Which hypothesis claims that grammatical structures are acquired in a predictable order for both children and adults, irrespective of the language being learned?

• A. Acquisition
• B. Learning
• C. The natural order hypothesis
• D. Monitor hypothesis

Answer: (C)

Grammatical development follows a natural, predictable sequence. The natural order hypothesis says that learners acquire certain grammatical structures in a fixed order, and this progression tends to be the same for both children and adults, regardless of which language is being learned. This reflects an underlying timetable for development: some forms emerge early in almost all learners, while others appear later, and this pattern holds across languages and ages. It’s not about how much instruction or practice someone gets, but about an inherent sequence in how the mind builds grammar.

Other ideas describe different aspects. The acquisition-learning distinction separates unconscious language use from conscious knowledge of rules, and doesn’t claim a universal order across languages. The Monitor hypothesis focuses on using conscious rules to edit speech, rather than a fixed sequence of development. The learning idea itself refers to conscious knowledge, not the natural progression of gaining grammatical structures.