Digital linguodidactics in the formation of a communicative competence: strategies for dealing with the linguistic variability of the Spanish language

the article examines the challenges of developing communicative competence in Spanish language learning in Russia, particularly in the context of interaction with speakers of Latin American Spanish variants. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing interest in Spanish language learning in Russia and the identified contradiction: students who have successfully passed the B1 level experience difficulties in communication with Latin Americans. The research aims to develop an effective teaching methodology that takes into account the variability of the Spanish language. The study employs Larsen-Freeman’s dynamic model of language competence in combination with Wierzbicka’s theory of cultural scripts. The experiment was conducted on a sample of 240 students (aged 18-25) using digital resources: the My Spanish Dictionary platform, VR simulators, and regional text corpora. The experimental group, which received training taking into account language variability, showed a significant improvement in communicative competence: speech accuracy increased by 52%, language variant recognition reached 78.5%, and pragmatic adequacy reached 82.4%. The results confirm the effectiveness of integrating digital resources and explicit teaching of language variability. A significant reduction in native language interference (58-62%) and an increase in students’ readiness for intercultural communication were revealed.

digital linguodidactics, communicative competence, Spanish language, language variability, VR technologies, pragmatics, intercultural communication