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TheNaturalApproach

3.TheNatural
Background Theoryoflearning Objectives LearnerRoles Procedure
Orderhypothesis
1.Learning
4.TheInput
term"natural" Acquisition TheSyllabus Teacherroles Conclusion
hypothesis
hypothesis
2.TheMonitor 5.TheAffective Learningand Theroleof
Theoryoflanguage
hypothesis Filterhypothesis teachingactivities instructuralmaterial

Background

In1977,TracyTerrell,ateacherofSpanishinCalifornia,outlined"aproposalfora'new'philosophyof
languageteachingwhich[he]calledtheNaturalApproach"(Terrell19771982:121).Thiswasanattemptto
developalanguageteachingproposalthatincorporatedthe"naturalistic"principlesresearchershadidentifiedin
studiesofsecondlanguageacquisition.TheNaturalApproachgrewoutofTerrell'sexperiencesteaching
Spanishclasses.SincethattimeTerrellandothershaveexperimentedwithimplementingtheNaturalApproach
inelementarytoadvancedlevelclassesandwithseveralotherlanguages.Atthesametimehehasjoinedforces
withStephenKrashen,anappliedlinguistattheUniversityofSouthernCalifornia,inelaboratingatheoretical
rationalefortheNaturalApproach,drawingonKrashen'sinfluentialtheoryofsecondlanguageacquisition.
KrashenandTerrell'scombinedstatementoftheprinciplesandpracticesoftheNaturalApproachappearedin
theirbook,TheNaturalApproach,publishedin1983.TheNaturalApproachhasattractedawiderinterestthan
someoftheotherinnovativelanguageteachingproposalsdiscussedinthisbook,largelybecauseofitssupport
byKrashen.KrashenandTerrell'sbookcontainstheoreticalsectionspreparedbyKrashenthatoutlinehisviews
onsecondlanguageacquisition(Krashen19811982),andsectionsonimplementationandclassroom
procedures,preparedlargelybyTerrell.

KrashenandTerrellhaveidentifiedtheNaturalApproachwithwhattheycall"traditional"approachesto
languageteaching.Traditionalapproachesaredefinedas"basedontheuseoflanguageincommunicative
situationswithoutrecoursetothenativelanguage"and,perhaps,needlesstosay,withoutreferenceto
grammaticalanalysis,grammaticaldrilling,ortoaparticulartheoryofgrammar.KrashenandTerrellnotethat
such"approacheshavebeencallednatural,psychological,phonetic,new,reform,direct,analytic,imitativeand
soforth"(KrashenandTerrell1983:9).ThefactthattheauthorsoftheNaturalApproachrelatetheirapproach
totheNaturalMethodhasledsometoassumechatNaturalApproachandNaturalMethodaresynonymous
terms.Althoughthetraditionisacommonone,thereareimportantdifferencesbetweentheNaturalApproach
andtheolderNaturalMethod,whichitwillbeusefultoconsiderattheoutset.

TheNaturalMethodisanothertermforwhatbytheturnofthecenturyhadbecomeknownastheDirect
Method..ItisdescribedinareportonthestateoftheartinlanguageteachingcommissionedbytheModern
LanguageAssociationin1901(thereportofthe"Committeeof12"):

Thetermnatural,usedinreferencetotheDirectMethod,merelyemphasizedthattheprinciplesunderlyingthe
methodwerebelievedtoconformtotheprinciplesofnaturalisticlanguagelearninginyoungchildren.Similarly,
theNaturalApproach,asdefinedbyKrashenandTerrell,isbelievedtoconformtothenaturalisticprinciples
foundinsuccessfulsecondlanguageacquisition.UnliketheDirectMethod,however,itplaceslessemphasison
teachermonologues,directrepetition,andformalquestionsandanswers,andlessfocusonaccurateproduction
oftargetlanguagesentences.IntheNaturalApproachthereisanemphasisonexposure,orinput,ratherthan
practiceoptimizingemotionalpreparednessforlearningaprolongedperiodofattentiontowhatthelanguage
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learnershearbeforetheytrytoproducelanguageandawillingnesstousewrittenandothermaterialsasa
sourceofcomprehensibleinput.TheemphasisonthecentralroleofcomprehensionintheNaturalApproach
linksittoothercomprehensionbasedapproachesinlanguageteaching.

Approach

Theoryoflanguage

KrashenandTerrellseecommunicationastheprimaryfunctionoflanguage,andsincetheirapproachfocuseson
teachingcommunicativeabilities,theyrefertotheNaturalApproachasanexampleofacommunicative
approach.TheNaturalApproach"issimilartoothercommunicativeapproachesbeingdevelopedtoday"
(KrashenandTerrell1983:17).Theyrejectearliermethodsoflanguageteaching,suchastheAudiolingual
Method,whichviewedgrammarasthecentralcomponentoflanguage.AccordingtoKrashenandTerrell,the
majorproblemwiththesemethodswasthattheywerebuiltnotaround"actualtheoriesoflanguageacquisition,
buttheoriesofsomethingelseforexample,thestructureoflanguage"(1983:1).Unlikeproponentsof
CommunicativeLanguageTeaching,however,KrashenandTerrellgivelittleattentiontoatheoryoflanguage.
Indeed,arecentcriticofKrashensuggestshehasnotheoryoflanguageatall(Gregg1984).WhatKrashenand
Terrelldodescribeaboutthenatureoflanguageemphasizestheprimacyofmeaning.Theimportanceofthe
vocabularyisstressed,forexample,suggestingtheviewthatalanguageisessentiallyitslexiconandonly
inconsequentlythegrammarthatdetermineshowthelexiconisexploitedtoproducemessages.Terrellquotes
DwightBolingertosupportthisview:

Thequantityofinformationinthelexiconfaroutweighsthatinanyotherpartofthelanguage,andifthereis
anythingtothenotionofredundancyitshouldbeeasiertoreconstructamessagecontainingjustwordsthanone
containingjustthesyntacticrelations.Thesignificantfactisthesubordinateroleofgrammar.Themost
importantthingistogetthewordsin.(Bolinger,inTerrell1977:333).

Languageisviewedasavehicleforcommunicatingmeaningsandmessages.HenceKrashenandTerrellstate
that"acquisitioncantakeplaceonlywhenpeopleunderstandmessagesinthetargetlanguage(Krashenand
Terrell1983:19).Yetdespitetheiravowedcommunicativeapproachtolanguage,theyviewlanguagelearning,
asdoaudiolingualists,asmasteryofstructuresbystages."Theinputhypothesisstatesthatinorderforacquirers
toprogresstothenextstageintheacquisitionofthetargetlanguage,theyneedtounderstandinputlanguage
thatincludesastructurethatispartofthenextstage"(KrashenandTerrell1983:32).Krashenreferstothiswith
theformula"I+1"(i.e.,inputthatcontainsstructuresslightlyabovethelearner'spresentlevel).Weassumethat
KrashenmeansbystructuressomethingatleastinthetraditionofwhatsuchlinguistsasLeonardBloomfield
andCharlesFriesmeantbystructures.TheNaturalApproachthusassumesalinguistichierarchyofstructural
complexitythatonemastersthroughencounterswith"input"containingstructuresatthe"1+1"level.

Weareleftthenwithaviewoflanguagethatconsistsoflexicalitems,structures,andmessages.Obviously,
thereisnoparticularnoveltyinthisviewassuch,exceptthatmessagesareconsideredofprimaryimportancein
theNaturalApproach.Thelexiconforbothperceptionandproductionisconsideredcriticalintheconstruction
andinterpretationofmessages.Lexicalitemsinmessagesarcnecessarilygrammaticallystructured,andmore
complexmessagesinvolvemorecomplexgrammaticalstructure.Althoughtheyacknowledgesuchgrammatical
structuring,KrashenandTerrellfeelthatgrammaticalstructuredoesnotrequireexplicitanalysisorattentionby
thelanguageteacher,bythelanguagelearner,orinlanguageteachingmaterials.

Theoryoflearning

KrashenandTerrellmakecontinuingreferencetothetheoreticalandresearchbaseclaimedtounderliethe
NaturalApproachandtothefactthatthemethodisuniqueinhavingsuchabase."Itisbasedonanempirically
groundedtheoryofsecondlanguageacquisition,whichhasbeensupportedbyalargenumberofscientific
studiesinawidevarietyoflanguageacquisitionandlearningcontexts"(KrashenandTerrell1983:1).The
theoryandresearcharegroundedonKrashen'sviewsoflanguageacquisition,whichwewillcollectivelyreferto

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asKrashen'slanguageacquisitiontheory.Krashen'sviewshavebeenpresentedanddiscussedextensively
elsewhere(e.g.,Krashen1982),sowewillnottrytopresentorcritiqueKrashen'sargumentshere.

THEACQUISITION/LEARNINGHYPOTHESIS

TheAcquisition/LearningHypothesisclaimsthattherearetwodistinctivewaysofdevelopingcompetenceina
secondorforeignlanguage.Acquisitionisthe"natural"way,parallelingfirstlanguagedevelopmentinchildren.
Acquisitionreferstoanunconsciousprocessthatinvolvesthenaturalisticdevelopmentoflanguageproficiency
throughunderstandinglanguageandthroughusinglanguageformeaningfulcommunication.Learning,by
contrast,referstoaprocessinwhichconsciousrulesaboutalanguagearedeveloped.Itresultsinexplicit
knowledgeabouttheformsofalanguageandtheabilitytoverbalizethisknowledge.Formalteachingis
necessaryfor"learning"tooccur,andcorrectionoferrorshelpswiththedevelopmentoflearnedrules.Learning,
accordingtothetheory,cannotleadtoacquisition.

THEMONITORHYPOTHESIS

Theacquiredlinguisticsystemissaidtoinitiateutteranceswhenwecommunicateinasecondorforeign
language.Consciouslearningcanfunctiononlyasamonitororeditorthatchecksandrepairstheoutputofthe
acquiredsystem.IheMonitorHypothesisclaimsthatwemaycalluponlearnedknowledgetocorrectourselves
whenwecommunicate,hutthatconsciouslearning(i.e.,thelearnedsystem)hasonlythisfunction.Three
conditionslimitthesuccessfuluseofthemonitor:

1.Time.Theremustbesufficienttimeforalearnertochooseandapplyalearnedrule.

2.Focusonform.Thelanguageusermustbefocusedoncorrectnessorontheformoftheoutput.

3.Knowledgeofrules.Theperformermustknowtherules.Themonitordoesbestwithrulesthataresimplein
twoways.Theymustbesimpletodescribeandtheymustnotrequirecomplexmovementsandrearrangements.

THENATURALORDERHYPOTHESIS

AccordingtotheNaturalOrderHypothesis,theacquisitionofgrammaticalstructuresproceedsinapredictable
order.Researchissaidtohaveshownthatcertaingrammaticalstructuresormorphemesareacquiredbefore
othersinfirstlanguageacquisitionofEnglish,andasimilarnaturalorderisfoundinsecondlanguage
acquisition.Errorsaresignsofnaturalisticdevelopmentalprocesses,andduringacquisition(butnotduring
learning),similardevelopmentalerrorsoccurinlearnersnomatterwhattheirmothertongueis.

THEINPUTHYPOTHESIS

TheInputHypothesisclaimstoexplaintherelationshipbetweenwhatthelearnerisexposedtoofalanguage
(theinput)andlanguageacquisition.Itinvolvesfourmainissues.

First,thehypothesisrelatestoacquisition,andnottolearning.

Second,peopleacquirelanguagebestbyunderstandinginputthatisslightlybeyondtheircurrentlevelof
competence:

Anacquirercan"move"fromastageI(whereIistheacquirer'slevelofcompetence)toastageI+1(whereI+
1isthestageimmediatelyfollowingIalongsomenaturalorder)byunderstandinglanguagecontainingI+1.
(KrashenandTerrell1983:32)

Cluesbasedonthesituationandthecontext,extralinguisticinformation,andknowledgeoftheworldmake
comprehensionpossible.

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Third,theabilitytospeakfluentlycannotbetaughtdirectlyrather,it"emerges"independentlyintime,afterthe
acquirerhasbuiltuplinguisticcompetencebyunderstandinginput.

Fourth,ifthereisasufficientquantityofcomprehensibleinput,I+1willusuallybeprovidedautomatically.
Comprehensibleinputreferstoutterancesthatthelearnerunderstandsbasedonthecontextinwhichtheyare
usedaswellasthelanguageinwhichtheyarephrased.Whenaspeakeruseslanguagesothattheacquirer
understandsthemessage,thespeaker"castsanet"ofstructurearoundtheacquirer'scurrentlevelofcompetence,
andthiswillincludemanyinstancesofI+1.Thus,inputneednotbefinelytunedtoalearner'scurrentlevelof
linguisticcompetence,andinfactcannotbesofinelytunedinalanguageclass,wherelearnerswillbeatmany
differentlevelsofcompetence.

Justaschildacquirersofafirstlanguageareprovidedwithsamplesof"caretakerspeech,"roughtunedtotheir
presentlevelofunderstanding,soadultacquirersofasecondlanguageareprovidedwithsimplecodesthat
facilitatesecondlanguagecomprehension.Onesuchcodeis"foreignertalk,"whichreferstothespeechnative
speakersusetosimplifycommunicationwithforeigners.Foreignertalkischaracterizedbyaslowerrateof
speech,repetition,restating,useofYes/NoinsteadofWhoquestions,andotherchangesthatmakemessages
morecomprehensibletopersonsoflimitedlanguageproficiency.

THEAFFECTIVEFILTERHYPOTHESIS

Krashenseesthelearner'semotionalstateorattitudesasanadjustablefilterthatfreelypasses,impedes,or
blocksinputnecessarytoacquisition.Alowaffectivefilterisdesirable,sinceitimpedesorblockslessofthis
necessaryinput.Thehypothesisisbuiltonresearchinsecondlanguageacquisition,whichhasidentifiedthree
kindsofaffectiveorattitudinalvariablesrelatedtosecondlanguageacquisition.

1.Motivation.Learnerswithhighmotivationgenerallydobetter.

2.Selfconfidence.Learnerswithselfconfidenceandagoodselfimagetendtobemoresuccessful.

3.Anxiety.Lowpersonalanxietyandlowclassroomanxietyaremoreconducivetosecondlanguageacquisition.

TheAffectiveFilterHypothesisstatesthatacquirerswithalowaffectivefilterseekandreceivemoreinput,
interactwithconfidence,andaremorereceptivetotheinputtheyreceive.Anxiousacquirershaveahigh
affectivefilter,whichpreventsacquisitionfromtakingplace.Itisbelievedthattheaffectivefilter(e.g.,fearor
embarrassment)risesinearlyadolescence,andthismayaccountforchildren'sapparentsuperioritytoolder
acquirersofasecondlanguage.

Thesefivehypotheseshaveobviousimplicationsforlanguageteaching.Insum,theseare:

1.Asmuchcomprehensibleinputaspossiblemustbepresented.

2.Whateverhelpscomprehensionisimportant.Visualaidsareuseful,asisexposuretoawiderangeof
vocabularyratherthanstudyofsyntacticstructure.

3.Thefocusintheclassroomshouldbeonlisteningandreadingspeakingshouldbeallowedto"emerge."

4.Inordertolowertheaffectivefilter,studentworkshouldcenteronmeaningfulcommunicationratherthanon
forminputshouldbeinterestingandsocontributetoarelaxedclassroomatmosphere.

Design

Objectives

TheNaturalApproach"isforbeginnersandisdesignedtohelpthembecomeintermediates."Ithasthe
expectationthatstudentswillbeabletofunctionadequatelyinthetargetsituation.Theywillunderstandthe
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speakerofthetargetlanguage(perhapswithrequestsforclarification),andwillbeabletoconvey(inanon
insultingmanner)theirrequestsandideas.Theyneednotknoweverywordinaparticularsemanticdomain,nor
isitnecessarythatthesyntaxandvocabularybeflawlessbuttheirproductiondoesneedtobeunderstood.
Theyshouldbeabletomakethemeaningclearbutnotnecessarilybeaccurateinalldetailsofgrammar.
(KrashenandTerrell1983:71)

However,sincetheNaturalApproachisofferedasageneralsetofprinciplesapplicabletoawidevarietyof
situations,asinCommunicativeLanguageTeaching,specificobjectivesdependuponlearnerneedsandtheskill
(reading,writing,listening,orspeaking)andlevelbeingtaught.KrashenandTerrellfeelitisimportantto
communicatetolearnerswhattheycanexpectofacourseaswellaswhattheyshouldnotexpect.Theyofferas
anexampleapossiblegoalandnogoalstatementforabeginningNaturalApproachSpanishclass.

After100150hoursofNaturalApproachSpanish,youwillbeableto:"getaround"inSpanishyouwillbeable
tocommunicatewithamonolingualnativespeakerofSpanishwithoutdifficultyreadmostordinarytextsin
SpanishwithsomeuseofadictionaryknowenoughSpanishtocontinuetoimproveonyourown.

After100150hoursofNaturalApproachSpanishyouwillnotbeableto:passforanativespeaker,use
SpanishaseasilyasyouuseEnglish,understandnativespeakerswhentheytalktoeachother(youwill
probablynotbeabletoeavesdropsuccessfully)useSpanishonthetelephonewithgreatcomfortparticipate
easilyinaconversationwithseveralothernativespeakersonunfamiliartopics.(KrashenandTerrell1983:74).

Thesyllabus

KrashenandTerrell(1983)approachcourseorganizationfromtwopointsofview.First,theylistsometypical
goalsforlanguagecoursesandsuggestwhichofthesegoalsaretheonesatwhichtheNaturalApproachaims.
Theylistsuchgoalsunderfourareas:

1.Basicpersonalcommunicationskills:oral(e.g.,listeningtoannouncementsinpublicplaces)

2.Basicpersonalcommunicationskills:written(e.g.,readingandwritingpersonalletters)

3.Academiclearningskills:oral(e.g.,listeningtoalecture)

4.Academiclearningskills:written(e.g.,takingnotesinclass)

Ofthese,theynotethattheNaturalApproachisprimarily"designedtodevelopbasiccommunicationskills
bothoralandwritten(1983:67).Theythenobservethatcommunicationgoals"maybeexpressedintermsof
situations,functionsandtopics"andproceedtoorderfourpagesoftopicsandsituations"whicharelikelytobe
mostusefultobeginningstudents"(1983:67).Thefunctionsarenotspecifiedorsuggestedbutarefelttoderive
naturallyfromthetopicsandsituations.Thisapproachtosyllabusdesignwouldappeartoderivetosomeextent
fromthresholdlevelspecifications.

Thesecondpointofviewholdsthat"thepurposeofalanguagecoursewillvaryaccordingtotheneedsofthe
studentsandtheirparticularinterests"(KrashenandTerrell1983:65).

ThegoalsofaNaturalApproachclassarebasedonanassessmentofstudentneeds.Wedeterminethe
situationsinwhichtheywillusethetargetlanguageandthesortsoftopicstheywillhavetocommunicate
informationabout.Insettingcommunicationgoals,wedonotexpectthestudentsattheendofaparticular
coursetohaveacquiredacertaingroupofstructuresorforms.Insteadweexpectthemtodealwithaparticular
setoftopicsinagivensituation.Wedonotorganizetheactivitiesoftheclassaboutagrammaticalsyllabus.
(KrashenandTerrell1983:71)

Fromthispointofviewitisdifficulttospecifycommunicativegoalsthatnecessarilyfittheneedsofall
students.Thusanylistoftopicsandsituationsmustbeunderstoodassyllabussuggestionsratherthanas
specifications.
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Aswellasfittingtheneedsandinterestsofstudents,contentselectionshouldaimtocreatealowaffectivefilter
bybeinginterestingandfosteringafriendly,relaxedatmosphere,shouldprovideawideexposuretovocabulary
thatmaybeusefultobasicpersonalcommunication,andshouldresistanyfocusongrammaticalstructures,
sinceifinputisprovided"overawidervarietyoftopicswhilepursuingcommunicativegoals,thenecessary
grammaticalstructuresareautomaticallyprovidedintheinput"(KrashenandTerrell1983:71).

Typesoflearningandteachingactivities

FromthebeginningofaclasstaughtaccordingtotheNaturalApproach,emphasisisonpresenting
comprehensibleinputinthetargetlanguage.Teachertalkfocusesonobjectsintheclassroomandonthecontent
ofpictures,aswiththeDirectMethod.Tominimizestress,learnersarenotrequiredtosayanythinguntilthey
feelready,buttheyareexpectedtorespondtoteachercommandsandquestionsinotherways.

Whenlearnersarereadytobegintalkinginthenewlanguage,theteacherprovidescomprehensiblelanguage
andsimpleresponseopportunities.Theteachertalksslowlyanddistinctly,askingquestionsandelicitingone
wordanswers.ThereisagradualprogressionfromYes/Noquestions,througheitherorquestions,toquestions
thatstudentscananswerusingwordstheyhaveheardusedbytheteacher.Studentsarenotexpectedtousea
wordactivelyuntiltheyhavehearditmanytimes.Charts,pictures,advertisements,andotherrealiaserveasthe
focalpointforquestions,andwhenthestudents'competencepermits,talkmovestoclassmembers."Acquisition
activities"thosethatfocusonmeaningfulcommunicationratherthanlanguageformareemphasized.Pairor
groupworkmaybeemployed,followedbywholeclassdiscussionledbytheteacher.

TechniquesrecommendedbyKrashenandTerrellareoftenborrowedfromothermethodsandadaptedtomeet
therequirementsofNaturalApproachtheory.TheseincludecommandbasedactivitiesfromTotalPhysical
ResponseDirectMethodactivitiesinwhichmime,gesture,andcontextareusedtoelicitquestionsandanswers
andevensituationbasedpracticeofstructuresandpatterns.Groupworkactivitiesareoftenidenticaltothose
usedinCommunicativeLanguageTeaching,wheresharinginformationinordertocompleteataskis
emphasized.ThereisnothingnovelabouttheproceduresandtechniquesadvocatedforusewiththeNatural
Approach.Acasualobservermightnotbeawareofthephilosophyunderlyingtheclassroomtechniquesheor
sheobserves.WhatcharacterizestheNaturalApproachistheuseoffamiliartechniqueswithintheframeworkof
amethodthatfocusesonprovidingcomprehensibleinputandaclassroomenvironmentthatcuescomprehension
ofinput,minimizeslearneranxiety,andmaximizeslearnerselfconfidence.

Learnerroles

ThereisabasicassumptionintheNaturalApproachthatlearnersshouldnottrytolearnalanguageintheusual
sense.Theextenttowhichtheycanlosethemselvesinactivitiesinvolvingmeaningfulcommunicationwill
determinetheamountandkindofacquisitiontheywillexperienceandthefluencytheywillultimately
demonstrate.Thelanguageacquirerisseenasaprocessorofcomprehensibleinput.Theacquirerischallenged
byinputthatisslightlybeyondhisorhercurrentlevelofcompetenceandisabletoassignmeaningtothisinput
throughactiveuseofcontextandextralinguisticinformation.

Learners'rolesareseentochangeaccordingtotheirstageoflinguisticdevelopment.Centraltothesechanging
rolesarelearnerdecisionsonwhentospeak,whattospeakabout,andwhatlinguisticexpressionstousein
speaking.

Inthepreproductionstagestudents"participateinthelanguageactivitywithouthavingtorespondinthetarget
language"(KrashenandTerrell1983:76).Forexample,studentscanactoutphysicalcommands,identify
studentcolleaguesfromteacherdescription,pointtopictures,andsoforth.

Intheearlyproductionstage,studentsrespondtoeitherorquestions,usesinglewordsandshortphrases,fillin
charts,andusefixedconversationalpatterns(e.g.,Howareyou?What'syourname?).

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Inthespeechemergentphase,studentsinvolvethemselvesinroleplayandgames,contributepersonal
informationandopinions,andparticipateingroupproblemsolving.

LearnershavefourkindsofresponsibilitiesintheNaturalApproachclassroom:

1.Provideinformationabouttheirspecificgoalssothatacquisitionactivitiescanfocusonthetopicsand
situationsmostrelevanttotheirneeds.

2.Takeanactiveroleinensuringcomprehensibleinput.Theyshouldlearnanduseconversationalmanagement
techniquestoregulateinput.

3.Decidewhentostartproducingspeechandwhentoupgradeit.

4.Wherelearningexercises(i.e.,grammarstudy)aretobeapartoftheprogram,decidewiththeteacherthe
relativeamountoftimetobedevotedtothemandperhapsevencompleteandcorrectthemindependently.

Learnersareexpectedtoparticipateincommunicationactivitieswithotherlearners.Althoughcommunication
activitiesareseentoprovidenaturalisticpracticeandtocreateasenseofcamaraderie,whichlowersthe
affectivefilter,theymayfailtoprovidelearnerswithwellformedandcomprehensibleinputattheI+1level.
KrashenandTerrellwarnoftheseshortcomingsbutdonotsuggestmeansfortheiramelioration.

Teacherroles

TheNaturalApproachteacherhasthreecentralroles.First,theteacheristheprimarysourceofcomprehensible
inputinthetargetlanguage."Classtimeisdevotedprimarilytoprovidinginputforacquisition,"aridtheteacher
istheprimarygeneratorofthatinput.Inthisroletheteacherisrequiredtogenerateaconstantflowoflanguage
inputwhileprovidingamultiplicityofnonlinguisticcluestoassiststudentsininterpretingtheinput.TheNatural
Approachdemandsamuchmorecenterstagerolefortheteacherthandomanycontemporarycommunicative
methods.

Second,theNaturalApproachteachercreatesaclassroomatmospherethatisinteresting,friendly,andinwhich
thereisalowaffectivefilterforlearning.ThisisachievedinpartthroughsuchNaturalApproachtechniquesas
notdemandingspeechfromthestudentsbeforetheyarereadyforit,notcorrectingstudenterrors,andproviding
subjectmatterofhighinteresttostudents.

Finally,theteachermustchooseandorchestratearichmixofclassroomactivities,involvingavarietyofgroup
sizes,content,andcontexts.Theteacherisseenasresponsibleforcollectingmaterialsanddesigningtheiruse.
Thesematerials,accordingtoKrashenandTerrell,arebasednotjustonteacherperceptionsbutonelicited
studentneedsandinterests.

Aswithothernonorthodoxteachingsystems,theNaturalApproachteacherhasaparticularresponsibilityto
communicateclearlyandcompellinglytostudentstheassumptions,organization,andexpectationsofthe
method,sinceinmanycasesthesewillviolatestudentviewsofwhatlanguagelearningandteachingare
supposedtobe.

Theroleofinstructionalmaterials

TheprimarygoalofmaterialsintheNaturalApproachistomakeclassroomactivitiesasmeaningfulaspossible
bysupplying"theextralinguisticcontextthathelpstheacquirertounderstandandtherebytoacquire"(Krashen
andTerrell1983:55),byrelatingclassroomactivitiestotherealworld,andbyfosteringrealcommunication
amongthelearners.Materialscomefromtheworldofrealiaratherthanfromtextbooks.Theprimaryaimof
materialsistopromotecomprehensionandcommunication.Picturesandothervisualaidsareessential,because
theysupplythecontentforcommunication.Theyfacilitatetheacquisitionofalargevocabularywithinthe
classroom.Otherrecommendedmaterialsincludeschedules,brochures,advertisements,maps,andbooksat
levelsappropriatetothestudents,ifareadingcomponentisincludedinthecourse.Games,ingeneral,areseen

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asusefulclassroommaterials,since"gamesbytheirverynature,focusthestudentonwhatitistheyaredoing
andusethelanguageasatoolforreachingthegoalratherthanasagoalinitself"(Terrell1982:121).The
selection,reproduction,andcollectionofmaterialsplacesaconsiderableburdenontheNaturalApproach
teacher.SinceKrashenandTerrellsuggestasyllabusoftopicsandsituations,itislikelythatatsomepoint
collectionsofmaterialstosupplementteacherpresentationswillbepublished,builtaroundthe"syllabus"of
topicsandsituationsrecommendedbytheNaturalApproach.

Procedure

WehaveseenthattheNaturalApproachadoptstechniquesandactivitiesfreelyfromvariousmethodsources
andcanberegardedasinnovativeonlywithrespecttothepurposesforwhichtheyarerecommendedandthe
waystheyareused.KrashenandTerrell(1983)providesuggestionsfortheuseofawiderangeofactivities,all
ofwhicharefamiliarcomponentsofSituationalLanguageTeaching,CommunicativeLanguageTeaching,and
othermethodsdiscussedinthisbook.ToillustrateproceduralaspectsoftheNaturalApproach,wewillcite
examplesofhowsuchactivitiesaretobeusedintheNaturalApproachclassroomtoprovidecomprehensible
input,withoutrequiringproductionofresponsesorminimalresponsesinthetargetlanguage.

1.StartwithTPR[TotalPhysicalResponse]commands.Atfirstthecommandsarequitesimple:"Standup.Turn
around.Raiseyourrighthand."

2.UseTPRtoteachnamesofbodypartsandtointroducenumbersandsequence."Layyourrighthandonyour
head,putbothhandsonyourshoulder,firsttouchyournose,thenstandupandturntotherightthreetimes"and
soforth.

3.Introduceclassroomtermsandpropsintocommands."Pickupapencilandputitunderthebook,toucha
wall,gotothedoorandknockthreetimes."Anyitemwhichcanbebroughttotheclasscanbeincorporated.
"Pickuptherecordandplaceitinthetray.TakethegreenblankettoLarry.Pickupthesoapandtakeittothe
womanwearingthegreenblouse."

4.Usenamesofphysicalcharacteristicsandclothingtoidentifymembersoftheclassbyname.Theinstructor
usescontextandtheitemsthemselvestomakethemeaningsofthekeywordsclear:hair,long,short,etc.Thena
studentisdescribed."Whatisyourname?"(selectingastudent)."Class.LookatBarbara.Shehaslongbrown
hair.Herhairislongandbrown.Herhairisnotshort.Itislong."(Usingmime,pointingandcontexttoensure
comprehension)."What'sthenameofthestudentwithlongbrownhair?"(Barbara).Questionssuchas"Whatis
thenameofthewomanwiththeshortblondhair?"or"Whatisthenameofthestudentsittingnexttotheman
withshortbrownhairandglasses?"areverysimpletounderstandbyattendingtokeywords,gesturesand
context.Andtheyrequirethestudentsonlytorememberandproducethenameofafellowstudent.Thesame
canbedonewitharticlesofclothingandcolors."Whoiswearingayellowshirt?Whoiswearingabrown
dress?"

5.Usevisuals,typicallymagazinepictures,tointroducenewvocabularyandtocontinuewithactivities
requiringonlystudentnamesasresponse,Theinstructorintroducesthepicturestotheentireclassoneatatime
focusingusuallyononesingleitemoractivityinthepicture.Hemayintroduceonetofivenewwordswhile
talkingaboutthepicture.Hethenpassesthepicturetoaparticularstudentintheclass.Thestudents'taskisto
rememberthenameofthestudentwithaparticularpicture.Forexample,"Tomhasthepictureofthesailboat.
Joanhasthepictureofthefamilywatchingtelevision"andsoforth.Theinstructorwillaskquestionslike"Who
hasthepicturewiththesailboat?DoesSusanorTomhavethepictureofthepeopleonthebeach?"Againthe
studentsneedonlyproduceanameinresponse.

6.CombineuseofpictureswithTPR."Jim,findthepictureofthelittlegirlwithherdogandgiveittothe
womanwiththepinkblouse."

7.Combineobservationsaboutthepictureswithcommandsandconditionals."Ifthereisawomaninyour
picture,standup.Ifthereissomethingblueinyourpicture,touchyourrightshoulder."

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2017513 TheNaturalApproach

8.Usingseveralpictures,askstudentstopointtothepicturebeingdescribed.Picture1."Thereareseveral
peopleinthispicture.Oneappearstobeafather,theotheradaughter.Whataretheydoing?Cooking.Theyare
cookingahamburger."Picture2."Therearetwomeninthispicture.Theyareyoung.Theyareboxing."Picture
3...

(KrashenandTerrell1983:757)

Inalltheseactivities,theinstructormaintainsaconstantflowof"comprehensibleinput,"usingkeyvocabulary
items,appropriategestures,context,repetition,andparaphrasetoensurethecomprehensibilityoftheinput.

Conclusion

TheNaturalApproachbelongstoatraditionoflanguageteachingmethodsbasedonobservationand
interpretationofhowlearnersacquirebothfirstandsecondlanguagesinnonformalsettings.Suchmethods
rejecttheformal(grammatical)organizationoflanguageasaprerequisitetoteaching.TheyholdwithNewmark
andReibelthat"anadultcaneffectivelybetaughtbygrammaticallyunorderedmaterials"andthatsuchan
approachis,indeed,"theonlylearningprocesswhichweknowforcertainwillproducemasteryofthelanguage
atanativelevel"(1968:153).IntheNaturalApproach,afocusoncomprehensionandmeaningful
communicationaswellastheprovisionoftherightkindsofcomprehensibleinputprovidethenecessaryand
sufficientconditionsforsuccessfulclassroomsecondandforeignlanguageacquisition.Thishasledtoanew
rationalefortheintegrationandadaptationoftechniquesdrawnfromawidevarietyofexistingsources.Like
CommunicativeLanguageTeaching,theNaturalApproachishenceevolutionaryratherthanrevolutionaryinits
procedures.Itsgreatestclaimtooriginalityliesnotinthetechniquesitemploysbutintheiruseinamethodthat
emphasizesandmeaningfulpracticeactivities,ratherthanproductionofgrammaticallyperfectutterancesand
sentences.

TOP

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