14 The Natural Approach

Natural Approach there is an emphasis on exposure, or input,

rather than practice; optimizing emotional preparedness for
learning; a prolonged period of attention to what the
language learners hear before they try to produce language;
and a willingness to use written and other materials as a
source of input.

At the time the Natural Approach attracted a wide interest

because of

1. The accessibility of the principles on which it was based,

2. the case with which it confirmed many teachers’ common

sense understandings of second language learning,

3.the fact it appeared to be supported by state-of-the-art

theory and research,

4.and the fact that Krashen himself is a charismatic presenter

and persuasive advocate of his own views - as is evident from
the numerous examples of his presentations available on the
Internet.

Language is viewed as a vehicle for communicating meanings

and messages. Krashen and Terrell stated that “acquisition
can take place only when people understand messages in the
These five hypotheses have obvious implications tor language
teaching. In sum, these are as follows:

1. As much comprehensible input as possible must be

presented.
2. Whatever helps comprehension is important. Visual aids
are useful, as is exposure to a wide range of vocabulary rather
than study of syntactic structure.

3. the focus in the classroom should be on listening and

reading; speaking should be allowed to “emerge.”

4. In order to lower the affcctivc filter, student work should

center on meaningful communication rather than on form;
input should be interesting and so contribute to a relaxed

classroom atmosphere target language”.

Natural Approach and Natural Method

Natural (direct) Method

1.Emphasized the principles of naturalistic language leaning in

young children.

2.Similarly ,the Natural Approach is believed to conform to

the naturalistic principles found in successful L2 acquisition .

3.It is an example of a cognitive approach to language learning

In the Natural Approach there is an emphasis on:

1.Exposure, or input rather than practice.

2.Optimizing emotional preparedness for learning.

3.The prolonged period of attention to what the language

learners hear before they try to produce language.

4.Awillingness to use written and other materials as a source

of comprehensible input.
Theory of learning

To understand theoretical assumptions underlying NA ,it is

necessary to go back to the emergence of cognitive
approaches to language and language learning.

Chomsky claims that learning a language was innate property

of the human mind.

All that was needed was exposure to language and the need
to communication ,and the brain would take care of the rest

Applied linguists claim that L2development could not be

explained by behaviorist learning theory. It was not
dependent upon imitation and repetition of utterances the
learner was exposed to ,but was dependent upon universal
principles of learning.

The theory and research are grounded in Krashen s language

acquisition theory

The Acquisition / Learning Hypothesis

Acquisition: The natural unconscious process to language

proficiency through meaningful communication.

Learning : Conscious process in which language rules are

developed through formal teaching and correction of errors.
Therefore, learning can't lead to acquisition

The Monitor Hypothesis

Conscious learning can function only as a monitor or editor

that check and repairs the output of the acquired system.

Limits to success:
1.Time. There must be sufficient time for a learner to choose
and apply a learned rule.

2.Focus on form . The language user must be focused on

correctness or on the form of the output.

3.Knowledge of rules. The performer must know rules . The

monitor does best with rules that are simple in two ways.
They must be simple to describe and they must not require
complex movements and rearrangements.

The Natural Order Hypothesis

The acquisition of grammatical structure proceed in a

predictable order.

Research has shown a certain order in L1 acquisition of English

and a similar natural order is found in L2 acquisition.

Errors are signs of naturalistic development processes.

The Input Hypothesis

It claims to explain the relationship between what the learner

is exposed of a language (input) and language acquisition.

It involves four main issues:

1.It relates to acquisition and not to learning.

2.People acquire language best by understanding input that is

slightly beyond their current level of competence by
understanding language containing (i+1)

3.The ability to speak fluently can't be taught directly , it

emerges independently in time , after the acquirer has built
up linguistic competence by understanding input.
4.If there is a sufficient quantity of comprehensible input,(i+1)
will usually be provided automatically .Comprehensible input
refers to utterances that learner understands based on the
context in which they are used.

The Affective Filter Hypothesis

Krashen sees the learner’s emotional state or attitudes as an

adjustable filter that freely passes, impedes or blocks input
necessary to acquisition.

There are three kinds of affective or attitudinal variables

related to L2 acquisition:

1.Motivation.

2.Self- confidence .

3.Anxiety.

The Affective Filter Hypothesis states that acquirers with a

low affective filter seek and receive more input , interact with
confidence ,and are more receptive to the input they receive.

It is believed that the affective filter (e.g fear or

embarrassment) rises in early adolescence , and this may
account for the apparent ease with which children acquire
new languages compared to older acquirers of L2.

Objectives

1.The Natural Approach “ is for beginners and is designed to

help them become intermediates.”

2.since the Natural Approach is offered as a general set of

principles applicable to a wide variety of situations, as in
Communicative Language Teaching, specific objectives depend
on learner needs and the skill (listening, speaking, reading, or
writing) and level being taught.

3. The NA is for beginners and is designed to help them

become intermediates in communicative skills .

4.Krashen and Terrell believe that it is important to

communicate to learners what they can expect of course as
well as what they should not expect

The Syllabus

Krashen and Terrell approach course organization from two

points of view.

First :they list some typical goals for language courses and
suggest which of these goals are the ones at which the NA
aims .The NA is primarily designed to develop basic
communication skills ,and academic learning skills both oral
and written. The order in which the functions are presented
are not specified or suggested ,but are felt to derive naturally
from the topics and situations This approach to syllabus
design would appear to reflect Threshold Level specifications .

Second : the purpose of a language course will vary according

to the needs of the students and their particular interest. We

do not expect the students at the end of a particular course to
have acquired certain group of structures or forms. Instead
we expect them to deal with a particular set of topics in a
given situation. It is difficult to specify communicative goals
that necessarily fit the need of all students . Thus any list of
topics and situations must be understood as syllabus
suggestions rather than as specificationsInput provided over a
wider variety of topics while pursuing communicative goals ,
the necessary grammatical structures are automatically
provided in the input.

Types of Learning activities

1.From the beginning ,emphasis is on presenting

comprehensible input in the target language.

2.Learners are not required to say anything until they fell

ready ,but are expected to respond to teacher commands and
questions in other ways.

3.The teacher talks slowly and distinctly ,asking questions and

eliciting one –word answer.

4.Acquisition activities that focus on meaningful

communication rather than language form are emphasized.

5.Pair or group work may be employed ,followed by whole

class discussion led by the teacher.

Learner roles

1.Learners should not try to learn a language in the usual

sense ,but lose themselves in activities involving meaningful
communication.

2.The language acquirer is seen as a processor of

comprehensible input.

3.Learner’s roles are seen to change according to their stage

of linguistic development (when to speak, what to speak
about ,and what linguistic expressions to use in speaking)

In the pre-production stage ,students participate in the

language activity without having to respond in the target
language. In the early-production stage ,students respond to
either /or questions, use single word and short phrases.

In the speech emergent phase, students involve themselves in

role play and games contribute personal information and
opinions , and participate in group problem solving.

Learners have four kinds of responsibilities in the NA

classroom:

1.Provide information about their specific goals .so that

acquisition activities can focus on the topics and situations
most relevant to their needs.

2.Take an active role in ensuring comprehensible input. They

should learn and use conversational management techniques
to regulate input.

3.Decide when to start producing speech and when to

upgrade it.

4.where learning exercises are to be a part of the program.

Decide with the teacher the relative amount of time to be
devoted to them and perhaps even complete and correct
them independently.

Teacher roles

1.The teacher is the primary source of comprehensible

input ,the teacher is required to generate a constant flow of
language input while providing a multiplicity of nonlinguistic
clues to assist students in interpreting the input.

2.The teacher creates a classroom atmosphere that is

interesting ,friendly and which there is a low affective filter
for learning.
3.The teacher must choose and orchestrate a rich mix of
classroom activities involving a variety of group sizes, content
and context.

4.The teacher is responsible for collecting materials and

designing their use .These materials are based not just on
teachers perceptions but on elicited student's needs and
interest.

The role of instructional materials

1.Supply extra-linguistic context that helps the acquirer to

understand and thereby to acquire language.

2.Materials come from the world of realia rather than from

text books . The primary aim of materials is to promote
comprehension and communication.

3.Pictures and other visual aids are essential ,because they

supply the content for communication.

4.The pictures promote the teacher to provide the vocabulary

necessary to describe what is contained in them , they
facilitate the acquisition of a large vocabulary within the
classroom.

5.Recommended materials include schedules, brochures ,

advertisements maps ,and books at levels appropriate to the
students.

6.Games ,in general ,are seen as useful classroom materials

since games focus on students and their use of language.

Conclusion
The NA belongs to a tradition of language teaching methods
based on observation and interpretation of how learners
acquire both L1 and L2 in non- formal setting.

Such methods reject the formal (grammatical) organization of

language as a prerequisite to teaching.

A focus on comprehension and meaningful communication as

well as the provision of the right kinds of comprehensible
input provide the necessary and sufficient conditions for
successful classroom second and foreign language acquisition.