Cross-cultural Nonverbal Communication In College English Classrooms

A great deal of research shows that about 70% or 90% of information in communication is conveyed by nonverbal means. Since teaching is in fact a form of communication, nonverbal communication plays a significant role in teaching, which has been underestimated and even neglected. The majority of the people hold that teaching in classrooms is mainly conducted through verbal means but not nonverbal means. Though plenty of money, time and energy have been invested into learning and teaching, it seems that College English Teaching can't be regarded as successful. Therefore, some scholars and researchers try to study English teaching from a perspective of nonverbal communication for the good intention of the diversification of teaching methods, the improvement of teaching effects and the promotion of teaching quality. The thesis is mainly about the tentative discussion of the application and effects of nonverbal communication on college English teaching, esp. classroom teaching.Much research has been done on cross-cultural and nonverbal communication both abroad and at home. The rapid development of modern technology, transportation and communication causes more contacts between different countries, nations and cultures. Moreover, with the increasing popularity of the Internet, the earth has become a "global village". As the study in the field of communication deepens, the critical importance of nonverbal behaviors in intercultural communication attracts more attention, such as postures, gestures, facial expressions, eye movements, appearance, dress, etc. or even silence. In 1959, the prominent anthropologist, Hall published his first work The Silent Language, which discusses mainly about the relationship between communication and time and space. He contends that people with different cultural background have different use and perception of time and space. Consequently the book is viewed as the most famous classic in the realm of nonverbal communication and has significant influence on the successors.The thesis includes 3 major parts, excluding the introduction and the conclusion. A description of literature review is offered first, with the major works published both abroad and at home. Then, a survey of culture and nonverbal communication is followed, esp. the understanding of the definition and the correlation of both. After this, the thesis mainly discusses the nonverbal communication from its functions, characteristics and classifications, esp. the cultural implications of different nonverbal behaviors and means. Based on the previous research and my own generalization, nonverbal communication behaviors are classified into four:body language, object language, environment language and paralanguage. Finally, the thesis devotes its bulk to the application and impacts of nonverbal means in college English teaching, esp. in classroom teaching and learning. Being language-learners, communicators and participants, what teachers and students behave in classrooms has a vital influence on the success of teaching.After the detailed discussion, it is concluded that nonverbal communication plays a significant role in college English classrooms. Any single nonverbal behavior or signal conveys more or less messages to others consciously or unconsciously. Many factors count, such as teacher's postures, gestures, facial expressions, eye movements, clothing, appearance, make-up, etc. Moreover, classroom layout, teacher's proximity to the students, teacher's use and perception of time and silence, the volume, tone, pitch of teacher's voice and so on all have a great impact on teaching and learning. It is imperative that teachers should be fully aware of the significance and necessity of applying nonverbal communication to classroom teaching and should employ as many nonverbal behaviors as possible appropriately in classroom teaching; it is required that students should enrich their knowledge and should be more active in experiencing and participating in nonverbal communication to enhance their cross-cultural competence of communication. Then an ultimate conclusion is reached that the integration of these two surely has a significant impact on the improvement of effect of classroom teaching, the enhancement of the students'cross-cultural competence of communication and the promotion of "quality-oriented" education in college English teaching.