Natural Approach

Kia ora koutou,

The direct approach discussed last week leads on to the Natural Approach which was developed by Stephen Krashen and others in the 1970s. The nature of the approach was still communicative, ie the learning was based on the premise that language is the communication of messages which can be understood, but includes some underlying hypotheses about language learning derived from more recent thinking.

The first of these hypotheses is that language acquisition is different from the learning of language. Krashen holds that the acquisition of language is unconscious and is developed through using language meaningfully. This is believed to be the only way to gain competence in a language. (The Acquisition hypothesis) This concept follows work by Stephen Pinker, and also Noam Chomsky who have made a case for language being genetically programmed in humans.

The deliberate learning of language is what Krashen refers to as the monitor, which is seen as the way in which language is checked or fixed. We can see this in operation when we realise that what we have just said could have been said better, usually too late but helping us to improve next time. (The Monitor hypothesis)

Language structures are believed to be acquired in a natural order and any efforts to change this order will be unsuccessful. (The Natural Order hypothesis) Best learning takes place when the language being heard or read is slightly harder than the learner’s present ability, sometimes expressed as Input plus 1. (The Input hypothesis)

The learner’s ability to learn is affected by their emotional situation. So too much pressure, social influences, overly formal learning environments etc make it more difficult to learn the language . (The Affective Filter hypothesis)

The concept of comprehensible input is critical to the approach, so learners are exposed to language which they can make meaning of with the help of teaching aids, pictures, body language etc. This is one of the many elements of the Natural Approach seen in our classrooms, especially those where the target language is used as the language of instruction.

Areas of debate include whether directing student’s learning can aid the acquisition of language, and whether or not the order of grammatical structures can be predicted and perhaps planned.

All in all the Natural Approach has had wide influence in NZ language learning with its emphasis on the importance of using the language for meaningful communication.

Noho ora mai ra,

Chris