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1、Nonverbal Communication in Foreign Language Classroom Abstract：For attaining the goal of teaching，and improving teaching quality and efficiency in the foreign language classroom, the improvement of teaching method is a very important factor. This essay will give an introduction of the nonverbal comm
2、unication and also explain the great impacts of nonverbal communication in the foreign language classroom. At the end of the essay, some ways of using the nonverbal behaviors to improve the foreign language teaching are put forward.Key words: nonverbal behaviors, foreign language teaching, informati
3、on transmission in teaching. 1 Introduction As we know, human beings communicate with others by exchanging information .usually; there are two ways for exchanging information-verbal way and nonverbal way. One statement goes like this: we speak with our verbal organs, but we converse with our entire
4、with bodies. Conservation consists of more than a simple interchange of spoken words. From this we can see that both verbal and nonverbal phenomena are of great importance in human beings communication. And this is the same to communication in teaching process, especially the communication in foreig
5、n language classroom. Being communicative is distinguishing feature of foreign language teaching. In order to reach the goal of classroom better, it is very important to for teachers and students adapt the way of nonverbal communication. In this essay, the author will give good introduction about th
6、e nonverbal firstly, then try to explain the impacts of nonverbal behaviors in foreign language teaching. At the end of the essay, some ways of using nonverbal behaviors are introduced.2 Nonverbal communications 2.1 The definition of nonverbal communications There is more than one definition for non
7、verbal communications. According to Raymond Zeuscher, nonverbal communications refers to the information that is transmitted from senders to receivers when the dominant meaning is not conveyed by the use of words. (Raymond Zeuscher, 1997). 2.2 The types of nonverbal communications Nonverbal communic
8、ation actually is a broad field. But generally, it comprises the following 5 aspects. These aspects are: gestures, eye contact, time, paralanguage, and objects. Gestures refers to he total set of voluntary and involuntary movement behaviors, and the patterns thereof (Gudykunst & Kim, 1984; Poyatos,1
9、988). In general, kinesics refers to the study of communicating ones feelings, status, or relationships through conscious and unconscious series of muscular activities. From facial expressions to manner of sitting, gestures account for a large portion of what is communicated. Eyes contacts dictate a
10、nd reflect the nature of a relationship, and help to monitor feedback from the other party. Across cultures, eye contact and the use of gazing can change due to social status, age, professionalism, level of respect, etc. Space, also the proxemics, is the study of how space communicates nonverbally h
11、as been the subject of much research. Differences in the use of space present a clear potential for conflict. (Gudykunst (1984) states that people of differing cultures not only use space differently, they actually experience it differently. Depending on the culture, the structure of ones perceptual
12、world changes, which leads to differing, and sometimes opposing meanings for spaciousness, privacy, crowdedness, and appropriate interaction distance (Gudykunst & Kim, 1984; Irujo, 1988). Paralanguage or vocalics is the study of nonverbal attributes, or vocal cues that directly accompany verbal lang
13、uage. The primary paralinguistic categories include rate, pitch, inflection, volume, quality, tempo, rhythm, resonance and enunciation (Poyatos, 1988; Schnell, 1991).Clearly, elements of language itself, such as intonation and syllabic stress, can affect the way one communicates. Also included in th
14、is category are the sounds that accompanyconversation, such as grunts and hisses. Objects are the things that you have around you. Such as the ornaments one wears, the clothes style, the teaching materials the teachers apply in the classroom. And the arrangement of students, the decoration of the cl
15、assroom and so on. 3 The great impacts of nonverbal communication in the foreign language classroom. More and more investigations about nonverbal communication have revealed its great importance for human being communication and by implication for communication in the foreign language classroom. As
16、for communication in the foreign language classroom is concerned, nonverbal behaviors play an especially important role. According to the results yielded by a project (Hllen, Werner and Lrscher, 1989).suggest at least four impacts are worth mentioning.1) Communication in the classroom is highly orga
17、nized. The teacher and the pupils communicate mainly to reach specific aims which are largely given in advance. The teacher as an expert in her or his field knows the aims and has to achieve them in the most economical way possible. The teachers function is to organize the communicative resources av
18、ailable by the pupils so that the aims can be reached in an optimal way. This very often requires the use of nonverbal signals.2) Teachers use of nonverbal behaviors can facilitate their teaching, smooth the emotional communication between teacher and students.3) The reference of the teacher feedbac
19、k on either students utterance in the learning process is signaled by the teachers and thus understood by the pupils.4) Both the teacher and students can make use of the substitution function of the nonverbal signs in the foreign language classroom, which can help transmit information between the te
20、acher and the students. 4 How to use nonverbal behaviors in the foreign language classroom As we mentioned before, nonverbal behaviors can be divided into different components and the good use of these nonverbal behaviors can lead to great impacts to the foreign language teaching. However, among all
21、 these nonverbal behaviors, the following four parts have been recognized the most commonly used and the most effective ones:1) The use of facial expressions Facial expression here is mainly related to the expressions on face, such as smiling, crying and so on. The facial expression is considered to
22、 be an “Esperanto” in the human society, which can tell a person happiness sadness, anxious, surprise, and horror. In that case, if a teacher can take advantage of facial expression in different situation, it will help harmonize the atmosphere of the classroom and the relationship between teacher an
23、d students. In the classroom, the teachers smiling is the most powerful cue that transmits encouragements, kindness concerns and friendliness to the students. On the contrast, the teacher with dull and mechanical facial expressions will lead to a boring atmosphere in the classroom. So, we can come t
24、o the conclusion that in the classroom, the smile is one of the best ways build up the close relationship between the teacher and the students. But for the teacher, how to bring the smile into the classroom? Then, the teacher can organize some interesting classroom activities such as role play, game
25、 play, story telling and so on. Moreover, the teacher should learn to be humorous while speaking to the students. In a word, the use of varied facial expressions is really a good way for communication in the foreign language classroom.2) The use of gesture The successful use gesture in the foreign l
26、anguage classroom can not only help transmit feeling and thoughts, but also make your vocal language more persuasive and influential. The use of gesture fulfills fully the substitution function of nonverbal behaviors in the classroom. For instance, erecting the thumb is a sign for “Ok!”, “Good Job!”
27、, “Well done!”; shaking head is to express “disapproval”; while nodding head is for “ approval”; the hunched shoulders mean being sad or shy, while the straight squared shoulders mean being confident, energetic or open. With the proper use of rich gesture, the teacher will become a good actor on the
28、 stage of teaching, which will activate the classroom effectively. 3) The use of eyes contact Eyes are the window of soul. Eyes are good reflections of ones inner world. So, among the facial expressions, eyes are the best channel to convey emotion and feelings. Then, the use of eyes contact in the c
29、lassroom can assist improve teaching effects. On one hand, teacher can know his teaching results and students concentration through students eyes words. For example, if the students throw their eyesight everywhere around the classroom, it is a prompt that they are diverting attention. If they flow o
30、ut surprise or doubt from their eyes, it is probable that the teacher has made some mistakes while his teaching. And if the students eyes are full of happiness and joy, this may suggest that they have understood what the teacher had said or they had got a good harvest in the classroom. One can see t
31、hat from the students eyes, the teacher can learn their real reflection about teaching. On the other hand, the teacher can use eyes contact to express his own attitudes towards students vividly. With eyes that can communicate with students, the teacher will become more attractive in the classroom.4)
32、 The use of objects Objects are the most commonly used audiovisual teaching aids especially in the secondary school English teaching, it is necessary for teachers to prepare some simple and real life teaching aids, such as some pictures, some slides, some video contents and so on. If the teacher is
33、able to take advantage of all these teaching aids, it will smooth the information transmitting and make the teaching process more authentic, which is a good way to arise students interest and deepen their memories in learning. According to the idea of Constructivism, knowledge is nor received mainly
34、 teachers transmitting of information, but constructed in certain situation with the help of others and some useful teaching materials. From this idea, we can see that teaching material play an important role for constructing knowledge. In that case, the good use of objects can help set up a real li
35、fe context for learning, in this context, it is easy for students to an active leaning participant and knowledge constructors. All these will make the successful teaching more easily.Conclusion Nonverbal behaviors are an essential channel for human communication, and it also has unneglected power in
36、 the foreign language classroom. So, it is necessary for teachers to learn to use proper nonverbal behaviors to optimize their teaching, to activate the classroom atmosphere, to facilitate students learning and arise their learning interest. In a word, the magic power of nonverbal communication will
37、 have the foreign language classroom become an attractive palace for the teacher and the students. Bibliography:1 Hllen, Werner and Lrscher, (1989), “On describing and analyzing foreign language classroom discourse.” 2 Irujo, Suzanne. (1988). “An Introduction to Intercultural Differences and Similar
38、ities in Nonverbal Communication.”3 Gudykunst, William B., Kim, Young Yun. (1984). “Communicating with Strangers: An Approach to Intercultural Communication.” Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.4 Poyatos, Fernando. (1988). “New Research Perspectives in Cross-cultural Psychology Through Nonverbal Communication Studies.” (pp.35-69). 5 Raymond Zeuscher, “Communication Today”, California Polytechnic State University 6 Chnell, Jim. (1991). “The need for nonverbal communication theory when teaching English as a Second Language: a case study in China. ERIC Document ED336951.”4