Nonverbal Communication in College English Classroom Teaching

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Human communication can be divided into two categories: verbal communication and nonverbal communication, where verbal means is commonly considered to be the most important, efficient, powerful means of communication. while a very important fact was neglected: in face-to-face communication, the use of nonverbal communication is more common than that of verbal communication, and it is an essential part of human communication, which plays a significant role.

In Bi Jiwan’s (1999) opinion, nonverbal communication can be divided into the four classes: 1. Body language, including basic posture, gesture, basic manners and movements of any part of the body. 2. Paralanguage, referring to these elements such as pitch, speed, volume, tone, rhyme, silence and pause. 3. Object language, consisting of smell, complexion, clothing, cosmetics, furniture, etc. 4. Environment language, including time, space, colors, city planning and any human effect on nature.

Although nonverbal communication plays a central role in human behavior, College English teachers used to focus on English grammar and vocabulary, ignorant of the practical application of nonverbal communication so that the students feel the teachers’ lectures are boring and they are frequently absent on purpose. Therefore college English teachers should fully realize the role played by nonverbal behaviors, let alone nonverbal behaviors performed by themselves, for the teachers’ appropriate nonverbal behaviors not only improve the relationship between the teachers and the students but also set up a good image for the students.

Source: Nonverbal Communication in College English Classroom Teaching

by Liangguang Huang, English Department, Zhenjiang Watercraft College of PLA,

Zhenjiang 212000, China

 Journal of Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 903-908, July 2011

 ISSN 1798-4769