Which approach is associated with Terrell and emphasizes informal acquisition, tolerance of errors, natural communication?

• A. The Natural Approach
• B. The Communicative Approach
• C. Humanistic Approaches
• D. Universal Grammar

Answer: (A)

The Natural Approach centers on informal acquisition through meaningful, natural communication in a low-anxiety setting. It was developed by Terrell in collaboration with Krashen and emphasizes learning language through comprehensible input—language that is understandable yet just beyond the learner’s current ability. In this approach, errors are tolerated as part of the natural process of acquiring language, with the goal of fluent, automatic communication rather than immediate accuracy. The emphasis is on exposing learners to real meaning and allowing them to pick up structure gradually from what they hear and understand, rather than through formal, error-correcting drills.

This differs from the Communicative Approach, which also values real communication but is broader in toolkit and classroom techniques; Humanistic Approaches focus more on affective factors like motivation and self-esteem; Universal Grammar is a theory about innate linguistic knowledge rather than a teaching method.