Have you ever heard about Comprehensible input? Stephen Krashen’s input hypothesis is one of the most influential theories of second language acquisition. He argues that Comprehensible Input is the most important factor in learning another language. Krashen is saying this: the process of “learning a language” is not the same kind of process as, say, learning geography or philosophy. We can’t read a book about it and then come to “know” it. Instead, language acquisition happens through an unconscious process. The necessary ingredient—the critical, essential core—of that unconscious process is comprehensible input. Language inputs are things that you hear (like podcasts, the radio, conversations, and so on) as well as things you read (like books, articles, Spanish blog articles, etc). So is Krashen right? Is comprehensible input important? Is there evidence for the input hypothesis? There’s a lot of evidence to suggest that he is. Together, these results suggest that it is exposure to language, and not language instruction, that results in better linguistic development. Krashen is careful to specify that you can’t just read or listen to anything and improve your language. You have to read or listen to things you can understand. Written by Ramsay Lewi Visit my profile for more information