Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities

Abstract

Even though non-verbal communication is an essential part of communicative situations, it still is a neglected issue in foreign language teaching. This is quite surprising as no language learner can achieve communicative competence without having some knowledge of non-verbal phenomena, which make communication authentic and serve numerous functions needed for communicative success.Teaching a combination of verbal and non-verbal aspects of communication has positive effects on the language learning process in general and on the students’ willingness to communicate in particular. Furthermore, it is important for language learners to become aware of the role non-verbal communication plays in intercultural encounters. Additionally, the knowledge and awareness of the functions of non-verbal communication also help to develop literary competence since non-verbal phenomena contribute to a text’s meaning and its effect on the reader in both drama and prose.The objectives of this paper are to outline the nature and functions of non-verbal communication, to show why integrating non-verbal phenomena into different areas of FLT can be highly valuable, and to present drama activities that help sensitise students to non-verbal aspects of communication in various contexts.

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Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
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Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in
Foreign Language Teaching and How We Can
Foster It with Drama Activities
Carola Surkamp
Abstract
Even though non-verbal communication is an essential part of commu-
nicative situations, it still is a neglected issue in foreign language teach-
ing. This is quite surprising as no language learner can achieve com-
municative competence without having some knowledge of non-verbal
phenomena, which make communication authentic and serve numerous
functions needed for communicative success. Teaching a combination of
verbal and non-verbal aspects of communication has positive effects on
the language learning process in general and on the students’ willingness
to communicate in particular. Furthermore, it is important for language
learners to become aware of the role non-verbal communication plays in
intercultural encounters. Additionally, the knowledge and awareness of
the functions of non-verbal communication also help to develop literary
competence since non-verbal phenomena contribute to a text’s meaning
and its effect on the reader in both drama and prose. The objectives of
this paper are to outline the nature and functions of non-verbal commu-
nication, to show why integrating non-verbal phenomena into different
areas of FLT can be highly valuable, and to present drama activities that
help sensitise students to non-verbal aspects of communication in various
contexts.
1 Introduction
Non-verbal communication plays an important role in human social interaction.
In this regard, Abercrombie (1968: 55) states what is generally taken for
granted: “We speak with our vocal organs, but we converse with our entire
bodies.” Every facial expression and every gesture contributes to the overall
meaning of a statement. Our body language thus accompanies every speech
act we make, and even if we do not speak, our non-verbal behaviour constantly
transmits information that can be meaningful.
Birdwhistell (1955), one of the pioneers in research on non-verbal commu-
nication, estimates that in a conversation up to 65% of what is transmitted on
Copyright © 2014 the author[s]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
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https://doi.org/10.33178/scenario.8.2.3

Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
the social, interpersonal level is conveyed non-verbally. This implies that a
considerable part of any message that we are sending and receiving is encoded
and decoded non-verbally. Consequently, although only recently, non-verbal
phenomena have become a focus of interest in various disciplines such as
anthropology, psychology, sociology, and linguistics (cf. Kendon 2004).
In the context of foreign language teaching, however, non-verbal phenomena
have not been given sufficient a ttention ( cf. Eßer 2 007: 3 20; Knabe 2007:
13). Language classes have traditionally emphasised verbal communication.
Although the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages does
at least intermittently pick up on non-verbal communication (cf. 4.4.5), the way
this is dealt with does not suffice: the text sporadically refers to body language in
terms of pointing, gesture and mime to support the verbal reference – but it does
not include a structured and explicit description of non-verbal competences.
Most manuals for foreign language teaching similarly do not include materials
and exercises which focus on non-verbal forms of communication (cf. Reimann
2012: 36; Özkul 2012: 17).
And yet, several recent publications in the domain of foreign language
teaching show that non-verbal forms of communication are very important
not only for the teaching of language, but also for intercultural learning
(cf. Knabe 2007; Reimann 2008, 2012; Strasser 2008). In addition to
this, a variety of methodological work has been published in practice-oriented
journals, suggesting different approaches to including non-verbal forms of
communication in foreign language classes (cf. Reimann 2000; Bouchara 2009;
Özkul 2012).
It is not surprising that these suggestions always include role-plays, mime
and other action-oriented and holistic activities that consider the entire body
with its different forms of perception and expression. Many of these exercises
originate from drama pedagogy and have found their way into foreign language
teaching: they stress the value of non-verbal elements for language learning,
not only when it comes to creating authentic communicative situations in the
classroom, but also as a compensation strategy for listening and speaking as
well as in the context of intercultural learning (cf. Schewe 1993: 6f.; Tselikas
1999: 28; Culham 2002; Müller 2008: 28ff.; Elis 2015). Studies in the
area of drama pedagogy also draw attention to the fact that non-verbal forms
of communication used in acting can prepare learners’ verbal communication
in the foreign language by helping them get rid of inhibitions (cf. Matthias
2007), and that these forms of communication can motivate learners to
communicate in multi-modal ways, making use of different channels and signs
(cf. Rothwell 2011). What is missing, however, is a distinction between the
various requirements students need to fulfill in the different areas of foreign
language learning (linguistic, literary and intercultural learning) as well as the
establishment of a connection between these requirements and selected drama
methods.
For this reason, the following article has two aims: First, following a short
overview of different non-verbal components of communication, I will show
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
how these different components are part of the teaching of language, culture
and literature. Second, I want to illustrate how foreign language classes
based on drama pedagogy can contribute more effectively to a consideration of
non-verbal communication on the different levels of the teaching and learning
of a foreign language.
2 Non-verbal Components of Communication
Usually, non-verbal communication is defined in opposition to verbal com-
munication: all phenomena with a communicative value that are not part of
verbal communication are summarised under the umbrella term ‘non-verbal
communication’. As the psychologist Scherer (1980: 225) notes, ambiguities in
the use of the term can often be traced back to the fact that the term ‘non-verbal’
refers both to visible phenomena such as gestures and facial expression as
well as to audible aspects such as speaking styles and quality of speech. It
is for this reason that Scherer (ibid.) proposes making a distinction between
vocal and non-vocal phenomena. On the one hand we can, therefore, find
paralinguistic (i.e. vocal) phenomena such as individual characteristics of the
voice, speech melody, temporal aspects, forms of articulation and side noise.
On the other hand, there are non-vocal phenomena in conversation such as
the external characteristics of a speaker, physical reactions and a number of
kinesic phenomena, which can be divided into macro-kinesic and micro-kinesic
phenomena. The following figure shows a systematic overview of the main
forms of non-verbal communication (cf. Argyle 1972, 2002; Ekman/Friesen
1969; Crystal 1974; Poyatos 1983):
Figure 1: Overview of the main forms of non-verbal communication
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
Observing such non-verbal phenomena in conversation plays an important
role in the interpretation of meaning, for instance when it comes to assessing
others, to the creation of closeness and distance or to understanding the
relationship between conversation partners:
First, our physical appearance provides nonverbal cues that others use to
make judgments about us. Second, the way we use space [. . .] helps
us regulate intimacy and control our sensory exposure to others. Third,
the way we move our bodies [. .. ] provides information about us to
others. Fourth, the way we use our voice [...] tells others how we define
the relationship between ourselves and them. Fifth, the degree to which
we touch others and the degree to which we allow others to touch us
provides cues to how we see our relationships. (Gudykunst/Kim 1997:
225)
One has, however, to consider two things (cf. Scherer 1980: 227f.). First,
non-verbal signs are not always coded in an unambiguous way. This is due
to the fact that not all signs are emblematic, which means that they can be
used in different ways by individuals according to the context or specific group.
Moreover, there can be cultural differences in the use of one and the same
sign. Second, non-verbal signs are not always transmitted in an intentional
way, that is, there is not necessarily a specific intention underlying the use of
a sign. A large part of non-verbal communication happens unconsciously. The
way closeness and distance are established through physical contact between
individuals, for instance, is something that usually happens unconsciously,
although physical touch can be used intentionally in particular situations, for
example the act of shaking somebody’s hand when greeting them (cf. Strasser
2008: 65f.).
3 On the Importance of Non-verbal Communication in
Language Teaching
One of the main teaching objectives in the foreign language classroom
is the development of communicative competence. As an essential part of
communication is non-verbal, communicative competence cannot consist solely
of the correct use of verbal language. The fact that non-verbal phenomena
play an essential role in conversation becomes evident when we consider
the different functions non-verbal behaviour can fulfil (cf. Jakobson 1960:
353ff.; Ekman/Friesen 1969; Argyle 2002: 106, 117ff.; Strasser 2008: 68ff.).
Non-verbal cues may have
• an emotive function in that they (e.g. through facial expression) reveal
the speaker’s personality, feelings, thoughts and attitudes;
• a conativefunction inthat they(e.g. through bodyposture) externalisethe
social roles of and the relationship level (sympathy/antipathy) between
two interlocutors;
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
• a phatic function in that they regulate conversations and structure
interaction (e.g. indicating changes of speakers or the beginning/ending
of contributions);
• a function as illustrators of verbal communication: they may anticipate,
repeat, contradict, substitute, complement or accentuate the verbal
message (e.g., nodding our head to accompany verbal agreement); or
lastly,
• a function as emblems with a binding lexical or ritual meaning (e.g., ‘V’
for victory)
If we leave out the non-verbal dimension of communication in foreign language
teaching, we are creating artificial s ituations, w hich d o n ot r eflect real-life
encounters between speakers of the foreign language. Students do not learn to
coordinate word and action, language and gesture, neither in the reception of
the foreign language nor in its production.
Non-verbal behaviour is also relevant as a communicative strategy. Non-
verbal communication can help learners both to understand the foreign
language and to express themselves in it. Lacking knowledge of vocabulary
or not being able to produce speech can be compensated for by the decoding
of non-verbal signals or by the transmission of part of the communicative
intention to the gesture modality. Similarly, the emotive function of non-verbal
behaviour can give students valuable information about the emotions and the
intentions of their conversation partner in linguistic emergencies. Making
use of the phatic function of non-verbal communication, in addition, can be
a strategy for speakers to use their own facial expression and/or gestures in
order to give feedback to their conversation partner concerning their reaction
to the perceived communicative process or, inversely, to interpret whether the
communication is successful or not by decoding their conversation partner’s
non-verbal behaviour.
Finally, the combination of verbal and non-verbal communication in the
foreign language classroom can make it easier for learners to remember new
words or grammatical structures. As neurological research has shown, we
remember vocabulary and language patterns for a longer period of time if
language is linked with non-verbal signs (cf. Knabe 2007: 61).
4 Non-verbal Communication and Intercultural Learning
Effective communication in a foreign language is more than just a matter of
language proficiency. One of the goals – if not the main goal – of foreign language
teaching is to help students to become intercultural speakers. Phenomena such
as the direction of gaze or the role of silence are often not the same across
cultures. Since they can even convey the complete opposite of what is intended,
behavioural patterns are a common source of intercultural misunderstandings:
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
In some cultures, for example, gestures play a more prominent role than
in others, e.g. Italians use more gestures than Scandinavians. As a result,
Scandinavians appear ‘wooden’ and boring to Italians. [. .. ] Eye contact
is also treated differently. For example, most Germans would think East
Asians are trying to hide something, or are shifty because respect forbids
East Asians from looking their partner directly into the eyes. [. . . ] Dur-
ing a discussion of equals, Arab men tend to raise their voice to express
strength and sincerity; an American would consider that to be aggressive
and objectionable. (Hinner 1998: 12)
What is considered an appropriate distance between people in a conversation
depends on culture, too. Edward Hall (1966) argues that cultures can be
differentiated in terms of the degree of contact preferred by their members.
Cultures in which people tend to stand close and touch a lot are referred
to as high contact cultures, while cultures in which people stand apart and
tend not to touch are referred to as low contact cultures. People in high
contact cultures consider physical closeness in conversations as positive and
distance as negative; in low contact cultures the opposite is often the case (cf.
Gudykunst/Kim 1997: 231f.; Knabe 2007: 78f.).
These examples indicate that the greatest obstacles to successful intercultural
communication are very often not linguistic mistakes. Though grammar
or vocabulary errors can make conversation difficult, they seldom inhibit
the communication process. Violations in non-verbal behaviour normally
entail more serious consequences: many intercultural misunderstandings and
even communication breakdowns are due to the behaviour of a person from
one culture being ‘inappropriately’ perceived, interpreted, and reacted to by
someone from another culture (cf. Culham 2002: 95f.). This is particularly true
for homomorphy, that is, one and the same gesture being used as an emblem
in different cultures but carrying significantly different meanings (cf. Knabe
2007: 86f.; Strasser 2008: 74). Burgoon et al. (1989: 27, 189) point out
that the use of different non-verbal signs by political leaders can even lead to
geopolitical embarrassment:
A prime example is when then vice president Richard Nixon undertook
a good-will tour to Latin America. Photographers at his first airport stop
flashed pictures of Nixon holding up both hands in the ‘A-OK’ gesture.
Unfortunately, that gesture in many Latin American countries means
‘screw you’ [. . . ].
Therefore, the teaching of intercultural communicative competence should
include non-verbal communication. Learners of foreign languages must be
made aware of the impact culture has on vocal and non-vocal phenomena. This
implies that they should explore and develop an awareness of the conventional
behaviour in common situations in their own culture (cf. Strasser 2008: 75).
This is particularly obvious in the case of so-called ‘culturemes’, that is, specific
forms of behaviour such as how to treat guests, table manners, giving and
receiving presents etc., that play a role in every culture, but that are often
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
expressed through different non-verbal behaviour, so-called ‘behavioremes’ (cf.
Oksaar 1988 in Eßer 2007: 327).
But integrating cultural aspects into the teaching of body language does not
primarily mean prompting the students to memorise the patterns of non-verbal
behaviour which speakers of another language follow. Rather, students need to
develop sufficient sensitivity to the impact of culturally-induced behaviour on
communication. When others offend our non-verbal expectations, we tend to
assess these offenses negatively. Recognizing that there are essential cultural
differences in the use of body language permits students to respond more
effectively when intercultural communication breaks down. They must learn to
view problems in intercultural communication as a result of cultural differences
rather than, taking their own cultural perception as a rule, as some sort of
insufficiency on the part of the other speaker.
There is yet another advantage that the integration of non-verbal commu-
nication has to offer in fostering intercultural competence. Just as non-verbal
behaviour can have a strategic function for verbal learning processes, compon-
ents of non-verbal communication can be used in intercultural interactions for
soothing tensions between speakers, e.g. by expressing an open and attentive
attitude towards one’s conversation partner by means of facial expressions or a
certain physical posture. The fact that, aside from culture-specific signs, there
are also a number of physical expressions that are interpreted identically in
every culture, helps to support the idea of using non-verbal communication to
increase mutual understanding (cf. Strasser 2008: 70).
5 Non-verbal Communication in the Literature Classroom
Non-verbal aspects are also important for the understanding and interpretation
of literary texts. When characters interact with each other, they also act
non-verbally, and these components can fulfill functions in literary dialogues
that are similar to their real-life counterparts. The following example from the
young adult novel Face by Benjamin Zephaniah illustrates that the characters’
body language (in italics here) both reveals their feelings (a pretentious show
of self-confidence by Mark that results in surprise and insecurity; a show of
self-confidence by Jennifer who is older and more experienced) and allows
readers to draw conclusions about their relationship to each other (Jennifer’s
superiority, Mark’s capitulation):
On this particular afternoon Mark’s eye was caught by Jennifer Hamilton
from Year 11. She was sixteen years old, and a lot taller than him.
Mark whistled to her and shouted so that everyone could hear, ‘Come ‘ere,
Jenny baby, and give us a kiss goodbye.’
She walked straight up to him, looked down on him and said, ‘I’m here,
boy, let’s do it.’
Mark was shocked. ‘OK, you start it,’ he spluttered.
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
‘What, do you want me to start without you?’ Laughter burst out as spec-
tators gathered around [. . . ]. Jennifer stood towering above Mark like a
gladiator. Mark got himself into more trouble every time he spoke. ‘I tell
ya what, close yu eyes and I’ll start.’ ‘Close my eyes. What’s the mat-
ter, boy? Don’t you want me to see you?’ [. . .] The laughter got louder.
[. . . ] Even Jennifer cracked a smile when one of her best friends shouted,
‘Don’t hurt him, have mercy upon his lips, for he is young and fragile.’
‘All right.’ Mark got serious. ‘Bend down and let’s do the business.’
As Jennifer bent down towards him, Mark squeezed his eyes shut, every
muscle on his face tensed, his feet gripping the floor. Jennifer put her
hand under his chin and tilted his face towards the sky, the crowd sound-
ing like supporters at a boxing match. Jennifer stuck out her tongue and
unleashed it all over Mark’s forehead. The crowd roared with laughter.
(Zephaniah 1999: 10f.)
Beyond everyday functions, body language in fictional t exts s erves specific
aesthetic purposes. Non-verbal phenomena described in literary texts, enacted
in plays or shown in films, function as aesthetic signs: they can – as the example
shows – convey important information concerning the characters and they can
increase the authenticity of interactions (cf. also Korte 1993).
On the one hand, working with literary texts in the foreign language classroom
can thus help illustrate the general importance and the different functions
non-verbal means of expression have in everyday life. On the other hand,
teaching literature requires dealing with the way non-verbal communication
can fulfill a esthetic f unctions i n l iterary t exts a nd t he w ay i t c reates certain
effects on readers or viewers. The ability to approach literary texts accordingly
is part of literary competence; a competence that learners need in order to
access literary texts in the foreign language and to the worlds they create (cf.
Surkamp 2012). Many students have difficulty, f or e xample, i n speculating
about the motives of the characters, let alone in describing and interpreting
the creative use of narrative, dramatic of filmic d evices. Their understanding
of literature is often limited and restricted to being able to follow a text’s plot.
Interpreting a literary text, however, does not stop at students reading the text
and analysing its verbal codes. In the case of a play, for example, students
must be enabled to view the text as a script written for the staging of the play.
This performance dimension of stage plays, however, can only be illustrated
by considering the non-verbal elements included in the text. This is discussed
further below.
6 Interim Conclusion
As described above, non-verbal communication in its different forms and
functions plays an important role in the three areas of foreign language teaching
mentioned. The examples described also show that one can distinguish between
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
different dimensions of non-verbal communicative competence1:
• knowledge of different forms of non-verbal behaviour
• knowledge of different functions of non-verbal behaviour
• knowledge of culture-specific non-verbal expressions
• knowledge of aesthetic functions of non-verbal communication in literary
texts
• ability to recognise non-verbal behaviour in communicative situations
• awareness of the importance of non-verbal communication in processes
of interaction
• awareness of the way body language is shaped by cultures and of
differences between cultures
• openness and appreciation for unknown non-verbal forms of behaviour
• strategic use of non-verbal communication in interactions with others
7 Teaching non-verbal communication through drama
activities
There are a variety of methods that can be used in order to practise different
forms and functions of non-verbal communication in the foreign language
classroom. These include the use of images (e.g. advertising poster) and
audio-visual material, as well as action-orientated methods such as role-plays,
video-conferences with speakers of the target language or real-life meetings
during school exchanges. It is not surprising that drama activities potentially
offer particular opportunities to foster non-verbal communicative competence,
as they involve movement and demand the performance of language encounters
in a holistic way.
The mere fact that drama activities might increase awareness of non-verbal
forms of expression, however, is of little help when it comes to the actual lesson
planning. For teachers to be able to select suitable drama activities, it must
be clear which areas of foreign language teaching and which dimension of
non-verbal communication are meant to be focused on at a particular time. In
addition, one must not forget that no methodological approach can (or needs
1 Eßer (2007: 328) uses this term, too: „Um mit einer interkulturellen Begegnungssituation
sowohl auf der Perzeptions- als auch der Aktionsebene besser umgehen zu können, brauchen
die InteraktionspartnerInnen – neben Empathie und Ambiguitätstoleranz – Einsicht in die Kul-
turgebundenheit sprachlichen und körpersprachlichen Handelns, neben kommunikativer Kom-
petenz also auch körpersprachliche Kompetenz.“
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
to) achieve every potential goal at the same time. In the context of fostering
non-verbal communicative competence, for instance, it is important for learners
of foreign languages to be familiar with different bodily forms of expression –
when producing as well as understanding the foreign language. They should
be able to listen to native speakers and they should also be able to see them
while they are communicating in the foreign language. For this reason, the use
of drama activities should be combined with additional materials (e.g. images,
films or audio texts) and with different methodological approaches (e.g. a
classroom discussion for reflecting on the non-verbal forms of communication
used or observed in a drama activity).
Since the learning of foreign languages is too often approached in a purely
cognitive way and without physical movements, the teaching of non-verbal
communication should first of all offer learners the opportunity to develop an
awareness of their own body and its manifold forms of expression. They should,
likewise, be supported in letting go of their inhibitions about the use of their
body language. These goals are important for all areas of foreign language
learning and all sub-dimensions of non-verbal communicative competence.
Depending on the aspect of body language that is focused on (non-vocal
phenomena such as gestures, mime or moving around, or vocal phenomena like
speech melody or speech rate), individual drama activities can be subsumed
under specific categories.
Exercisesthat payparticular attentionto non-vocalphenomena makelearners
concentrate on their bodies and encourage them to use their facial expressions
and gestures as a means of communication. The following activities are
examples of these types of exercises (cf. Karbowska-Hayes 1984: 16ff.;
Maley/Duff 2001; Culham 2002; Waegner 2003 and Nünning/Surkamp 2010:
175ff.):
• Walking around the room: learners are asked to walk around the
classroom and adapt their movements to the instructions given by the
teacher (e.g. Move as if walking in very high-heeled shoes. / Move as if
walking through mud in heavy boots. / Move as if walking barefoot over
hot sand on the beach. / Walk as if being followed and feeling nervous.
etc.).
• Mirror game: two learners face each other. One of them makes a certain
gesture or facial expression. The other one, standing opposite, tries to
imitate this behaviour like a mirror. Everyday activities such as brushing
one’s teeth, putting on make-up, brushing one’s hair or getting dressed
can be performed as well.
• Guessing professions: the students form a big circle and take turns going
into the middle in order to present a profession or an activity using
pantomime. The other students try to guess the right answer.
• Identifying freeze frames: the students build a freeze frame for a topic or
a situation (e.g. a family picture / a marriage in a church / a talkshow /
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
an operating theatre / a rollercoaster) in groups, which must be identified
by the others.
• Guessing emotions: threelearnersstand infront ofthe groupand aregiven
the task to perform a certain emotion (impatience, sadness, boredom,
nervousness, happiness, etc.) in an exaggerated way through gestures
and mimic. The first learner in the line should show the respective
emotion subtly and the other two learners should increase the intensity of
the emotion accordingly (e.g. through a stronger facial expression and/or
more body language). The other learners have the task of guessing the
emotion represented.
An exercise that encourages learners to focus on their voice and the use
of different vocal forms of communication is the line improvisation (cf.
Nünning/Surkamp 2010: 178f.). Two students stand a few meters apart and
then approach each other slowly by alternately placing one foot forward. Both
of them are given a word or a sentence that they utter with every step, e.g.
player A “I”/Player B: “You”, Player A: “Give me back my book”. / Player B:
“I wouldn’t dream of it”. These words or sentences should be uttered using
different intonations, volume, tone, speech rate, etc.
This drama activity is designed to introduce students to different forms of
vocal communication. Since the non-verbal means of expression are combined
with verbal ones, however, this activity can also be used to achieve specific
linguistic aims, such as an increased awareness of the meaning-generating
function of vocal expression in communication. The learners experience, for
instance, that a change of word stress can result in a change of meaning, helping
them realise that certain moods can influence communicative intentions (cf.
Schewe 1993: 175). Likewise, communicative patterns such as ‘to win someone
over’, ‘to shoot something down’, ‘begging’, ‘rejecting’, ‘insisting’ or ‘making
concession’ can be made audible through vocal phenomena (cf. Müller 1992:
368).
Furthermore, different forms of drama activities such as performing a
dialogue, doing role-plays or improvising can help students to increasingly
develop an awareness of the meaning of non-verbal communication in processes
of interaction. At the same time, they can teach students to pay attention to their
own body language and to make strategic use of non-verbal forms of expression
(e.g. if their ability to express themselves verbally is limited). In these drama
activities, the foreign language is employed in interaction, requiring not only the
use of verbal, but also non-verbal means of communication – for production as
well as for reception. Drama methods invite learners to coordinate statements
made verbally with gestures, facial expressions and body movements. What is
also significant here is that performing drama activities makes students adapt
their speech rate to the respective situation and vary their tone and intonation in
order to give their statement a specific meaning or to avoid misunderstandings.
Another advantage of drama methods lies in the way they integrate the use
of language into a particular situation requiring a specific, often non-verbally
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Carola Surkamp
Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
expressed behaviour, e.g. the attitude towards the conversation partner, the
display of attention, the reaction to what has been said before. In this way,
different situations are being performed and different, non-verbal patterns of
behaviour can be recognised, interpreted, tried out and maybe even practised
in a playful manner through drama activities.
With a view to fostering intercultural learning, drama activities are especially
productive when it comes to making students conscious of their own, culture-
specific gestures and these activities can also be used to encourage a comparison
of other cultural areas. To this end, Reimann (2012: 38) proposes an exercise
in which learners use their body language in order to show how specifically
intended messages are stressed through gestures in their own culture. In this
activity, the teacher illustrates differences to be found in the cultural area of the
target language, either with the help of visual material or by performing them.
In a further step, learners create their own scene in which some of the newly
learned gestures occur. According to Reimann, comparing Germany and France
can be done by representing intended messages such as ‘about/approximately’,
‘great’, ‘bad’, ‘be quiet!’, ‘it stinks!’ for which different forms of non-verbal
communication can be contrasted (cf. also Knabe 2007: 98). The main aim of
such endeavours, however, is not so much the precise practising of non-verbal
forms of expressions used in other cultures. Instead, the goal is to foster an
open attitude towards those signals of body language that might appear strange
to learners. Moreover, they can experience the importance of transmitting
the intended message of their own cultural signals in intercultural encounters
through additional verbal elements (cf. Strasser 2008: 80).
If a learning group consists of students who come from different cultures, it can
also be useful to do contrasting pantomimic exercises to make students aware
of culture-specific differences in non-verbal communication. In such exercises,
individual groups of students are asked to pantomime a specific feeling or an
intended message. The rest of the students are observers who have the task
of noting differences in the non-verbal representation (cf. Tomalin/Stempleski
1993: 106). In a subsequent discussion, the learners concern themselves with
the way both the production and interpretation of body language adheres to
culture. By doing this, the similarities between different cultures, e.g. in the
representations and perception of emotions (cf. Eßer 2007: 324f.), should be
taken into account as well.
When it comes to the teaching of literature, non-verbal forms of communica-
tion have to be considered first and foremost in the context of recognizing their
potential aesthetic function, for example when characterising protagonists or
staging character constellations. Particularly with regard to the use of drama
texts, lessons should have a drama-pedagogical approach as their basis: only
through acting out parts of a play can students realise that characters in a theatre
play are not simply constructed through what they say, but also through how
they say what they say and through the actions they perform while speaking.
In order to focus learners’ attention on these aspects of communication, it
is not necessary to stage an entire play. Instead, a number of techniques of
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Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
Scenario
Volume 2014 ·Issue 2
interpretation using short scenes can be useful (cf. Nünning/Surkamp 2010:
180ff.):
•Reading out loud: this highlights the acoustic dimension of a dramatic
text. In addition, the method can reveal other linguistic levels of meaning,
which might not be noticed when students only read the text silently.
•Scenic Reading: reading is combined with simple means of staging the text;
the depicted situation is acted out through gestures and the movement of
the actors who are reading the text.
•Acting out a scene: experimenting with different attitudes expressed
while speaking, gestural and mimic forms of expression, body language
(different postures adapted while walking, standing and sitting) and
spatial arrangements (sitting or standing near to or far from each other,
with or without eye contact, with or without body contact), the learners
explore and practise how the characters behave, how they relate to each
other, how they speak to each other and how they act in unison or in
conflict with each other.
•Building a freeze frame: offers learners the opportunity to depict the
central conflict of a drama by using relevant postures, gestures, mimic,
body contact or distance as well as the direction of gazes.
Just as the integration of non-verbal communication into the teaching of culture
should be organised in a mix of phases of acting and of reflecting, in a similar
way sensitising learners to the significance of non-verbal communication when
working with literary texts also requires such alternations.
It is especially productive to discuss the effect a scenic representation has
on fellow students watching it. A considerable advantage of drama activities
is the interaction of production and reception (cf. Schewe 1993: 5f.; Brekle
1995: 116). Since learners are simultaneously observers and actors, teachers
should make use of the opportunity to discuss the effects students intended to
achieve with their non-verbal behaviour while acting and to compare them to
the effects they did actually achieve. Students watching the acting can be given
observation tasks to this end. It is also important for them to watch out for the
interplay of verbal and non-verbal signs, which is crucial for the overall effect
of a drama activity.
8 Conclusion
The last example in particular shows that the dividing line between the teaching
of language, literature and culture is not as clear-cut as it might appear when
it comes to the integration of non-verbal communication in foreign language
teaching. This, however, is really less of a problem than it is an advantage:
language, literature and culture are closely intertwined and show a variety of
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Non-Verbal Communication: Why We Need It in Foreign Language Teaching
and How We Can Foster It with Drama Activities
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overlapping aspects so that these different fields should, ideally, be combined
in the classroom.
The overall aim of a pedagogy of non-verbal communication should be to
sensitise the students to the potential effects of non-verbal phenomena in
communication – both in formal and everyday conversations, in intercultural
relationships and in literary texts. It is for this reason that we should shift
away “from the competence-performance dichotomy and toward a perspective
that embraces the importance of language in use – that is, how language is
contextually situated in interaction” (Gullberg/McCafferty 2008: 134). One
way of achieving this is to follow a drama-based approach in the foreign
language classroom.
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