Comprehensible Input

According to Krashen’s Input Hypothesis, comprehensible input suggests that students should be able to understand vocabulary, content, and all of what is being said or presented to them in the classroom. In order to make content comprehensible, the teacher must go beyond vocabulary and focus on the presentation of background and context, clarification and paraphrasing of unclear content, and the use of effective techniques such as graphic organizers, scaffolding, and frontloading. Additionally, comprehensible input allows teachers to implement Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) to ensure that students are reaching their full potential. Watch the following video that provides a great example of how a teacher utilizes Krashen’s ideas of comprehensible input into one of her lessons: Component 3: Comprehensible Input. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTnHonxao70&feature=youtu.be&list=PLDyXrcbFvHq3HEBiQZ8kBRa5W5V_g1lCQ) 

Think of a time when you had difficulty understanding a specific topic or skill while in school. What could the teacher have done to make it more understandable and comprehensible for you? How did it make you feel? Identify at least two strategies below and describe how they could have been effective in increasing your understanding. How might these strategies support your English Language Learner?

• Use gestures, body language, pictures, and/or objects such as manipulatives
• Model and/or demonstrate the task
• Preview the vocabulary for the lesson
• Use a graphic organizer
• Use cooperative learning groups
• Have a peer tutor
• Make connections between the content and your prior knowledge and experiences
• More student engagement and interaction with the teacher

Your journal response should be a minimum of 250, double-spaced. Be sure to back up your journal response with evidence from the text. Be sure that your in-text citations and references reflect APA formatting. Use this link from Ashford’s Writing Center to support you: