Use of Non-verbal Communication in Pedagogic Practices at Public High Schools in Lahore

Abstract

It was a descriptive research which studied the use of non-verbal communication in the pedagogic practices at secondary school level in Lahore. The study was conducted to examine the practices of teachers’ non-verbal communication used in conjunction with verbal communication in actual classroom setting by teachers which affected the participation and performance level of learners. It investigated the students’ understanding, interpretation of and attitude towards non-verbal communication used by teachers and identified the existing barriers for the use of non-verbal communication strategies to improve students’ learning. The non-verbal communication was restricted to five factors—physical appearance, facial expressions, eye contact, spatial distance and paralinguistic. The study was limited to the subject of English (compulsory) at the female secondary schools in public sector. The sample comprised of 1200 students and 40 teachers from female public high schools of Lahore (Punjab), Pakistan. The study recommended that all female teachers at secondary level schools should be provided an orientation in non-verbal communication which would help them to use these skills in their teaching methodologies. While recognizing the importance of non-verbal communication, the curriculum planners and policy makers should take practical steps to make it a part of teacher education programs for the training of prospective teachers. Moreover, an awareness among students shall be created on how to interpret and reflect upon the teachers’ non-verbal communication signals during teaching-learning process. Keywords: Non-verbal, physical appearance, eye contact, paralanguage, body movements, facial expressions, gestures, high school, interaction