A Study On Classroom Silence In Middle School

Classroom silence, one kind of teaching resources without sufficient attention for a long time, is defined as an embarrassment or awkward pause and needed to be break. What’s more, this phenomenon becomes more significant under the New Curriculum Reform. As a type of nonverbal communication behaviors, classroom silence could lead to communication disorder but also act as an efficient approach to achieve education purpose. Worrying about existing ignorance, scorn and even hostility toward classroom silence, I begin this research aiming at figuring out the origin of classroom silence, developing educational intelligence and improving class participation, which can enrich teaching theory and practice.The main methods in my study include literature analysis, classroom observation and individual interview. From the perspective of Communication Studies and other related discipline, this dissertation mainly discusses the definition, classification, characteristics, influencing factors and function of classroom silence, as well as achievement of its teaching value. The dissertation consists of six parts.Part one is an introduction to the study. This part includes the background and significance of the subject. General situation and deficiency of previous researches will be investigated through literature reviewing. Also the object, method and originality will be stated in this part.Part two concentrates on the definition of classroom silence. I will explore the original meaning of silence to define classroom silence and to reveal the relation between silence and language. Theories of Communication Studies will also be involved in this part. Besides, matters needing attention in understanding classroom silence will be pointed out.Part three involves the classification, characteristic, and function of classroom silence, which is the most significant innovation of this dissertation. There are four characteristics of classroom silence:conceptual vagueness, contagiousness, behavioral accompaniment and generality. Teacher silence has controlling, inspiring and auxiliary functions, while student silence could be active in concealing and feeding back.Part four mainly analyzes the influential factors of classroom silence. Through a one-month observation of classroom, cases of Chinese lessons of a seven-grade class will be investigated in detail. The factors of teacher, student, teaching environment and culture will be discussed through an example of student silence.Part five is about how to achieve the teaching value of classroom silence. To sum up, teachers could make efforts in three ways. Firstly, accumulate teaching wisdom and wisely make use of necessary classroom silence. Secondly, grasp the pulse of the class to transform negative silence into positive silence. Finally, encourage students to express and make positive silence manifested.Part six is the conclusion.