Table of Contents

1. A brief introduction.

2. Who is Stephen Krashen?

3. Acquiring or Learning?

4. Input Hypothesis.

5. My personal experience.

6. Final thoughts.

1. A brief introduction.

Hi everyone!

In this post, I intend to discuss the Comprehensible Input theory by Stephen Krashen. My thoughts are based on his book, "Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition", and also on the little experience I've gained learning languages. His book and lots of other materials are available on his website, check it out.

2. Who is Stephen Krashen?

Stephen Krashen was born in 1941; he's a linguist and educational researcher. He got his Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of California in 1972. Additionally, he has published a great number of papers discussing second-language acquisition, education, and reading. He has various hypotheses about language learning, and I'd like to highlight two, the acquisition-learning hypothesis, and the input hypothesis. Currently, Krashen is 82 years old, but he keeps working in the field of linguistics, and more recently, he's been promoting the use of free voluntary reading.

As we can see, Krashen has had an extensive career in the field of research. Although, I just became aware of his work one year ago when I first attempted to learn Spanish. It was my first contact with the Comprehensible Input theory, but what is it? And how can It help you to learn a language?

3. Acquiring or Learning?

In chapter II of his book titled: Second Language Acquisition, Krashen proposes five hypotheses, but as I said earlier, my focus is only on two of them. So, first, let's take a look at the distinction that the writer makes between learning and acquisition, what he calls Acquisition-Learning Distinction. Krashen writes:

The first way is language acquisition, a process similar, if not identical, to the way children develop ability in their first language. Language acquisition is a subconscious process; language acquirers are not usually aware of the fact that they are acquiring language but are only aware of the fact that they are using the language for communication.

According to his argument, we can say that we acquire our native language. Portuguese, in my case, was acquired. Because language learning took place outside the classroom. Since we didn't study the language, but for a subconscious process we were able to speak and express ourselves. In addition, we can take a child that can't speak yet as an example. No one is teaching them the language yet, but somehow, and after some time, the child starts speaking and communicating with their parents and family, that's acquisition.

In contrast, it looks like adults don't acquire the language so effortlessly. We have to study grammar, the structure, the rules. This means a much more conscious learning process. So, can only children acquire a language? For this question, Krashen answers the following:

Some second language theorists have assumed that children acquire, while adults can only learn. The acquisition-learning hypothesis claims, however, that adults also acquire, that the ability to "pick-up" languages does not disappear at puberty. This does not mean that adults will always be able to achieve native-like levels in a second language. It does mean that adults can access the same natural "language acquisition device" that children use.

Alright, now we have our answer. Adults can acquire a language too. However, what's the "language acquisition device" that the author refers to? To understand this explanation, we must as well understand the input hypothesis.

4. Input Hypothesis

Now that we know the distinction between acquiring and learning, let's explore the input hypothesis. When Krashen starts explaining how we acquire a language, he says:

We acquire, in other words, only when we understand language that contains a structure that is "a little beyond" where we are now. How is this possible? How can we understand language that contains structures that we have not yet acquired? The answer to this apparent paradox is that we use more than our linguistic competence to help us understand. We also use context, our knowledge of the world, our extra-linguistic information to help us understand language directed at us.

Lots of things to unpack here, but the most important part is "a little beyond" our current level. This implies that the material we should be consuming in our target language ought to be a level above our current one. Not too hard, where we understand nothing. But also not too easy, where nothing new is presented. Krashen continues, and explains the output part, and he writes:

The final part of the input hypothesis states that speaking fluency cannot be taught directly. Rather, it "emerges" over time, on its own. Production ability emerges. It is not taught directly.

So, the researcher says that "fluency emerges". I think this idea connects perfectly with the idea of acquiring a language, and at some point, Krashen says that "the input hypothesis relates to acquisition, not learning". In summary, his theory is that we can acquire a language using input that's comprehensible for our level, but also challenging. Furthermore, the ability to produce will emerge naturally as a consequence of our exposure to the language. This way we're acquiring a language, not only learning it.

5. My personal experience.

I commented on the previous post that I've been studying English on my own after three years of traditional studying at an English school. When I quit and started to learn on my own, I could understand a percentage of the videos I watched on YouTube, but there was a part that I couldn't. Still, I kept watching and after a few months, it became easier. I could even turn off the subtitles and explore new types of content. So, what I'm trying to say is that I used the comprehensible input hypothesis and it worked very well. I mean, I didn't know it was called that, I just discovered this theory one year ago looking for content to learn Spanish.

Although, I have some points to make. First, I don't think that just listening or watching content or your target language will make you fluent; it's more complex than that. Second, I believe that input comes after you have some basic knowledge and understanding of the language. Finally, go easy on yourself. Learning a language is a hard task, and it's a long-term goal. Even Krashen says:

Real language acquisition develops slowly, and speaking skills emerge significantly later than listening skills, even when conditions are perfect. The best methods are therefore those that supply "comprehensible input" in low anxiety situations, containing messages that students really want to hear. These methods do not force early production in the second language, but allow students to produce when they are "ready", recognizing that improvement comes from supplying communicative and comprehensible input, and not from forcing and correcting production.

That being said, I'd like to point out three aspects that Krashen highlights in language learning, 1. Motivation, keep in mind your reasons to learn a language. 2. Self-confidence, believe in your capacity. Maybe it looks like you're not improving, but if you've been consistent, the results will come. And 3. Low Anxiety, this is especially important if you're in a classroom, don't be anxious because everyone around speaks better than you. We all have different styles and learning paces, so, take it easy and enjoy the process.

6. Final thoughts.

Wow, you read it all, thank you! I hope you liked it, and that my writing was intelligible enough for you. I tried to summarize Krashen's many ideas, but there's a lot more to discuss. So, this post was just a brief introduction. By the way, it's my first time writing something like that, and for this reason, I apologize if I made a mistake or couldn't present the ideas properly. All comments and corrections are welcome, and I thank you in advance. ¡Muchas gracias! Obrigado!