In today’s educational landscape, the terms learning skills, strategies, methods, and techniques are often used interchangeably. While they may sound similar, they represent very different concepts. Confusing them can lead to ineffective teaching, misguided interventions, and unmet learner needs—especially for struggling students.
This article clarifies the distinction between skills and strategies, explores their origins, and explains why getting this right is essential in both education and cognitive training.
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What are learning skills?
Learning skills are the foundational abilities that make learning possible. They are cognitive and perceptual functions that support tasks like reading, writing, studying, math, and problem-solving. These skills are not content-specific; they apply across subjects and situations.
Examples of learning skills include:
- Visual memory – remembering what one has seen
- Auditory processing – distinguishing and interpreting sounds
- Working memory – holding and manipulating information in the mind
- Sequencing – understanding and remembering order
- Processing speed – the rate at which the brain processes information
- Attention control – sustaining or shifting focus as needed
These are not tricks or techniques; they are abilities. And like any ability, they develop through practice, training, and experience. Without these core learning skills, strategies have little to work with.
What are learning strategies?
Learning strategies are the conscious actions or methods a learner uses to make learning more efficient. While skills are about capacity, strategies are about approach. Strategies help learners apply their existing skills more effectively.
Examples of learning strategies include:
- Using mnemonics to aid memory
- Highlighting important text when reading
- Summarizing information in one’s own words
- Organizing material with a mind map or outline
- Setting goals and using checklists to stay on track
These strategies can enhance performance—but only if the learner has the underlying skills to implement them. Telling a student with weak visual memory to “visualize the story” is like giving sheet music to someone who hasn’t yet learned to read notes.
Etymology: A clue from the origins
The historical roots of skill and strategy help clarify the distinction.
- Skill comes from the Old Norse skil, meaning “knowledge.” In English, it evolved to mean the ability—developed through learning and practice—to perform something well.
- Strategy comes from the Greek stratos (army) and agein (to lead), and originally referred to how a general led trained soldiers in battle. Crucially, the soldiers already had fighting skills; the general simply decided how to use them.
In learning, this parallel holds. Strategies guide the use of skills—but cannot replace them.
Why the distinction matters
When educators, parents, or tutors confuse skills with strategies, it often leads to frustration.
A struggling reader may be urged to “reread the passage” or “make predictions,” but if the child has weak decoding skills, these strategies won’t help. A student with poor auditory memory won’t benefit from repetition alone. And, a learner with attention issues may not succeed with planning tools unless their attention span is first supported and strengthened.
Before we layer on strategies, we must ask:
Does the learner have the underlying skills to use this strategy successfully?
If the answer is no, the solution lies not in more strategy—but in skill development.
Conclusion: Build skills before applying strategies
Learning strategies are powerful, but they don’t work in isolation. They are effective only when applied to a foundation of strong learning skills. Just as soldiers need training before following a general’s plan, students need cognitive readiness before strategies can succeed.
So the next time you hear someone talk about “learning skills,” pause and ask:
Are they really referring to skills—or are they talking about strategies?
It’s not just semantics. It’s the difference between treating the symptom… and building the ability.
