Stephen Krashen

D. Fleming

University of Ottawa

Stephen Krashen is one of the best known applied linguists today

has been severely (and often justifiably) criticized for being pseudo-scientific and simplistic

his legacy has been important if only for the way he forced the field to deal with some fundamental issues and contradictions

second language education can not be fully understood unless one has a grasp on how the field has tried to deal with his hypotheses.

Acquisition/ Learning HypothesisAcquisition

the subconscious process involved in using language automatically in meaningful communication;

exemplified by children’s use of language;instilled by meaningful and natural interaction;speakers not worried about accuracy.

Learningthe conscious processes involved in learning the

grammar and structure of a language;instilled by decontextualised formal instruction that

usually has limited meaning or usefulness;far less important than acquisition and separate

from it.

Monitor Hypothesislanguage learners monitor themselves in terms

of how closely they conform to learnt models of the target language they have learnt;

this is the limited role of the ‘learning system’;the 'monitor' is the editor, which plans and

corrects target language use whenever the learner has:sufficient time to activate it; the opportunity to focus on accuracy;a correct understanding of the correct

structural rules involved.the role of conscious learning should be limited

to correcting minor errors

some learners over use the monitor, which leads them to excessively concentrate on grammatical accuracy and neglect fluency;

these learners might be able to provide a compendium of grammar rules, but can not use the language for meaningful communication; they are often introverts, those with low self-confidence and perfectionists;

other learners under use the monitor, leading them to be verbose but inaccurate speakers of the second language; extroverts and non-perfectionists are under-users;

optimal users have a balanced use of the monitor.

Natural Order HypothesisKrashen contended, based on research done in

the 1970’s by Dulay & Burt, Fathman and Makino, that the acquisition of a second language followed a predictable 'natural order‘, regardless of age, gender or other background factors;

He noted that these ‘natural orders’ did not conform to structural or logical descriptions of grammar;

Ellis (1985) notes that subsequent research has only partially borne Krashen out. Some patterns do occur, but great differences exist between first and second language acquisition that seem to be functions, at least, of age and economic circumstances. Ellis makes the distinction between order and sequence.

Input Hypothesis

acquisition best occurs when the learners receives second language 'input' that is one step beyond their current stage of linguistic competence;

often termed as comprehensible input, or 1+

although there are some similarities between Krashen’s views and Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, bear in mind that comprehensible input occurs in naturalistic settings and according to a ‘natural order’ of development; the instructional aspects of Vygotsky’s theory are not at play here.

Affective Filter Hypothesis

'affective variables' (such as motivation, self-confidence and anxiety) have a large part to play in determining how receptive one is to learning a second language;

learners experiencing high motivation, great self-confidence, and low levels of anxiety acquire the second language easier; these learners have low affective filters

learners experiencing low motivation, poor self-esteem, and high levels of anxiety have high affective filters.