THE IMPORTANCE OF BODY LANGUAGE AT ENGLISH CLASS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL 肢體語言英語課堂的重要性 (=)

1、肢體語言英語課堂的重要性the importance of body language at english class in middle schoolabstractwith the continual reform of language teaching and learning methods, teachers are required to organize the classes in english and create englishlearning environments. however, with the limitation of students vocabul

2、ary, teachers have to simplify their teaching language with the help of body language in the teaching of english. moreover, researches show that body language plays a great part in interpersonal communication and english teaching. in order to appeal english teachers to take full advantage of the bod

3、y language in english teaching, the author presents this paper to explain the importance of body language in english teaching, through discussing the types and the specific functions of body language frequently employed in the process of english teaching .she also presents her teaching experience an

4、d a survey report to support her viewpoint that the appropriate application of body language by english teacher in middle school can improve teaching efficiency greatly. key words: body language; total physical response; english teaching 摘 要 隨著語言教與學(xué)方法的不斷改革，要求教師進行英語教學(xué)并創(chuàng)造出英語學(xué)習(xí)的環(huán)境，然而，由于學(xué)生詞匯量的限制，教師必須借用肢

5、體語言來簡化課堂用語。并且研究發(fā)現(xiàn)肢體語言在人際交往和英語教學(xué)中都起著重大的作用。為了呼吁英語教師在教學(xué)中充分發(fā)揮肢體語言的作用，該論文通過對英語教學(xué)中經(jīng)常用到的肢體語言的種類及其在具體教學(xué)中的作用進行了分析和調(diào)研，從而說明肢體語言的重要性，同時作者結(jié)合自己的教學(xué)經(jīng)驗來說明在中學(xué)英語課堂中適當(dāng)?shù)膽?yīng)運肢體語言能夠很好的提高教學(xué)效率。關(guān)鍵字：肢體語言;全身反映教學(xué)法;英語教學(xué)table of contents1. introduction12the importance of using body language in english teaching12.1 total physical re

6、sponse and body language22.2 the advantages of using body language in english teaching32.2.1from teachers aspect32.2.2 from students aspect32.3 the types of body language used in english teaching42.3.1 the application of facial expression42.3.2 the application of eye contact52.3.3. the application o

7、f gesture62.3.4. the application of manner72.4 a comparison between two teachers73. concrete application of body language83.1 body language helps to improve listening93.2 body language helps to improve speaking93.3 body language helps to improve writing.103.4 body language helps to improve reading11

8、4. some suggestions when using body language114.1. using body language under appropriate occasions124.2. accuracy and frequency125. report of the survey125.1 research method135.2 samples135.3 subject and procedure135.4 analysis of the survey136. conclusion14bibliography16acknowledgements17appendix18

9、iii1. introductionat present, almost everyone knows that english learning becomes more and more important to the students. as we all know, the classroom teaching is one of the most important ways for the students learn english. as far as the english teaching in middle school is concerned, teachers n

10、eed to reform the teaching methods to arouse the students interest and help them to learn better. there are many useful and proper methods to get the goal. however, one of the most important ways is to use body language, because english teaching in middle school focuses on communication activities a

11、t present. dull and dry communication will make students produce unpleasant feelings. they do not like the usual, unchanging teaching and learning methods.body language is the process of communicating what you are feeling or thinking by the way you place and move your body rather than by words. it c

12、omes before verbal language, and it is the primary form of human communication. it refers to the patterns of facial expression, eye contact that people use to express their attitudes and feelings to communicate. fen.lafle.angles once said: “once it was lost, a baby couldnt have grown into a normal p

13、erson.”(liuyongfa&liuxuanen, 1997) researches carried out by most linguists revealing that information conveyed by body language accounts for 65% in face-to-face communication while verbal means only takes up 35%. in school education, body language plays a positive role in arouse students interest a

14、nd create english learning environment and so on. a research reported that 82% of the notions used in class by teachers are nonverbal, while only 18% are verbal.(shenminxian,1999) however, english teachers in china still give their emphasis on the traditional teaching means, such as the verbal langu

15、age and written language but they neglect the importance of body language in teaching. therefore, in english class, the teachers should pay enough attention to body language and properly use it. because not only it is a good tool to communicate with others and express oneself, but it can help the te

16、achers achieve a higher teaching goal and further mutual understanding between the teachers and the students. 2the importance of using body language in english teachingwith the development of our society, english has become more and more important. as a matter of fact, english teaching has become a

17、key part of the school education, with the english teaching methods reform, english teachers are required to organize the teaching process in english，especially the class in middle school. however, students in the middle school cant speak very well; neither can they understand why they should use di

18、fferent tones in different time or situation; their vocabulary and expressive ability are limited too. these limitations make it difficult to realize the communicating english in the classes, so according to the students present level and practical situation, body language is required.2.1 total phys

19、ical response and body languagetotal physical response (tpr) is a language teaching method built around the coordination of speech and action; it attempts to teach language through physical activity. the main advocator is a famous american psychologist, james asher, who views language learning proce

20、ss is just like the mother tongue learning process by children. the teacher should create a relaxed and comfortable environment for learners. because anxiety is quite possibly the affective factor that most pervasively obstructs the learning process. it is associated with negative feelings such as u

21、neasiness, self-doubt, apprehension and tension, when anxiety is present in the classroom, there is a donw-spirialling affect (shenminxian, 1999). anxiety makes us nervous and afraid and thus contributes to poor performance; this in turn creates more anxiety and an even worse performance. in classro

22、om, the teacher use a vivid and specific body movements, facial expressions or gestures, namely body language which reduces the learning pressure and also increases the learning interest. as a result, students can easily understand what the teacher says. this language learning method is the practica

23、l reflection and extension of affective- humanism approach which emphasizes the importance of the learners psychological factors in language learning. some popular teaching methods such as communicative language learning, the natural approach and task-based approach are influenced by tpr. (liushulin

24、, liuchunyun&liuyuewei, 2004) body language is the key in tpr. it should be widely used in tpr classroom.2.2 the advantages of using body language in english teachingas vocal languages vital complement, body language has many advantages in english teaching. at this part, the author will discuss seve

25、ral main advantages of body language from teachers and students aspects separately.2.2.1 from teachers aspectif a class is compared to a drama, then, teaches are the directors of this drama. as a teacher one should has his own teaching style and be good at designing his body language in teaching, be

26、cause the use of body language in teaching process is important.first, the use of body language can help teachers express themselves better and understand students clearly. body language can be vocal languages vital complement, in expressing some subtle ideas; body language can be a good helper. it

27、can make the abstract things become specific, so the students can understand the abstract things easily. second, the use of body language can help teachers simplify the knowledge and create english environment. as we all know, environment is the key factor for us to learn english well, so teachers s

28、hould adopt teaching methods that use english to teach students during their teaching process. students also need to use english at class in order to learn better. but for middle school students their vocabulary is limited, moreover, young pupils have limited ability to learn words and expressions t

29、hrough conceptual explanations. when teachers describe or explain words or phrases in english, it is difficult for them to understand. as time goes on, they will lose interest in learning english. but with the help of body language, the complex words can be simplified. a simple motion, an expression

30、 will make it easy to understand. in the end, students can accept new knowledge in a happy atmosphere.2.2.2 from students aspectin fact, students are the real major characters in the teaching process; everything teachers did is to create a good learning environment for students, so the use of body l

31、anguage must benefit students. the following are the advantages.firstly, the use of body language can reduce students pressure and create a stress-free learning atmosphere. with the help of body language, they would full of courage and confidence and without nervous any more. so absolutely they will

32、 open mouth to speak and take part in the activity like group-work full of enthusiasm.secondly the use of body language can help students keep firmly in mind the knowledge obtained in class, especially when teaching some key points, teachers can emphasize it by raising his voice and reaching out his

33、 fingers. that will usually give students a deep impression thirdly, the use of body language can stir students interest greatly. classroom teaching is the major method for students to obtain knowledge. the application of body language can directly influence the teaching effect (shenminxian, 1999).

34、if they are interested in the contents, they would pay much attention to it. that means they have passion to learn. as we all know interest is the best teacher, one cannot learn a foreign language well without being interest. sometimes, interest is more important than intelligence and language aptit

35、ude. if students are deeply attracted by the teachers behavior. thats a good beginning. as the old saying goes, a good beginning means a half of success. at last, a successful lesson will be lead. based on the above analysis we can learn that the use of body language is necessary and practical at en

36、glish teaching in middle schools.2.3 the types of body language used in english teachingbody language plays an important role in everyday communication, so does it in english teaching. body language falls into various categories. facial expression, eye contact, gesture, and manner are four of them w

37、hich are often employed in english teaching (lihaitao, 2004).2.3.1 the application of facial expressionfacial expression is the whole showing screen of peoples mind, thought and nerve. all the pleasure, anger, anxiety, thought, sorrow and fear of a person can be reflected from the countenance (lihai

38、tao, 2004). thus the significance of facial expression can be easily seen. therefore, being good at talking and performing with the face, teachers should aim at the different circumanstance appeared in the english teaching classroom. the most typical facial expression, smile, applied by english teac

39、hers in class will be discussed in the following paragraphs.nearly every student likes to approach teachers with smile on their face instead of those who wear frowns, scowls and grimaces. a warm, kind smile is often encourage and non-threatening, and then harmonious atmosphere is created. just as th

40、e communicative approach of language teaching claims that people learn best when they feel secured. so it is certain that students in such a harmonious class will be activated and interested in learning. it has been found that the smile expressed by teachers can unburden students spiritually. englis

41、h may be a bit dull and difficult for us chinese learners, so it is important to help students to build up their confidence in learning. it is said that teachers smile is a great encouragement for students to gain confidence in english learning. for instance, when a student is late for class or make

42、s a stupid mistake in work. instead of blaming him, the teacher can smile affably to him, pointing out his mistake, which will lead to better result. 2.3.2 the application of eye contactas a proverb goes “the eyes are the window of the soul.of all the ways we communicate with people, eye contact is

43、the most powerful one. according to a research, the eye contact between teachers and students should take up 60%-70% total time in class to arouse students interest (guxueliang, 1998). practically, the longer the eye contact lasts the more possibly the teacher will be considered trustful. it is said

44、 that looking at people and meeting their eyes are the first step towards building up friendships and making positive impression. it is known to all that the activity of english teaching is the process of knowledge transmission as well as interpersonal communication, thus a friendly relationship bet

45、ween teachers and students is necessary for teaching activities to be carried out smoothly. what is more, the attitude of intimacy, concern or indifference can be inferred by the way a teacher looks at or avoids looking at a student. researches show that speakers who look at audience are often perce

46、ived as much more favorable, confident, credible, and qualified than those who avoid eye contact (lihaitao, 2004). it is also true in the classroom where students always feel more willingly to pay attention to the lessons delivered by teachers who continuously keep eye contact with them. a study con

47、ducted by breed, christiansen and larson indicates that students who are looked at almost continuously by teachers receive higher scores in exam. it is often said that the eyes of human beings can speak. thus, teachers can understand better what students are thinking through the various movements of

48、 the eyes.firstly, teachers could get to know the effect of their lesson and this would help them analyze the situation of the students.secondly, teachers could know whether the students fully focus on the lesson through their eyes.from the above analysis, we can easily learn that the functions of e

49、ye contact in english teaching are significant. so an excellent teacher should have a pair of eyes which can speak. 2.3.3 the application of gesture gesture means we communicate and express by the movement and manners of our hands and fingers. it also raises an essential function in english teaching

50、. gestures have an extensive sphere of application, and it is very convenient to apply them. also they could be used freely and they have a lot of variety. most importantly, the use of gesture can assist vocal language. because of this, some people regard gesture language as “the second language of

51、oral expression（liuyongfa&liuxuanen,1997）. for example, when you want to describe the size of a big fish to your students, you could move your hands apart to show how long the fish is. this gesture communicates better than your vocal language.when teachers teach students words, they can put question

52、s to the students with the help of body language. for example, when a teacher give an instruction: you two, please come to the blackboard. the students can easily understand it if the teacher points to some two students. then, the teacher points to the blackboard. the students will carry out the ord

53、er without obstacle even if they dont hear the key words blackboard .whats more, gestures can help us reinforce the verbal message. for example, the teacher says, “i have three major points to talk about today,” while holding up three fingers. in this way, students can remember the key points better

54、. in short, an accurate and moderate gesture can not only transmit the thought but also deepen students impression of the knowledge. in a word, the vivid gesture together with the fluent english can create a good circumstance of learning, which will surely play an active part in improving the studen

55、ts study ability.2.3.4. the application of mannerthe educationists believe that manner is a moving action of a persons body and is also a kind of information system of expressing body language. the england philosopher bacon believes that beauty of looks is higher than the color and luster one, yet t

56、he graceful and elegant beauty of action is higher than the beauty of looks (liuyongfa&liuxuanen, 1997). in english teaching classroom, teachers should have the proper, elegant and composed manner to attract students attention , which will rise a function of “silent is superior to sound ”. when a te

57、acher has a class, he should not always stand on the platform, but should take a proper stroll around the students. when the students do their practice, the teacher can also take a stroll at the students, checking their exercise, promoting the exchanges of teachers and students, because how close te

58、achers stand to students affects what the latter hear, attend and retain. generally speaking, distance from four to tee feet is the most appropriate for effective teaching and learning.(lihaitao，2004) but there are variations to this, for instance, when teachers lead reading they can walk down to th

59、e platform and go into the studentsspace, so that they can control the class, finding and correcting the studentspronnuciation, intonation and so on. at the same time, it will also give the students a model function, such as the teachers statements and actions, the attitude of treating the persons and dealing with thing