作者简介：申倩，山西师范大学外国语学院外国语言学及应用学2011研究生 摘 要：肢体语言能有效地帮助组织教学，激发学生的学习兴趣，增进师生情感，从而提高教学效果，在英语教学中起着至关重要的辅助作用。但近年来，肢体语言在中学英语教学中不但没有受到应有的重视，而且教师还有意无意的忽视了肢体语言的有效运用，增加了无效肢体语言，影响了课堂教学。
关键词：肢体语言；中学英语教学；运用
With the rapid development of economy, English is used extensively. We also pay more attention to English teaching. And middle school is a main place to foster students who have excellent knowledge of English. Its class teaching plays a significant part in developing excellent students. However, with the arrival of the age of knowledge-based economy, middle school’s teachers are requested to change the traditional role. Traditional teachers were the authoritarian representatives, but now they are scholars who enlighten students. So they pay more attention to students’ subject status. In order to accomplish this change, teachers must attach importance to the application of body language. In the English teaching, body language has the same importance as language. So teachers must sufficiently pay attention to the application of body language in English teaching.
Body language is the nonverbal behavior which conveys information through facial expression and movements. It includes facial expression, eye contact, gesture, posture and so on. It is a significant supplementary method to the verbal language. It also has other types such as touching, appearance and so on.
We can sum up four functions of body language. The first is the function of assistance. Body language can repeat, assist, complement, reinforce and coordinate with verbal communication. The second is the function of feedback. Feedback is an important method to control the class. When the feedback of students’ body language accord with the expectation of teachers, teachers will stick to their teaching methods and behaviors. On the contrary, teachers will change the way of expression in order to improve the effect of the class. The third is the function of substitution. In some situations, body language can substitute for verbal language to convey information efficiently. The fourth is the function of adjustment. Teachers can use gestures and facial expressions appropriately or change their posture occasionally, they can adjust to the atmosphere, keep the class interesting and eliminate students’ fatigue. Meanwhile, body language also can control students’ behavior efficiently.
Although body language is very important, it is paid little attention. While a few teachers try to use body language, they get opposite effects. Therefore, we should value some problems in using body language.
The first problem is unawareness of the importance. Most middle school’s English teachers neglect the application of body language. They just keep talking and talking in order to finish the teaching task. They never consider students’ feelings, let alone using body language. And multimedia is used widely in the class. This causes teachers to rely on it excessively, while students are attracted by it and have no time to notice teachers’ body language. The second problem is inappropriateness of the application.Although some teachers adjust to the change and try to use body language, they can not apply it appropriately. Teachers use body language too frequently. Teachers add useless body language accidently. And some teachers use unclear body language. The third problem is lack of ways. Teachers neglect the communication in English and hardly know what is body language, let alone right ways of using it.
Nowadays, teachers are requested to explain questions and teach texts basically in English, and students are also asked to try their best to use English in class. Therefore, it is necessary to study the concrete application of body language in English teaching.
Listening plays an important role in our daily life. Developing the ability of communication is the basic purpose of English teaching. Thus, teachers pay more attention to fostering students’ listening in English teaching. In this process, the effect of the class will be better if body language is used appropriately.
Spoken language is one of the important ways to communicate. The purpose of learning English is to communicate with others in English. Generally speaking, body language can arouse students’ interest of using English and encourage them to speak English boldly. In the English class, both teacher and students can use body language according to different situations.
Reading is very important to English teaching. It requests that students not only can read, but also read fast, exactly, efficiently and creatively. In the middle school’s English teaching, we focus on reading aloud. Reading aloud helps students study correct pronunciation, grasp right intonation, find out the author’s internal feelings and feel the beauty of the language. Teachers should take advantage of body language to fostering students’ reading ability.
Writing is one of basic skills of learning English. If the teacher let students write an unfamiliar article, they may feel disappointed and be unable to write even one word. However, when they have some experiences, they will write a wonderful composition. Therefore, teachers should encourage students to take part in English-related activities and apply body language as much as they can do.
All in all, body language is very important in English teaching and our daily life. The one thing we need always bear in mind is that actions speak louder than words. Although it is not as clearly as verbal language, the body language is also controlled by rules. If it is inappropriately used, it will cause misunderstanding and influence our communication. Through the essay, teachers should attach importance to the application of body language in English teaching. Using appropriate body language makes the class more interesting and colorful. In this way, the teaching will have a good teaching effect.（作者单位:山西师范大学外国语学院)
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