Today I wanted to write a few words about the Stephen Krashen language acquisition hypothesis. According to him the only effective way to acquire the language is through getting massive comprehensible input. I was skeptical when I heard about it for the first time. In fact, I didn't know much about language learning back then and I was trying to find a remedy to learn English fast. I know it was silly and there aren't shortcuts when it comes to language learning, but little did I know about it at that time. I've heard a lot about the way children acquire their native tongue and it seemed so much connected with Krashen's theory, so it inclined me to drill down into it.
The method itself is quite simple. In order to acquire any language, you need to consume a huge amount of comprehensible input in the target lingo. The keyword here is comprehensible. You have to understand most of the content to be able to fill the gaps based on the context you already know. The unknown part is the place for improvement, these are all the things you can learn. So, to tap into the method you need to search for the right resources. But don't spend too much time looking for the perfect materials. As long as you understand it and it's a little bit challenging for you it's the right one and you should get down to it as soon as possible. It's not the quality of the content that makes the difference, it's the amount of time spent on it. Taking that into account it should be obvious that you can't start learning a new language using that method since it's impossible to understand the input without at least basic vocabulary and fundamental grammatical rules.
I've been practicing this method for a couple of months now and I'm amazed by it. It works quite well, but you need to trust it in the first place because results come with time. Additionally, as an improvement, I've been using spaced repetition system to retain new vocabulary from the contents I consume. It really helps. The thing that's the best about Krashen's method is the feeling of satisfaction whenever I come across the word I've learned recently in the resource I'm working with. It builds my trust and keeps me motivated to carry on with the process.
I wonder what is your take on Krashen's method? Have you ever tried it? Let me know in the comments.
I completely agree with you about almost everything. And I think that the key factor here (as in many other areas when you learn new stuff) is patience. Because it can be not a gradual thing and it can seem to yield no results for a relatively long time, but at some point it just comes to you as a click, as a sudden realisation that you've levelled up. Have you ever got the moments where you suddenly realise that you've made a big progress? If so, then that is what it might feel like. Often people underestimate the importance of tiny improvements and overestimate big leaps in progress, which are, in fact, the result of little steps that you take on the way to your goal. I'd say that you can start learning languages with this method, but it's would be a much slower process than if you don't learn and translate words and phrases in the very beginning, when you're, like A1-A2.
That rings true for me. I was trying to reach C1 level for a couple of months and it seemed like I couldn't make that transition, but one day out of the blue I was able to communicate better and I finally reach my goal. I've experienced the same with writing. I couldn't see the progress for a month and now it's so much easier to write an article.