ALG: The Most Unique Language Learning Method

Automatic Language Growth is an effortless, comprehensible input-based approach to second language acquisition. Its goal is for adults to speak new languages as fluently and as accurately as native speakers. ALG is based in part on Krashen’s Natural Approach and ideas about comprehensible input. Two main things that make ALG different from other comprehension-based methods are: 1) It has a much longer “silent period“, where learners first just listen for many hours and gain understanding of the spoken language, before speaking it much or doing other things like reading, and 2) Its focus is on providing understandable experiences in the target language that create lifelong memories and are so compelling that learners forget that they are acquiring a new language, yet still learn it subconsciously. ALG was developed by the American linguist Dr. J. Marvin Brown and mainly implemented to teach Thai in the AUA Thai Program in Bangkok, Thailand from the mid-1980s until 2020. Learn more: Subscribe: Patreon: Twitter: Facebook: This video features the story of Automatic Language Growth (ALG), an unusual comprehensible-input based language acquisition method based on the Natural Approach, “silent period“, and Krashen’s input hypothesis. Can you pick up a new language as an adult and approach the fluency and ability of a native speaker? The story of an American linguist and the unusual language learning method he developed suggests that’s not only possible, but it could be practically effortless and a lot of fun. According to Dr. J. Marvin Brown, the secret is for adults to use the same kinds of opportunities and approach that come naturally to children: get many understandable experiences with a new language without trying to speak, study, or practice it. Let speaking emerge on its own as one gains understanding of the language through listening to all this comprehensible input. The approach Dr. Brown developed, known as Automatic Language Growth, has been applied with success at the AUA Thai Program in Bangkok, Thailand for more than 30 years, yet remains virtually unknown. Dr. Brown argued that contrary to popular belief, adults have not lost the ability to pick up languages like young children and become near-native or even native-like. Rather, with maturity they’ve gained abilities to try to speak, study, and practice language that interfere with the natural language acquisition process. Almost all language teaching today for adults requires that they use these conscious abilities instead of providing them with the kind of experience that children naturally get and pick up language from without study. Meanwhile, despite control of variables being fundamental to the scientific method, there’s still very little research that controls for the huge differences between typical adult and childhood language learning in order to see how much these differences, rather than age, are behind the adult difficulties with language learning we commonly observe. However, these things are starting to change, and emerging research and opportunities might yield a future where adults can routinely pick up new languages and approach native-like levels of ability while having fun and learning many other things in the process. Beyond Language Learning is discussing research on second language acquisition and possible ways to effortlessly learn languages to very high levels of ability at any age. Other links: AUA Thai Program: ALG World: Featured in video: Dreaming Spanish: Natural Khmer: