Teach English in Xuling Zhen - Anqing Shi

Cultural Communication Skill in EFL ClassIn most cases, a typical EFL classroom consists of two or more cultures. If it is a mono-cultural class then there exists (1) the native culture of the teacher and (2) that of the students. In a multicultural class there could be as many cultures as there are students. The EFL classroom is by nature multicultural (with the exception of teachers and students who are from the same culture). Because of this reality, cross-cultural communication skills are essential skills to learn and incorporate whenever teacher decides to cross. Due to the brevity of this paper we cannot explore all of the aspects of cross-cultural communication. So, this paper will only explore common types of non-verbal communication (gestures and facial expressions) and suggest some principles to follow in the EFL classroom. When we think of communication we often only think of words. But, communication goes far beyond our written and spoken phrases. We communicate with our bodies, eyes, facial expressions, proximity to other people, voice intonation and physical touch. Think about the messages that are sent through a hug or a kiss, through a cold stare of the eyes, through a warm smile, or through a person with folded arms standing at a distance from you while talking to you. These are all examples of non-verbal communication. Just as words can differ from language to language so also do many non-verbal forms of communication. Thus, it is important for EFL teachers to be aware of some basic differences in non-verbal communication between the teacher?s home culture and the students? home culture(s). Gestures are movements that we make primarily with our upper body (particularly our arms, hands, fingers and head). Just like a mispronounced word can cause great confusion and misunderstandings so too can a ?mispronounced? gesture. In my own context, in vietnam, some gestures that are harmless and even friendly in Western cultures can cause great offense to vietnamese students. In the usa, for example, it is quite acceptable for a teacher to call upon a student to answer a question by point at the student. Another common gesture is to hold your hand palm-up with fingers pointed upward then swing your fingers back and forth to indicate you would like someone to come to you. Though these are rather benign gestures to make in a Western classroom they are considered offensive and even abusive if performed by a teacher in a vietnamese classroom. The reason is that both of these gestures are only used for dogs and other animals, but never for humans. If a teacher points at a student to answer a question or motions them to come to the front of the class by using these gestures it will cause great offense and embarrassment to the student. It is as if the teacher is saying, ?I think you are a dog, so I am going to behave towards you as I would behave toward a dog.? We also communicate messages through our faces. We call these messages facial expressions. In Western cultures we frown at people when we are sad, angry or disappointed with something they have done and smile when they do something that makes up happy or pleased. This is due to the fact that most Western cultures are ?low context? cultures whereas many Asian cultures are ?high context? cultures. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall notes that, ?a high-context (HC) communication or message is one in which most of the information is either in the physical context or internalized in the person, while very little is in coded, explicit, transmitted part of the message. A low-context (LC) communication is just the opposite? (Hall, pg. 91). In practical terms Western cultures tend to lean toward being very direct with our words, facial-expressions and other forms of communication. Many Asian cultures on the other hand, tend to communicate much more indirectly and even associate directness as being rude. Thus, a frown of disappointment directed toward a student who has been disruptive in class, might come across as demeaning and rude. Likewise, smiles in many Asian cultures don?t necessarily indicate a state of happiness. The can be high context ways of communicating embarrassment and even anger. To conclude we can suggest the following principles to EFL teachers who end up in a multicultural context. First, spend some time learning about the home cultures of your students. There are many books available about most cultures around the world. The Internet is also a great source to find out some basic cultural information of many cultures. Second, take some time to learn about some of the do?s and don?ts of your students? culture(s). This learning process can be used as the basis of an early lesson in the EFL class. For example, the teacher might plan a lesson about non-verbal communication across cultures. During the lesson the teacher could illicit examples of non-verbal communication that is considered rude or demeaning in their culture. The teacher can take note of these in order to modify any gesture, facial expressions or other non-verbal forms of communication that might cause offense toward his/her students. References Hall, Edward T., Beyond Culture, Anchor Press, 1976.