to improve the

communicative competence of Grade 11 learners.

5. The policy recommendations can be formulated based from

the findings of the study.

Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon-

Agro Industrial High School

Communication competence has become the focus of various

educational institutions over the past couple of decades as

educational policy makers and advocates have stressed a “back to

basics” mentality. The ability to communicate effectively is

often included as a primary undergraduate learning goal along

with other key skills like writing, critical thinking, and

problem solving. Knowing the dimensions of competence is an

important first step toward developing competence.

Competence involves verbal and nonverbal elements, but it

also applies to many situations and contexts. Communication

competence is needed to understand communication ethics, to

 61

develop cultural awareness, to use computer-mediated

communication, and to think critically. Competence involves

knowledge, motivation, and skills. It is not enough to know what

good communication consists of; you must also be motivated to

reflect on and better the communication and the skills needed to

do so.

With the number of students having difficulty in

communicating, competence will not really be within the grasp of

various public learning institutions. Having been considered as

one the useful 21st Century Skills, the teachers have been few

steps forward in advancing themselves of developing the

communicative competence of the learners. This is being done by

employing need-based strategies and techniques.

One of the perennial problems of the learners is

communicating functionally with others and in various contexts.

This is the focus of the research that the researcher herself

would like to determine the level, out of this develop, and

design offline and online intervention strategy that is

appropriate to the needs of the learners.

The cognitive elements of competence include knowing how to do

something and understanding why things are done the way they are.

Learners can develop cognitive competence by observing and

evaluating the actions of others. Cognitive competence including

communication can also be developed through instruction.

 62

Evaluating how communication in the real world matches up with

communication concepts. Building a repertoire of communication

knowledge based on experiential and classroom knowledge will be

instrumental in developing behavioral competence. This is seen as

a pivotal part of educating the learners about what communicative

competence is. It is not merely anchored on sounding out words

but on how to use this skill in various context.

Grammatical. The term grammatical competence refers to the

unconscious knowledge of grammar that allows a speaker to use and

understand a language. Also known as grammatical competence or I-

language. Contrast with linguistic performance. "Linguistic

competence constitutes knowledge of language, but that knowledge

is tacit, implicit. This means that people do not have conscious

access to the principles and rules that govern the combination of

sounds, words, and sentences; however, they do recognize when

those rules and principles have been violated.

Table 3, Figure 5 show the level of communicative competence

of Grade 11 learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School along

Grammatical. There are 12 indicators and one of which is rated

Very Much Evident (VME), five Much Evident (ME), and six Evident

(E). These are presented in descending order below: I can write

sentences to convey meaning, (4.20); I can construct sentences

and identify its parts, (4.18); I can correct the grammatical

errors that I commit in speaking and writing, (4.17); I can

 63

detect grammatical errors, (4.11); I can choose the appropriate

words to be used in speaking and writing, (3.63); I can maintain

a consistent grammatical control of complex language, (3.57); I

can pronounce words correctly, (3.35); I am fully aware of the

rules of grammar and the Pronoun-Antecedent Rules and use it in

various macros of English language, (3.35); I can understand and

express meaning by using well-written sentences, (3.35); I can

understand words with multiple meanings and used in varied

settings and texts, (3.32); I have a vast knowledge of extensive

vocabulary and can use it in speaking and writing and unlocking

unfamiliar words while listening, reading, and viewing, (3.31);

and I can use words correctly, (3.21).

The average weighted mean is 3.65, interpreted as Much

Evident (ME). The top three indicators are the following: I can

write sentences to convey meaning, (4.20); I can construct

sentences and identify its parts, (4.18); I can correct the

grammatical errors that I commit in speaking and writing, (4.17).

It can be gleaned from the data that the Grade 11 Academic

Track Learners have rated constructing sentences and identifying

its parts and detecting grammatical errors as Very Much Evident

(VME) with 5.00 weighted mean. In contrary, the Grade 11 TVL

track learners have rated writing sentences to convey meaning as

Very Much Evident (VME) with 4.40 weighted mean. Overall, the
 64

result shows that the two group of respondents have rated writing

sentences to convey meaning as Very Much Evident (VME) with 4.20

weighted mean.

It can be deduced from the data that writing sentences to

convey meaning has been considered by the respondents as the

parameter of their communicative competence along grammatical

aspect. Truly, writing sentences can be one of the forms of

conveying meaning. It is channeling one’s thoughts using symbols

and words. Further, it is not enough that there are group of

words because for it to be called as a sentence there must be

subject, predicate and it must express complete thought or idea.

This makes the difference between those who can only say that

they are competent to those who really manifest such important

competency in English.

Lasala, (2013) on his study Communicative Competence of

Secondary Senior Students: Language Instructional Pocket: This

study included both qualitative and quantitative research

approaches and utilized two general instruments. Making use of

focus group discussions and a structured oral interview with an

American native speaker.

Table 3
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Grammatical
 65

Grade 11 Grade 11 TVL Average

Indicators Academic Track
Track Learners
Learners
Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank
Mean er. Mean er. Mean er.
1. I have a vast knowledge
of extensive vocabulary and
can use it in speaking and
writing and unlocking
unfamiliar words while
listening, reading, and
viewing. 4.00 ME 6 2.62 E 10 3.31 E 11
2. I am fully aware of the
rules of grammar and the
Pronoun-Antecedent Rules and
use it in various macros of
English language. 3.67 ME 9.5 3.03 E 8 3.35 E 8
3. I can construct sentences
and identify its parts. 5.00 VME 1.5 3.37 E 6 4.18 ME 2
4. I can pronounce words
correctly. 3.17 E 12 3.54 ME 4 3.35 E 7
5. I can understand words
with multiple meanings and
used in varied settings and
texts. 3.83 ME 8 2.81 E 9 3.32 E 10
6. I can detect grammatical
errors. 5.00 VME 1.5 3.22 E 7 4.11 ME 4
7. I can correct the
grammatical errors that I
commit in speaking and
writing. 4.17 ME 3.4 4.17 ME 2 4.17 ME 3
8. I can use words
correctly.
4.00 ME 6 2.43 FE 12 3.21 E 12
9. I can choose the
appropriate words to be used
in speaking and writing. 3.50 ME 11 3.76 ME 3 3.63 ME 5
10. I can understand and
express meaning by using
well-written sentences. 4.17 ME 3.5 2.53 FE 11 3.35 E 9
11. I can maintain a
consistent grammatical
control of complex language. 3.67 ME 9.5 3.47 ME 5 3.57 ME 6
12. I can write sentences to
convey meaning. 4.00 ME 6 4.40 VME 1 4.20 VME 1

Average Weighted Mean 4.01 ME 3.28 E 3.65 ME

Legend:
4.20-5.00 Very Much Evident (VME) 1.80-2.59 Fairly Evident (FE)
3.40-4.19 Much Evident (ME) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)
2.60-3.39 Evident (E)
 66

3
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Indicators
Grade 11 Academic Track Learners
Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 5
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Grammatical
 67

Once the transcriptions of the interview were ready, the

researcher forwarded it to three expert raters.

Findings show that the level of communicative competence in

oral and writing skills of the students is both acceptable;

however, they differ in their numerical values. In terms of

grammatical competence in oral skill, the average rate is 3.10

while the respondents obtained an average rate of 2.91 in their

writing skill. In terms of discourse competence in oral skill,

the average rate is 3.10, while the respondents obtained an

average rate of 2.68 in their writing skill. In sociolinguistic

competence in their oral skill, the respondents obtained an

average rate of 3.29 and 3.01 in their speaking skill. For the

strategic competence, the respondents got an average rate of 3.12

in their oral skill and an average rate of 2.73 in their writing

skill. Based on the findings of the study, it can be disclosed

that the communicative competence of the students both in

speaking and writing skills is acceptable, having an average rate

of 3.15 and 2.84 respectively. Their communicative and

sociolinguistic competence could still be improved. Based on the

foregoing conclusion, it is recommended that the module created

by the researcher be used in their English classes since the

topics included in the module were relevant to the actual

findings. It is important for the different school administrators

 68

to ensure that the teachers can carry out the suggested topics

included in the module.

Therefore, the English teachers must design interactive

activities that will improve and enrich the learner’s ability to

write sentences.

It can also be clearly observed that the least rated

indicator is using words correctly. There are so many words and

there are words which bear more than one meaning. This makes it

very hard for the learners to choose the best words that will

appropriately express what they really want to convey. Further,

diction or the choice of words is pivotal in making clear

statements that will prevent confusions in the communication

process.

This entails a very big responsibility on part of the

teachers. They must think of ways for the learners to be

acquainted with the rich vocabulary that English language have in

possession.

With this, the English teachers must integrate vocabulary

development in every teaching-learning episode with the learners.

Sociolinguistic. Sociolinguistic competence is the ability

to communicate appropriately by using the right words,

expressions, and attitude towards a specific topic, setting, and

relationship
 69

Sociolinguistics takes language samples from sets of random

population subjects and looks at variables that include such

things as pronunciation, word choice, and colloquialisms. The is

data is then measured against socio-economic indices such as

education, income/wealth, occupation, ethnic heritage, age, and

family dynamics to better understand the relationship between

language and society.

Table 4, Figure 6 present the level of communicative competence

of Grade 11 learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School along

Sociolinguistic. There are 13 indicators and out of which one is

rated Very Much Evident (VME), nine are Much Evident (ME) and

three are Evident (E ), presented in descending order below: I

pay attention to the meaning of messages and think through the

most appropriate response, (4.68); I have extensive informal

language knowledge, (4.07); I can communicate appropriately by

using the right words, (3.82); I am aware of the expression of

appropriate attitude in a conversation, (3.72); I am aware of

other culture’s taboos, (3.72); I can adjust to social language

norms, (3.67); I have mastery of the cultural rules that are at

play in different languages, (3.58); I can use language

appropriately with respect to the conventions, cohesion,

relevance of content and completeness of content, (3.46);

I can decode colloquial language, (3.44);

 70

Table 4
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Sociolinguistic

Grade 11 Grade 11 TVL Average

Indicators Academic Track Track Learners
Learners
Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank
Mean er. Mean er. Mean er.
1. I can decode colloquial
language. 3.83 ME 9 3.05 E 9 3.44 ME 9
2. I have extensive informal
language knowledge. 4.33 VME 2.5 3.81 ME 2 4.07 ME 2
3. I can adapt and recognize
cultural barriers. 3.50 ME 11.5 3.24 E 8 3.37 E 12
4. I am aware of other
culture’s taboos. 4.00 ME 6.5 3.43 ME 5 3.72 ME 5
5. I can use properly
political terms. 4.17 ME 4.5 2.71 E 13 3.44 ME 10
6. I am aware of the
expression of appropriate
attitude in a conversation. 3.83 ME 9 3.61 ME 3 3.72 ME 4
7. I can adjust to social
language norms. 3.83 ME 9 3.50 ME 4 3.67 ME 6
8. I have mastery of the
cultural rules that are at
play in different languages. 4.17 ME 4.5 2.99 E 10 3.58 ME 7
9. I can use language
appropriately with respect to
the conventions, cohesion,
relevance of content and
completeness of content. 4.00 ME 6.5 2.93 E 12 3.46 ME 8
10. I can communicate
appropriately by using the
right words. 4.33 VME 2.5 3.31 E 6 3.82 ME 3
11. I can communicate with
peers, teachers, and other
members of the community with
right attitude towards a
specific topic, setting and
relationship. 3.50 ME 11.5 3.29 E 7 3.39 E 11
12. I pay attention to the
meaning of messages and think
through the most appropriate
response. 4.67 VME 1 4.69 VME 1 4.68 VME 1
13. I can adjust my language
to reflect my social distance
with the listeners and
audience. 3.17 E 13 2.99 E 11 3.08 E 13

Average Weighted Mean 3.95 ME 3.35 E 3.65 ME

Legend:
4.20-5.00 Very Much Evident (VME) 1.80-2.59 Fairly Evident (FE)
3.40-4.19 Much Evident (ME) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)
2.60-3.39 Evident (E)
 71

3
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Indicators

Grade 11 Academic Track Learners

Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 6
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Sociolinguistic
 72

I can use properly political terms, (3.44); I can communicate

with peers, teachers, and other members of the community with

right attitude towards a specific topic, setting and

relationship, (3.39); I can adapt and recognize cultural

barriers, (3.37); I can adjust my language to reflect my social

distance with the listeners and audience, (3.08).

The average weighted mean is 3.65, interpreted as Much

Evident (ME). The top three indicators are the following: I pay

attention to the meaning of messages and think through the most

appropriate response, (4.68); I have extensive informal language

knowledge, (4.07); I can communicate appropriately by using the

right words, (3.82).

It can be noted that the Grade 11 Academic Track learners

have rated paying attention to the meaning of messages and

thinking through the most appropriate response as Very Much

Evident with 4.67 weighted mean. Similarly, same indicator was

rated Very Much Evident by the Grade 11 TVL Track learners with

4.69 weighted mean. Overall, the respondents have rated paying

attention to the meaning of messages and thinking through the

most appropriate response as Very Much Evident with 4.68 weighted

mean.

It is worth mentioning that the respondents have given

premium on the pervasiveness of paying attention to the meaning

 73

of the messages and thereafter they think of the most appropriate

response to this. It is good that the learners are fully aware

that it is better to think first before delving into unknown

situations. This is a vivid manifestation of sociolinguistic

competence. Further, if the learners are making sense of the gist

of the message, they can be able to act appropriately.

Alvarez, (2017) determined how Communicative Language

Teaching (CLT) enhances the grammar competence of the senior

students. This made use of teaching grammar in six areas: verbal,

modifier, subject-verb agreement, pronoun, preposition, and

possessive noun, in a communicative way through varied

communicative strategies with grammar and language focus.

Learning performance was measured using the pretest and posttest

scores in CLT group (experimental) and the traditional language

teaching (control). The method used in the study was the quasi-

experimental design in a pretest and posttest group design with

fifty-two senior secondary participants CLT developmental

activities were based on a teacher made rubric and evaluated

through teacher-made questionnaires validated by experts with TOS

with teacher’s learning guide. Traditional teaching approach was

based on discussion and lecture method. When posttest results

were compared in the six areas, the experimental group’s result

using communicative language teaching (CLT) showed significant

difference in their performance as reflected in their posttest

 74

mean score in all areas while there were only four learning areas

in the control group using traditional approach. Subsequently,

when compared in groups, findings showed that there was no

significant difference between CLT (experimental) and Traditional

approach (control) in teaching English language. This implies

that either of the two approaches used could enhance grammar

skill.

Therefore, the curriculum writers must design a curriculum

that is responsive to 21st century situations that will target

the sociolinguistic component of communicative competence.

On the other hand, looking at the least rated indicator, the

respondents have rated adjusting language to reflect social

distance with the listeners and audiences as Evident (E) with

3.08 weighted mean.

Language is very powerful. It can make distances as within

the grasp instances. It can break barriers and it can also build

walls, and so with bridges. Its importance need not to be

overrated since it is already tangible. However, the respondents

find it hard to adjust their language for them to reflect their

social distance with the listeners and the audience.

With this, the English teachers must give simulation

activities that will improve the learner’s utilization of the

language.
 75

Discourse. Discourse competence is a plurilingual ability that

implies being able to handle sociocultural, pragmatic, and

textual pieces of knowledge (concepts and skills) effectively,

appropriately, and with a critical attitude when producing and

interpreting every particular discourse genre, in relation to the

genre colony to which it belongs. Therefore, it is a

multidimensional skill exhibiting three basic dimensions: the

sociocultural dimension, the most all-encompassing one, which

involves being able to recognize critically a discourse's aims

and interests as well as the social and cultural power it

confers, and being able to react to them; the pragmatic

dimension, which involves being able to relate a discourse to the

participants, their intentions, their place and time; and the

textual dimension, which involves knowing how a discourse is

structured and how its characteristic linguistic exponents

(grammar and vocabulary) are used to serve a particular social,

cultural, and pragmatic function.

Discursive competence has traditionally been considered a

sub competence within communicative competence, along with

linguistic, pragmatic, sociolinguistic, intercultural,

plurilingual or strategic competences.

 76

Table 5
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Discourse

Grade 11 Grade 11 TVL Average

Indicators Academic Track Track Learners
Learners
Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Ran Wt. Int Ran
Mea er. Mea er. k Mea er. k
n n n
1. I can construct
meaning from text through
non print features like
the illustrations, 4.1 3.0 3.6
graphs, maps, and tables. 7 ME 10 6 E 15 1 ME 11
2. I gradually construct
meaning from the words 3.3 3.3 3.3
themselves. 3 E 19 3 E 10 3 E 16
3. I can generate simple
texts that reflect my
knowledge about the level 3.8 3.0 3.4
of syntax. 3 ME 13.5 0 E 17 2 ME 15
4. I understand phrases
and sentences using 4.8 4.1 4.4
familiar vocabulary. 3 VME 2.5 0 ME 1 7 VME 1
5. I can communicate
limited information in
everyday and routine
situations by using
memorized phrases, groups 4.6 3.4 4.0
of words, and formulas. 7 VME 4.5 5 ME 9 6 ME 6
6. I use selected simple
structures correctly but
still systematically 4.3 3.1 3.7
commit basic errors. 3 VME 7.5 7 E 12 5 ME 8
7. I begin to use general
academic vocabulary and
familiar everyday 3.6 2.7 3.2
expressions. 7 ME 16.5 6 E 21 1 E 19
8. I can locate specific,
predictable information
from phrases and
sentences that I can 4.3 3.8 4.1
read. 3 VME 7.5 8 ME 2 1 ME 5
9. I approximate the 4.6 3.6 4.1
spelling of words. 7 VME 4.5 1 ME 5 4 ME 4
10. I can write to
express my own
personality and personal 4.8 3.6 4.2
thoughts. 3 VME 2.5 3 ME 4 3 VME 3
11. I can speak in simple
3.5 ME 18 2.8 E 19 3.1 E 20
 77

sentences that are

comprehensible and
appropriate but are
frequently marked by
grammatical errors. 0 4 7
12. I can understand and
use some specialized 3.8 3.0 3.4
academic vocabulary. 3 ME 13.5 4 E 16 4 ME 14
13. I still have trouble
comprehending and
producing complex
structures and academic 3.6 3.4 3.5
language. 7 ME 16.5 9 ME 8 8 ME 12
14. I possess language
skills that are generally
adequate for most day-to- 4.3 3.0 3.7
day communication needs. 3 VME 7.5 7 E 14 0 ME 9
15. I occasionally make
structural and lexical 3.8 2.8 3.3
errors. 3 ME 13.5 2 E 20 3 E 17
16. I have difficulty
understanding and using
some idioms, figures of
speech, and words with 4.3 3.2 3.7
multiple meanings. 3 VME 7.5 3 E 11 8 ME 7
17. I can read
independently but may
have occasional
comprehension problems,
especially when
processing grade level 4.0 3.0 3.5
information. 0 ME 11 9 E 13 4 ME 13
18. I can produce texts
independently for
personal and academic 5.0 3.6 4.3
purposes. 0 VME 1 6 ME 3 3 VME 2
19. I produce texts that
approximate the writing
structures, vocabulary
and over all 3.0 3.5 3.2
organization. 0 E 21 2 ME 6 6 E 18
20. I have a good command
of technical and academic
vocabulary as well as of
idiomatic expressions and 3.1 2.9 3.0
colloquialism. 7 E 20 6 E 18 6 E 21
21. I make minimal errors
that are difficult to
spot or are generally
corrected when they 3.8 3.5 3.6
occur. 3 ME 13.5 1 ME 7 7 ME 10

4.0 3.3 3.6

Average Weighted Mean 6 ME 0 E 8 ME
 78

Legend:
4.20-5.00 Very Much Evident (VME) 1.80-2.59 Fairly Evident (FE)
3.40-4.19 Much Evident (ME) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)
2.60-3.39 Evident (E)

3
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Indicators

Grade 11 Academic Track Learners

Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 7
 79

Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-

Industrial High School in Terms of Discourse

So discursive competence is defined as the knowledge and

skills required to produce and interpret texts considering their

structural scheme and the linguistic standards of the different

discourse genres that we use.

Table 5, Figure 7 depict the level of communicative

competence of Grade 11 learners in Libon Agro-Industrial High

School in terms of Discourse. There are 21 indicators and three

are rated Very Much Evident (VME), 12 are rated Much Evident

(ME), and six are rated Evident (E). These are presented in

descending order below: I understand phrases and sentences using

familiar vocabulary, (4.47); I can produce texts independently

for personal and academic purposes, (4.33); I can write to

express my own personality and personal thoughts, (4.23); I

approximate the spelling of words,(4.14); I can locate specific,

predictable information from phrases and sentences that I can

read, (4.11); I can communicate limited information in everyday

and routine situations by using memorized phrases, groups of

words, and formulas, (4.06); I have difficulty understanding and

using some idioms, figures of speech, and words with multiple

meanings, (3.78); I use selected simple structures correctly but

still systematically commit basic errors, (3.75); I possess

language skills that are generally adequate for most day-to-day

communication needs, (3.70); I make minimal errors that are

 80

difficult to spot or are generally corrected when they occur,

(3.67); I can construct meaning from text through non print

features like the illustrations, graphs, maps, and tables,

(3.61); I still have trouble comprehending and producing complex

structures and academic language, (3.58); I can read

independently but may have occasional comprehension problems,

especially when processing grade level information, (3.54); I can

understand and use some specialized academic vocabulary, (3.44);

I can generate simple texts that reflect my knowledge about the

level of syntax, (3.42); I gradually construct meaning from the

words themselves, (3.33); I occasionally make structural and

lexical errors, (3.33); I produce texts that approximate the

writing structures, vocabulary and over all organization, (3.26);

I begin to use general academic vocabulary and familiar everyday

expressions, (3.21); I can speak in simple sentences that are

comprehensible and appropriate but are frequently marked by

grammatical errors, (3.17); and, I have a good command of

technical and academic vocabulary as well as of idiomatic

expressions and colloquialism, (3.06).

The average weighted mean is 3.68 interpreted as Much

Evident (ME). The top three indicators are the following: I

understand phrases and sentences using familiar vocabulary,

(4.47); I can produce texts independently for personal and

 81

academic purposes, (4.33); I can write to express my own

personality and personal thoughts, (4.23).

It can be gleaned from the data that the Grade 11 Academic

Track learners have rated producing texts independently for

personal and academic purposes as Very Much Evident (VME) with

5.00 weighted mean. On the other hand, the Grade 11 TVL learners

have rated understanding phrases and sentences using familiar

vocabulary as Much Evident (ME) with 4. 10 weighted mean.

Overall, the two group of respondents have rated understanding

phrases and sentences using familiar vocabulary as Very Much

Evident (VME) with 4. 47 weighted mean.

The data implied that the learners are using their

vocabulary for them to fully understand phrases and sentences.

The words are very powerful tools in English to unlock the

meaning and to discover the message of the author. If the

learners don’t have enough pool of words to unfold the message,

then their understanding will be hampered. It is worth mentioning

that the learners’ vocabulary competence will save them from

misunderstanding the message of the author. Likewise, they can

only find the beauty of literary works if they have sufficiency

in the number of words that can be used in analysis and

interpretation.
 82

Therefore, Education Program Supervisor in English must

conduct a capacity building workshop for English teachers in

improving the pedagogical strategies of developing vocabulary

competence of the learners.

Meanwhile, having a good command of technical and academic

vocabulary as well as of idiomatic expressions and colloquialism

have been rated as Evident with 3.06 weighted mean. As the least

rated indicator, it implies that it is the most difficult thing

that they can do and achieve. If they do not have mastery of the

sight words and high frequency words, then they can’t really

proceed to higher forms of technical and academic vocabulary.

With this, the Learning Resource Management System

supervisor must devise a learning portal that is focused only on

the technical and academic words that can help the learners

achieve vocabulary competence.

Strategic. Strategic competence, an aspect of communicative

competence, refers to the ability to overcome difficulties when

communication breakdowns occur. Rather than viewing communication

breakdowns as a deficit, teachers should take them as an

opportunity for learners to develop their strategic competence.

There are a number of strategies to respond to communication

breakdowns. Perhaps the most straightforward strategy is to avoid

 83

discussing unfamiliar topics, but this is not always possible.

Strategies for identifying whether a breakdown has occurred

include paying attention to body language and frequently checking

listener comprehension.

Table 6, Figure 8 reflect the level of communicative

competence of Grade 11 Learners in Libon Agro-Industrial High

School along strategic. There are 13 indicators and out of this

number, one is rated Very Much Evident (VME), nine are rated Much

Evident (ME) and three are Evident (E), presented in descending

order: I respond to multiple listeners and audience, (4.30); I

can apply collaborative strategies like mutual assistance to my

peers, (3.88); I maintain train thoughts,(3.87); I can keep

communication channels, (3.80); I can cope with communication

problems, (3.76); I stay away from places with communication

breakdown, (3.76); I can rephrase and elaborate vague areas of my

discourse, (3.70); I can identify aspects in the speech that may

pose difficulties to the listener’s comprehension of my message,

(3.68); I can make contextualized decisions tailored to the

dynamics of the specific situations, (3.53); I can repair and

restore interrupted communication, (3.48); I can use sympathetic

comments to increase empathy, (3,28); I am aware of the various

communication breakdown, (3.27); and, I keep communication

channel open.
 84

Table 6
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Strategic

Grade 11 Grade 11 TVL Average

Indicators Academic Track Track Learners
Learners
Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank Wt. Int Rank
Mean er. Mean er. Mean er.
1. I can cope with
communication problems. 4.33 VME 4.5 3.19 E 8 3.76 ME 5
2. I can repair and restore
interrupted communication.
3.83 ME 9 3.13 E 9 3.48 ME 10
3. I can keep communication
channels. 3.83 ME 9 3.76 ME 3 3.80 ME 4
4. I am aware of the various
communication breakdown.
3.17 E 13 3.38 E 5 3.27 E 13
5. I maintain train
thoughts. 4.17 ME 6 3.57 ME 4 3.87 ME 3
6. I keep communication
channel open. 3.33 E 12 3.21 E 7 3.27 E 13
7. I respond to multiple
listeners and audience. 4.83 VME 1 3.77 ME 2 4.30 VME 1
8. I stay away from places
with communication
breakdown. 4.67 VME 2 2.85 E 12 3.76 ME 6
9. I can apply collaborative
strategies like mutual
assistance to my peers.
3.83 ME 9 3.93 ME 1 3.88 ME 2
10. I can rephrase and
elaborate vague areas of my
discourse. 4.50 VME 3 2.91 E 11 3.70 ME 7
11. I can use sympathetic
comments to increase
empathy. 3.50 ME 11 3.05 E 10 3.28 E 11
12. I can identify aspects
in the speech that may pose
difficulties to the
listener’s comprehension of
my message. 4.00 ME 7 3.35 E 6 3.68 ME 8
13. I can make
contextualized decisions
tailored to the dynamics of
the specific situations. 4.33 VME 4.5 2.72 E 13 3.53 ME 9

Average Weighted Mean 4.03 ME 3.29 E 3.66 ME

Legend:
4.20-5.00 Very Much Evident (VME) 1.80-2.59 Fairly Evident (FE)
3.40-4.19 Much Evident (ME) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)
2.60-3.39 Evident (E)
 85

3
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Indicators

Grade 11 Academic Track Learners

Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 8
Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-
Industrial High School in Terms of Strategic
 86

The average weighted mean is 3.66, interpreted as Much

Evident (ME). The top three indicators are the following: I

respond to multiple listeners and audience, (4.30); I can apply

collaborative strategies like mutual assistance to my peers,

(3.88); I maintain train thoughts, (3.87).

The Grade 11 Academic Track learners have rated responding

to multiple listeners and audiences as Very Much Evident (VME)

with 4.83 weighted mean. On the other hand, the Grade 11 TVL

Track learners have rated applying collaborative strategies like

mutual assistance to peers as Much Evident (ME) with 3.93

weighted mean. Overall, the Grade 11 Academic and TVL track

learners have rated responding to multiple listeners and

audiences as Very Much Evident (VME) with 4.30 weighted mean.

Communication is a two-way process. Every communication

involves at least one sender, a message, and a recipient. These

elements make communication a complex subject.

The sender encodes the message, usually in a mixture of

words and non-verbal cues. It is transmitted in some ways and the

recipient decodes it.

Therefore, learners who are competent in strategic aspect of

communicative competence can face not only one decoder but a lot

of listeners or audiences. This implies that he/she has the

 87

capacity to deliver a message to a mass without being

misunderstood.

With this, teachers must design Performance-based Assessment

that will further enhance the ability of the learners to convey

message to a large group of people.

On the other hand, using sympathetic comments to increase

empathy is the least rated indicator with 3.28 weighted mean,

interpreted as Evident (E).

Empathy to listeners and speakers is very important.

Effective communication means not only looking at the essence and

substance of the message but also trying to fit in the shoes of

the speakers. This has made communication process as not a simple

mental activity but an affective process of understanding people

from all walks of life.

Therefore, the English teachers in coordination with the

Guidance Counselors must work as one in making educational

pamphlets that will raise awareness on empathy in the

communication process.

Summary of the Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11

Learners in Libon Agro-Industrial High School

The summary of the level of Communicative Competence of

Grade 11 Learners in Libon Agro-Industrial High School is

 88

reflected in Table 7 and Figure 9. There are four (4) indicators,

and these are all rated Much Evident, presented in descending

order as follows: Discourse, (3.68); Strategic, (3.66);

Sociolinguistic, (3.65) and Grammatical, (3.65).

The overall weighted mean is 3.66, interpreted as Much

Evident (ME). The top three indicators are the following:

Discourse, (3.68); Strategic, (3.66); Sociolinguistic, (3.65) and

Grammatical, (3.65).

The Grade 11 Academic Track learners have rated Discourse as

Much Evident (ME) with 4.06 weighted mean. On the other hand, the

Grade 11 TVL learners have rated Sociolinguistic as Evident with

3.35 weighted mean. Overall, the respondents have rated Discourse

as Much Evident with 3.68 weighted mean.

The data implied that discourse is the most rated component

of the communicative competence that must be developed among the

learners.

Discourse competence is a plurilingual ability that implies

being able to handle sociocultural, pragmatic, and textual pieces

of knowledge (concepts and skills) effectively, appropriately,

and with a critical attitude when producing and interpreting

every particular discourse genre, in relation to the genre colony

to which it belongs. Therefore, it is a multidimensional skill

exhibiting three basic dimensions: the sociocultural dimension,

the most all-encompassing one, which involves being able to

 89

recognize critically a discourse's aims and interests as well as

the social and cultural power it confers, and being able to react

to them; the pragmatic dimension, which involves being able to

relate a discourse to the participants, their intentions, their

place and time; and the textual dimension, which involves knowing

how a discourse is structured and how its characteristic

linguistic exponents (grammar and vocabulary) are used to serve a

particular social, cultural, and pragmatic function.

Discursive competence has traditionally been considered a

sub competence within communicative competence, along with

linguistic, pragmatic, sociolinguistic, intercultural,

plurilingual or strategic competences. So discursive competence

is defined as the knowledge and skills required to produce and

interpret texts considering their structural scheme and the

linguistic standards of the different discourse genres that we

use.

Table 7
 90

Summary of the Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners

of Libon Agro-Industrial High School

Grade 11
Grade 11 TVL
Academic Track Average
Track Learners
Learners
Indicators

Wt. Int Wt. Int Wt. Int

Rank Rank Rank
Mean er. Mean er. Mean er.

1. Grammatical

4.01 ME 3 3.28 E 4 3.65 ME 3.5

2. Sociolinguistic

3.95 ME 4 3.35 E 1 3.65 ME 3.5

3. Discourse

4.06 ME 1 3.30 E 2 3.68 ME 1

4. Strategic
4.03 ME 2 3.29 E 3 3.66 ME 2

4.01 3.30
ME E 3.66 ME
25 5
Average Weighted Mean

Legend:
4.20-5.00 Very Much Evident (VME) 1.80-2.59 Fairly Evident (FE)
3.40-4.19 Much Evident (ME) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)

2.60-3.39 Evident (E)

5
 4
91

2
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4

Indicators

Grade 11 Academic Track Learners Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 9
Summary of the Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners
of Libon Agro-Industrial High School

Test of Significant Difference on the Rank Orders of the Level

 92

of Communicative Competence of Grade 11 Learners in Libon

Agri-Industrial High School
The significance of the difference on the rank orders of the

level of communicative competence of Grade 11 Learners in Libon

Agro-Industrial High School was derived from the two (2) groups

of respondent- Grade 11 Academic and TVL learners, along the four

(4) indicators namely: Grammatical, Sociolinguistic, Discourse,

and Strategic is presented in Table 8.

The result yielded in terms of computed z and probability

associated with z for the four indicators are the following:

Grammatical, -2.040 and 0.041 (p<0.05); Sociolinguistic, -3.110

and 0.002 (p<0.05); Discourse, -3.771 and 0.162 (p<0.05), and

Strategic, -2.760 and 0.006 (p<0.05). With this, the null

hypothesis along Grammatical, Sociolinguistic, Discourse and

Strategic are rejected.

With this, the null hypothesis along Grammatical,

Sociolinguistic, Discourse and Strategic are rejected. Meaning to

say, there is significant difference on the responses of the

Grade 11 TVL and Academic learners along the forementioned

aspects. This can be accounted to the preference of the learners.

Further, it can be deduced that the level of communicative

competence of Grade 11 Academic Track learners is different to

the level of communicative competence of Grade 11 TVL Track

learners.
 93

TABLE 8
Test of Significance of the Level of Communicative Competence of
Grade 11 Learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School

Level of Communicative Competence of Grade 11

Learners of Libon Agro-Industrial High School in
Terms
Indicators
Grammatica Sociolingu
Discourse Strategic
l istic

Sum Of the
Negative Ranks 65 90 224 85

Sum Of the
Positive Ranks 13 1 7 6

Number Of Pairs 2 2 2 2

Computed Z -2.040 -3.110 -3.771 -2.760

Probability
Associated With
Z 0.041 0.002 0.000162 0.006

Decision On Ho Rejected Rejected Rejected Rejected

Significance of
difference 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05
 94

Table 9, Figure 10 present the activities provided by the

teachers to improve the communicative competence of the learners.

There are 13 indicators and out of which one is rated Very Much

Necessary (VMN) and 12 are rated Much Necessary (MN), presented

in descending order: Spelling activities were also provided to

develop our ability to spell words without the aid of the

dictionary, (4.24); My teacher provides us with small group

discussion activities with the purpose clearly stated and shared

with us, (4.02); The use of social media platforms in giving

speaking activities was also utilized by our teacher, (4.00); My

teacher allows us to practice the target language in a safe

environment through role playing technique, (3.96); Various

communicative activities were given by my teacher that provide me

with real-life communicative situations where real information is

exchanged, and authentic language is used, (3.88); Jigsaws were

also provided that require us to pool our information to complete

a task, (3.84); Information gap activities were given to achieve

the goal of people communication by communicating meaningfully to

obtain information, (3.81); Drills and quizzes focusing on

grammar allow us to enhance our knowledge about subject-verb and

pronoun antecedent agreement rules, (3.77); Information transfer

activities allow us to take information from one form and

represent it in different form, (3.70); Games are provided which

help in sustaining our interests and can provide intense,

 95

meaningful, and joyful practice of language, (3.68); Ample

writing activities were provided to develop our grammatical and

discourse competencies, (3.67); Simulations in various events and

contexts were also given by my teachers to practice our socio-

linguistic knowledge on use of language in various settings,

(3.62); Task completion activities like puzzle and map reading

are provided for us to use the language resources that we have,

(3.57).

The average weighted mean is 3.83 interpreted as Much

Necessary (MN). The top three indicators are the following:

Spelling activities were also provided to develop our ability to

spell words without the aid of the dictionary, (4.24); My teacher

provides us with small group discussion activities with the

purpose clearly stated and shared with us, (4.02); The use of

social media platforms in giving speaking activities was also

utilized by our teacher, (4.00).

It can be deduced from the data that the Grade 11 Academic

Track learners have rated jigsaws were provided that require us

to pool our information to complete a task and information gap

activities were given to achieve the goal of people communication

by communicating meaningfully to obtain information as Very Much

Necessary (VMN) with 4.83 weighted mean. On the other hand, the

Grade 11 TVL Track learners have rated spelling activities were

given to develop our ability to spell words without the aid of

 96

dictionary as Much Necessary with 3.99 weighted mean. Overall,

the respondents have rated spelling activities were given to

develop our ability to spell words without the aid of dictionary

as Very Much Necessary (VMN) with 4.24 weighted mean.

The learners today are very dependent on what the dictionary

has to offer them. They don’t want to define words based on what

the context and based on the structure of the word itself. With

this, every time they have reading exercises, they tend to be

more dependent on the dictionary and this is a problem because

not anytime they have to do this especially during examinations.

Chen, (2021), Fostering Students’ Workplace Communicative

Competence and Collaborative Mindset through an Inquiry-Based:

This study illustrates the efficiency of implementing an inquiry-

based teaching and learning module on the development of

workplace communication competence and collaborative mindset in a

college-level English as a Foreign Language context. In

particular, the study highlights the 5E constructivist approach

as the pedagogical foundation and addresses the effects of

project-based learning scenario on students’ engagement and their

views in terms of “workplace habits of mind”. The 5E model

includes five stages: engagement, exploration, explanation,

elaboration, and evaluation. In addition, teaching strategies

like academia-industry cooperative teaching, industry field trip,

reflective writing, and project-based presentation were

 97

incorporated into each instructional phase to emphasize the

development of students’ social, collaborative, and problem-

solving skills. Both quantitative and qualitative data were

collected including students’ perceived effectiveness of

engagement activities, weekly reflective journal writing and

focus group interviews. The results of the study indicate that

the inquiry-based teaching and learning approach had a favorable

effect on the development of students’ engagement and hands-on,

mind-on skills such as critical thinking, collaboration, and

communication.

Therefore, the teachers must think of activities that will

prevent the learners from depending much on what the dictionary

has to offer.

On the other hand, task completion activities like puzzle

and map reading are provided to use the language resources is the

least rated indicator. This implies that teachers are not

resorting much to this activity because of the availability of

materials that can be used by the learners.

With this, the School Head must procure materials that can

be used in puzzle and map reading activities.

Test of Significant Difference on the Activities Provided by the

Teachers to Improve the Communicative Competence of Grade 11
Learners TABLE 10
Test of Significance of the Activities Provided by the
Teachers to Improve the Communicative Competence
 98

of the Learners

Indicators Test of Significance

Sum Of the Negative Ranks 91

Sum Of the Positive Ranks 0

Number Of Pairs 2

Computed Z -3.180

Probability Associated With Z 0.001

Decision On Ho Rejected

Significance of difference 0.05

The significance of the difference on the rank orders of the

activities provided by the teachers to improve the communicative

competence of Grade 11 learners was derived from the two (2)

groups of respondent- Grade 11 Academic and TVL learners is

presented in Table 9.
 99

The result yielded in terms of computed z and probability

associated with z is -3.180 and 0.01 (p<0.05).

With this, the null hypothesis along the activities provided

by the teachers to improve the communicative competence of the

Grade 11 learners was rejected.

It can be deduced that there are different activities given

by the teachers to the Grade 11 Academic Track and TVL leaners.

This is to ensure that their needs are to be addressed.

Table 9
Activities Provided by the Teachers to Improve the Communicative
Competence of the Learners

Grade 11 Grade 11 TVL Average

Indicators Academic Track Track Learners
Learners
Wt. Int Ran Wt. Int Ran Wt. Int Ran
Mea er. k Mea er. k Mea er. k
n n n
 100

1. My teacher allows us
to practice the target
language in a safe
environment through 4.6 3.2 3.9
role playing technique. 7 VMN 3.5 5 N 9 6 MN 4
2. My teacher provides
us with small group
discussion activities
with the purpose
clearly stated and 4.5 3.5 4.0
shared with us. 0 VMN 6.5 3 MN 3 2 MN 2
3. Games are provided
which help in
sustaining our
interests and can
provide intense,
meaningful, and joyful 4.0 3.3 3.6
practice of language. 0 MN 11 7 N 5 8 MN 10
4. Various
communicative
activities were given
by my teacher that
provide me with real-
life communicative
situations where real
information is
exchanged, and
authentic language is 4.1 3.6 3.8
used. 7 MN 9 0 MN 2 8 MN 5
5. Information gap
activities were given
to achieve the goal of
people communication by
communicating
meaningfully to obtain 4.8 2.7 3.8
information. 3 VMN 1.5 9 N 12 1 MN 7
6. Task completion
activities like puzzle
and map reading are
provided for us to use
the language resources 3.8 3.3 3.5
that we have. 3 MN 13 1 N 8 7 MN 13
7. Information transfer
activities allow us to
take information from
one form and represent 4.0 3.3 3.7
it in different form. 0 MN 11 9 N 4 0 MN 9
8. Spelling activities
were also provided to
develop our ability to
spell words without the 4.5 3.9 4.2
aid of the dictionary. 0 VMN 6.5 9 MN 1 4 VMN 1
9. Ample writing 4.0 3.3 3.6
activities were 0 MN 11 3 N 6.5 7 MN 11
 101

provided to develop our

grammatical and
discourse competencies.
10. Simulations in
various events and
contexts were also
given by my teachers to
practice our socio-
linguistic knowledge on
use of language in 4.5 2.7 3.6
various settings. 0 VMN 6.5 3 N 13 2 MN 12
11. Drills and quizzes
focusing on grammar
allow us to enhance our
knowledge about
subject-verb and
pronoun antecedent 4.5 3.0 3.7
agreement rules. 0 VMN 6.5 3 N 10 7 MN 8
12. The use of social
media platforms in
giving speaking
activities was also
utilized by our 4.6 3.3 4.0
teacher. 7 VMN 3.5 3 N 6.5 0 MN 3
13. Jigsaws were also
provided that require
us to pool our
information to complete 4.8 2.8 3.8
a task. 3 VMN 1.5 5 N 11 4 MN 6

4.3 3.2 3.8

Average Weighted Mean 8 VME 7 E 3 MN
Legend:
Fairly Necessary
4.20-5.00 Very Much Necessary (VMN) 1.80-2.59
(FN)
3.40-4.19 Much Necessary (MN) 1.00-1.79 Not at All (NA)
2.60-3.39 Necessary (N)
 102

3
Weighted Mean

1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Indicators

Grade 11 Academic Track Learners

Grade 11 TVL Track Learners

Figure 10
Activities Provided by the Teachers to Improve the Communicative
Competence of the Learners
 103

Policy Recommendations

1. The English teachers must design interactive activities

that will improve and enrich the learner’s ability to write

sentences.

2. The English teachers must integrate vocabulary development

in every teaching-learning episode with the learners.

3. The curriculum writers must design a curriculum that is

responsive to 21st century situations that will target the

sociolinguistic component of communicative competence.

4. The English teachers must give simulation activities that

will improve the learner’s utilization of the language.

1. The Education Program Supervisor in English must conduct a

capacity building workshop for English teachers in

improving

the pedagogical strategies of developing vocabulary

competence of the learners.

2. The Learning Resource Management System supervisor must

devise a learning portal that is focused only on the

technical and academic words that can help the learners

achieve vocabulary competence.

3. The teachers must design Performance-based Assessment that

will further enhance the ability of the learners to convey

message to a large group of people.

 104

4. The English teachers in coordination with the Guidance

Counselors must work as one in making educational pamphlets

that will raise awareness on empathy in the communication

process.

5. The teachers must think of activities that will prevent the

learners from depending much on what the dictionary has to

offer.

6. The School Head must procure materials that can be used in

puzzle and map reading activities.