The Role of Conscious Attention in Language Learning

The idea of there being learning styles is a little bit sort of sketchy. But it may be still interesting to consider the idea that maybe people learn in different ways. As teachers, we are taught about this stuff because it can encourage us to incorporate different types of tasks into lessons. Next question: What role does conscious attention play in language learning? Can we just soak up the language like a sponge if we immerse ourselves in the language or do we have to pay attention to details in order to learn?