Stephen Krashen in a nutshell

Adquisition is different from Learning

• Other theorists (e.g., Stephen Krashen, who is
• not directly associated with Communicative Language Teaching) have
• developed theories cited as compatible with the principles of CLT (see
• Chapter 15).
• Krashen sees acquisition as the basic process involved in developing language proficiency and distinguishes this process from
• learning.
• Acquisition refers to the unconscious development of the targetlanguage
• system as a result of using the language for real communication.
• L
• Learning is the conscious representation of grammatical knowledge that
• has resulted from instruction, and it cannot lead to acquisition.
• It is the
• acquired system that we call upon to create utterances during spontaneous
• language use. The learned system can serve only as a monitor of
• the output of the acquired system. Krashen and other second language
• acquisition theorists typically stress that language learning comes about
• through using language communicatively, rather than through practicing
• language skills.