Nonverbal communication

The use of the hands

Body motion, as a whole, is more reserved in Japan than in the West. Yet where Japanese body
language may lack in grandeur, it gains in subtleness of detail. The Japanese predisposition for well
chosen delicate gestures is born from necessity, for 125 million people live on these small mountainous
islands. Here the hardship of overcrowding has flowered into a cultural aesthetic for building beauty
into small places.

Japanese living quarters and public places are usually overcrowded. People must share space
continuously at home, work, and play. It is frightfully easy to physically violate another person's space,
so the Japanese do all they can to avoid it. The Japanese are raised to detest pushy and argumentative
behavior in public. To avoid such unpleasant exchanges, people tend to keep their hands, feet, elbows,
and knees closer to their frame. Being polite, reserved and aware of one's own and other people's body
movements, is an integral part of being Japanese.

Hands when extended outward generally suggest meaning, and so the languid relaxed postures of
foreigners, with limbs stretched out comfortably, can appear rather self-indulgent and aggressive. It is
not uncommon for foreigners first arriving in Japan to accidentally irritate people on the train or other
public places with their body gestures.

A code of physical behavior seems to exist almost everywhere in Japan. People generally do not talk
loudly, touch each other unless forced to by overcrowding, or make other disturbances in places
traditionally considered public. People keep to themselves when among strangers. However this can
quickly change when their group, e.g., classmates, coworkers, club members, take psychological
possession of a space, as in a train filled with teenagers from the same school, a senior citizen group on
an outing together, a family around the dinner table at home, or a drinking hall filled with friends. Yet
even among friends, there are always subtle codes of behavior to consider, a code for what you can and
can not do with your hands and feet.

Children, particularly young boys, are allowed to behave freely in public up until they enter school, at
which point they will be pressured by both teachers and peers to adjust to the rules of the group.
Teenagers and drinking businessmen may violate social graces on the streets at night, but in the morning,
back in school or the office, the prevailing code regulates all areas of their social interaction. Even within
the bosozoku (juvenile bikers) and yakuza (organized gangsters), there is a very precise code of behavior,
often more strenuous than the public's, though sometimes a comical parody of the norm.

Hand gestures are plentiful and useful, particularly when you want to relay a message without drawing
attention from those around you. In the office, hand signs can invite someone to a drink or meal, tell
others the boss is angry or has a girlfriend, or simply explain that you've just been fired. In all these
examples the signs would be different from those used in the West.

In the classroom students signal to each other "I'm sending a note", "I haven't done the homework", "be
careful teacher is watching", or a hundred other messages not meant for the teacher. A favorite English
idiom used by my students is ‘for your eyes only’ and hand gestures, done discreetly, work nicely.
Students can sprinkle hand signs throughout their conversations, particularly when spelling out the
message might cause embarrassment or criticism.

The oni (goblin) sign, with the index fingers of both hands placed on either side of the head as horns (see
#11 next section), can describe the grumpy mood of the teacher, or the disposition of a parent. The
observer can interpret this as either a little joke or a hard criticism. This ambiguity is an important quality
of sign language. A furrowed brow and grimace, or a gentle smile and laugh, can help clarify a bit of the
ambiguity without ever accusing anyone of anything specific. An oni sign, at the appropriate time, can
relax a tense situation or help excuse an imposition. It should always be remembered that Japanese people
are usually reluctant to confront others directly and try to change their behavior. 1

Touching others, a sign of friendly affection in East European and Mediterranean cultures, is generally a
taboo and public displays of affection, such as kissing or holding hands, are rare and are a serious
statement for young couples. If students need to attract the attention of another student, particularly
someone of the opposite sex and not a personal friend, first they will try whispering politely and then
gently touch a shoulder, not too near the neck, or an arm, usually not on the hand.

In Japan a physical relationship between a teacher and a student, at any grade level, is always grounds
for dismissal. Many teachers make a policy of never touching a student and the friendlier the relationship,
the cooler the body language. Flirtation is a very delicate nonverbal series of eye and head motions,
leading to subtle ambiguous touching of the hand or other innocent contact. If a teacher is not prepared
to face the consequences, it is far safer to avoid physical contact completely.

Exercises and games which require touching among students can be very successful if the teacher takes
into consideration the full spectrum of meaning, respecting the students' need to be reserved. For example,
the usually innocent exercise of learning how to shake hands, needed because many Japanese men shake
hands with a limp wrist, can create giggles and embarrassment even among seasoned businessmen. The
Japanese are not sexually naive, but there are subtle differences in the meaning and occasions for
touching other people within their own culture. It seems natural that EFL teachers, as new members of
the community, would want to understand and show respect towards the customs of the host culture in
the area of nonverbal communication and the use of the hands.

Hand Signs 1

Generally listed in order of frequency, hand signs are very circumstantial. Men use them more than
women, though this will depend on who is watching. As a foreign male, students generally feel freer
using hand language with me, than, for example, with my wife who is Japanese and commands more
authority and thus more respectful formality. Also, as I wish to be aware of the feelings and opinions of
my students, I often intercept messages not meant for my eyes.

1. ‘Come here’ (Chotto...oide)

Used when calling someone towards you, this gesture

resembles a Western-style good-bye, often confusing
foreigners. With a somewhat limp wrist, flap four
fingers in the direction of the person you want to attract.
Generally not recommended for superiors, it is still
considered preferable to yelling.

2. ‘Good-bye’

(often accompanied with the English loan-word "bye-bye") Fingers fully

extended, the hand moved left and right rapidly. Compare with the Japanese
‘Come here’ #1.

3. No

Waving the hand, thumb towards the face, back and forth as if fanning in
short strokes, means no, not me, or no thank you, depending on the
situation. Used a great deal by students who do not know the appropriate
English expression, or to avoid being embarrassed about their inability to
speak English. The more emphatic the wave the more emphatic the ‘No’.
 4. ‘Excuse me’ (Sumimasen)

Used when cutting between two people, or as a general apology. Derived from
a Buddhist sign for blessing, similar to the two-handed salutation used in
Southeast Asia but with only one hand. Hand flat, thumb near the nose, head
and back slightly bent, eyes averted downward.

5. Writing Kanji (Chinese Characters)

A form of thinking out loud, or spelling out a message, Japanese often write
with their finger, onto the palm of their hand, on their thigh when sitting, or
into the air. By visualizing the character it helps to distinguish which character
from several with the same pronunciation.

6. Peace/Victory Sign

Can on rare occasions have the meaning of Peace, as in ‘I didn't mean

to make you angry’, yet most commonly used as a playful gesture when
posing for snapshots. Also commonly used as a symbol of success, as
in the successful completion of a difficult question. Primarily used by
students when clowning for friends, this is sometimes used as a
greeting to foreigners.

7. Jan- Ken (Choosing)

This is the first hand game learned by children. This important

game is used often by students to choose someone from a
group of two or more, as when determining who goes first or
who gets the last piece of candy. Players shout "Jan ken pon!"
and simultaneously form their hands into one of three possible
shapes. Gu a stone, Choki scissors, or Pa paper.

A stone defeats scissors, because scissors cannot cut a stone.

Paper defeats a stone, because paper can wrap a stone. Scissors
defeat paper, because scissors can cut paper.

8. Counting

Opposite to that of the West, when counting start with

the fingers extended, and then fold fingers into a fist,
starting with the thumb and finishing with the little
finger. Using the same hand folded in a fist raise the little finger for six, and continue until an open
hand again.
Adjusting to this system quickly can prevent misunderstandings during game playing, remember, for
example, the Japanese sign for ‘two’ reads ‘three’ to the Western eye.

9. Indicating numbers

With a closed fist, raise the index finger for one, middle
and index for two, etc. using the thumb last.

10. "Something smells" (Kusai!)

Very similar to the West, these can be used quite innocently, or to be

insulting. Describes all bad smells including bad breath and body odor,
but not in the American sense of "That movie stunk!" (That movie was
bad). Done by pinching the nose with the index finger and thumb, And/or by waving the hand, as if
fanning away a bad smell, in front of the face.

I have found that Japanese students are generally sensitive to smells. At times I too have been tempted
to use the gesture, but do not, for in Japan cleanliness is next to Godliness, and accusing someone of
smelling, justified or not, can be a grave insult.

11. Oni (goblin)

Indicates an angry person. Both Index fingers extend upward and

slightly forward, on either side of the head like horns, usually the
head is tilted slightly forward. Wiggle the fingers for emphasis. Often
used by students when talking about their parents, I've seen one class
use it to warn the next class of my bad mood.

12. "Let's go eat."

Index and middle finger extended in front of mouth to resemble

chopsticks, as if shoveling food from the other hand, which is
cupped like a bowl. Students have used this to remind me to
break for lunch.

13. Laying it on Thick

A hand gesture of grinding as if with a mortar and pestle, is used to

describe someone exaggerating or complimenting in order to seek favor.

14. Money

Fingers in the shape of a coin. Similar to an OK sign with an

accent on the roundness. Traditionally discussing money was
considered vulgar. Samurai seldom touched money. So this
sign, though common among males, is not encouraged.
15. Pa! (Coo-Coo!, Crazy!)

Place a fist along side the head and open it quickly, suggests
someone is stupid or crazy. Used both in fun or in criticism, as in
the West.

16. Tengu (Long-nosed goblin)

Describes a conceited braggart. A clenched fist held in front of the
face, suggesting a long nose, like the goblin Tengu.

17. Clashing Swords

People are quarreling, can be indicated by hitting the index

fingers together as if in a sword fight.

18. Let's go for a drink/We went drinking

Imitates a sake cup tipped for drinking. Fingers, as if holding a small sake
cup, tilted towards the mouth as when drinking.

Though originally used by business men, college students use this when
talking about their drinking escapades. More recently, chugging a beer
glass symbolically has replaced the traditional sake cup.

19. Sushi

Resembles how sushi chefs prepare sushi and is used when

talking about sushi. Index and middle finger of one hand slapped
into the palm of the other. As sushi is a special kind of meal this
means only sushi and not for eating generally (see #12 for
eating in general).

20. Promise

To make a solemn promise lock little fingers with someone. Though a

bit childish I have actually seen the Prime Minister of Japan use it to
accent a point.

21. Father Figure

The thumb raised can mean father, the boss, or a superior.

22. Woman

Raised little finger, can be some what vulgar when suggesting a married man's lover. It is
often used recently in humorous TV commercials and so now in classroom humor.
Suggests a woman is involved in some way .

23. To steal

Traditionally used among thieves to suggest stealing or when talking about a thief. I
have seen this used among male college students, in both seriousness in discussing a
loss or in humor. Hook the index finger. Students have used this with a nod to
suggest a wrong doing, without actually mentioning any names.

24. Pregnancy

A subtle sign for pregnancy is vomiting, used primarily in theater and on

TV, though I have seen students use this when teasing each other.

A more direct hand sign is to move the hand in front of the stomach in a
rounded arch, depicting the shape of a pregnant women. This is not
considered rude unless of course the pregnancy is unwanted or a secret.
Usually used instead of actually saying what may be a delicate matter.

This was used in my class once, to explain a student's absence. I assumed she was having an abortion.
It was also used after students learned my wife and I were expecting a child. Students when not
knowing appropriate Western etiquette will often use body gestures before asking directly.

There are a variety of Japanese gestures for sexual acts, as well as students who may have learned the
Western equivalents, and I see them used among male students often, much in the same way they are
used by male students in the West, though generally not as overtly.

The use of the face

Research on body language attempts to distinguish between those body actions which are part of a
symbolic code, a message from the sender, and those which are symptoms, e.g., blinking, blushing, pupil
contraction, sweating.1 For the teacher, both are equally important and need to be understood.

In Japan, the face can present the largest challenge to the foreign observer. Doi Takeo, in explaining why
the Japanese hesitate to speak, describes the importance of presenting a balance between the outer (kao,
face) and the inner (kokoro, heart/mind) self.2 I do not accept, as many Westerners believe, that the
Japanese always hide their true feelings, their real face, under a mask of inscrutability. Instead, in keeping
with the values inherent in Asian culture, emphasis is placed on shielding one's gut reactions until sincere
introspection, the inner reflection common to Buddhism, Shintoism, and Confucianism, has been
completed, and respect for communal harmony has been illustrated.3

In the West we wear our hearts on our sleeves and speak our mind, but in Japan this can appear
irresponsible and insincere. Words are believed to be too limiting in describing subtlety of feelings and
impressions. Instead, a neutral facade, the expressionless face perfected by the stoic samurai, can best
bide time while the real proof, what we actually do, illustrates clearly how we truly feel. Words and
gestures of anger or love are not the truest expressions of hate or affection. In Japan it is believed that the
action one takes over the long run is the ultimate expression. Excessive displays of anger and love only
suggest insincerity or weakness.

If there is one major weakness in my own use of body language is how my manner, bred in the rather
assertive and confrontational atmosphere of New York City, generates a chain reaction of messages that
I never mean to initiate. In my effort to fill the silent spaces, I often speak too quickly, neither listening
to the messages in the Japanese student's silence, nor allowing the silence to be filled naturally, in keeping
with the student's need for space and breath in deliberation.

Repeatedly I am told by my classes that their initial opinion of me is that I am a difficult and problematic
teacher, which eventually softens as the students have a chance to watch me, over the term. Many feel I
come on too strong, and they must learn to not take me too seriously. In New York we use the expression
‘Get out of my face’ when we feel someone's aggressive behavior has violated our personal space, here
I sense students are saying ‘Get out of my silences’. Students neither need to listen to my continual chatter,
nor should they be expected to emulate my Western predisposition for explanation and rationalization.

My style which can initially appear to a Japanese student as obsessive or aggressive later may be
understood, by some, to be enthusiasm for my subject matter, a reflection of my seriousness as a teacher
or symptomatic of my Western upbringing. Unfortunately this strong initial impression prevents some
students from ever completely relaxing in my class. But more important is my neglect of the pedagogical
needs of my students. This noisy style has repercussions beyond interpersonal relations, it actually affects
my students’ learning in a very fundamental way.

“Silence is a tool. It helps to foster autonomy, or the exercise of initiative. It also removes the teacher
from the center of attention so he can listen to and work with students”,4 a quote from Diane Larsen-
Freeman’s analysis of a Silent Way class activity, describes what I believe are some of the advantages in
holding back my urge to fill all the silent spaces.

As it is difficult for me to dramatically alter my overall physical and speaking style, I have found it
helpful, if not necessary, to often monitor through written feedback and private interviews how my
students perceive my class, and to self-monitor my non-verbals. As a result of this monitoring, I have
begun to read student reactions faster and more accurately. As my awareness of student facial expressions
grow, I feel more attuned to the subtler messages sent by my students.

My cultural relationship with silence differs from that of my students. By monitoring student nonverbal
feedback in the lines on their faces, I feel more aware of these differences, and so more capable of using
silence constructively in the college classroom. By watching their faces and retreating when I detect
undue tension, while placing less emphasis on how they fulfill my expectations for immediate verbal
response, I have begun to eliminate negative chain reactions.

Let me clarify what I mean by negative chain reactions. Imagine my asking what I believe to be an easy
question, one I assume any student should be able to answer. To my surprise the student I address does
not reply at all, but instead makes a gesture which suggests to my Western eyes indifference. Concerned
the student has not heard, I move closer, repeating the question. Now the student is staring straight ahead,
or down at the desk, avoiding eye contact, or looking about for help from neighboring students.

Feeling that perhaps the phrasing was too difficult and feeling annoyed that the student has not made any
effort to answer, I next try to rephrase the question and still get no response. Students who have been
attempting to assist now have become very quiet. As I continue to repeat the question, and move closer,
an ominous silence grips the class, and soon no one seems capable of answering what I still believe is an
easy question. A mixed feeling of frustration, anger, and discouragement begins to overcome me, and I
begin to sense the rest of the class becoming hostile or nervous.

This negative chain reaction started at the very beginning of my questioning and could have easily been
avoided. Let me describe a few of the cultural factors that may have influenced the student's behavior.
Students spend years answering questions in seat order, so that to be called on or singled out is considered
a challenge by the teacher. In the Japanese tradition, if the teacher is pleased with the student, the teacher
will ask the student a question that the teacher believes the student can answer, as both reward and model
for the class. Conversely, the stern teacher will choose a student who has not been studying and use a
question to illustrate the student's inadequacies.

In the test-oriented environment of the Japanese classroom all questions have a correct answer, and are
not hypothetical challenges to initiate discussion as in the West. Students enter college having spent years
preparing for multi-choice English exams in which only one answer is acceptable. My having asked a
question triggers this test anxiety, since the student does not know how to answer correctly. The student
then acknowledges failure with silence. To say ‘I don't know’ can appear defiant when it is assumed you
should know, so most students, particularly women, will prefer silence to a negative response. If the
teacher continues to ask the same question, it may appear to the student that he/she is being punished, by
being publicly embarrassed for not knowing the answer.

There is another cultural factor often discussed in the press and among educators in Japan that may
directly effects a student's classroom behavior. Under the present system of higher education, Japanese
university students feel that, because they have already passed the difficult Japanese university entrance
examinations, they have already, for the most part, completed their scholastic obligations and therefore
do not need to apply themselves to their studies.

Japanese educators and students describe college as a chance to learn social skills neglected during high
school cramming. Since companies train new employees, many students may feel anything else learned
is a personal matter of no concern to any one, including the college instructor. For many large
corporations, students are not expected to excel in their chosen discipline but to remain empty vessels to
be later filled by these companies. Companies choose potential employees by the university they entered,
and by what club activities and sports teams they had participated in, not their final grades while at that
university. Being a good team player, according to many recruiting employers, is a far more important
corporate skill in Japan than post-high school academic discipline.5

In addition, many university freshmen feel burnt out from entrance exam hell and can be hostile to
anything that appears draining. They do not care to continue their grueling high school studies into
college. Students often say to me they prefer to enjoy their new culturally approved social liberties,
placing emphasis on extracurricular activities over their studies, before having to enter as company
‘freshman’ working demanding 40-60 hour weeks again. It is not difficult to understand why a teacher,
who comes across as demanding, can often trigger negative memories of high school and appear
unreasonable to students.

A Western teacher, having never experienced such an extreme system, may feel the student is indifferent
or irresponsible. In fact, many students work very hard, working part time jobs to save money for a car
or holiday, or at their club activities, though not necessarily at their studies.

Since students must eventually pass a majority of their college classes to graduate, they must, to a certain
extent, oblige the teacher. But, faced with what a student feels is a demanding teacher, most students will
rely on others to help them accomplish the minimum requirements to pass. This is why certain students
will become spokesmen for their class, while most others prefer being as invisible as possible. To
challenge a student's privacy, by expecting participation and mental alertness, may run against the grain
of many students and create anxiety. The first clues of this anxiety can be detected in the student's face.

By evolving into a new person, combining the methodological principals of understanding while
allowing for the silences, I have begun to absorb intuitively the more subtler forms of my students’ body
language. In very much the same way I intuit the meaning of a sentence by the intonation pattern used, I
am beginning to intuit my students feelings by their facial expressions, preventing crisis before it occurs.

Facial Expressions

1. "Me?" ("Boku?" or "Watashi?")

A combination hand and facial expression used in the same way as
Westerners pointing to their chest and asking "Me?", except the Japanese
point to the tip of their nose. This is a very common sign and is also
accompanied with signs of astonishment, false or genuine surprise,
indifference, or joy, depending on the situation.
2. Head frozen, using the eyes.
When a teacher moves about the room often students will look straight ahead,
avoiding the eyes of the teacher. They may use their eyes to signal to other
students or to express anxiety, amusement, curiosity, etc. Not looking into the
eyes of a superior is appropriate behavior, as is listening while facing in a
different direction than the speaker, particularly in confrontational or emotional
situations. The Western importance of looking into the eyes is not usually
understood and difficult to do for many Japanese students.

Ko-omote
Noh's 'young woman' mask

3. The Uses of the Smile

A smile can be used in the following situations;
• Positive Smile: liking or agreeing with something.
• Negative smile: when used immediately after a statement may signal a light denial
or joke.
• "No comment" smile: Used when someone does not want to respond to a question.
• Stoic smile: Used when someone is disappointed but unable for various reasons to express this in
words.
• Apology smile: Used to gently ask for forgiveness.
• Confirmation smile: Used to ask what the other person may think of your ideas or opinion. 1

4. "Something smells" (Kusai-zo) Used as a

euphemism for 'I suspect something secret is behind all this.'
Sniffing the air, sometimes in front of the person suspected of
having a secret, can be friendly or not depending on the situation.
I have enjoyed when student's have used this as a response to my
evasive answers to a personal question.

5. "That's difficult to believe"

When someone tells you a rather unbelievable story, begin applying saliva to the eyebrow to
suggest that you can't be fooled easily. This too is used to challenge humorously a persons
evasiveness in personal matters (see #4).

6. "Let's not discuss that here"

The index finger pressed against the lips is a silent suggestion to stop talking, for
someone may overhear us. Most often used by one student to warn another that I have
entered the class, or occasionally by students who are aware that I understand Japanese
to students indiscriminate chatting.

The use of body posture and gesture

The use of the body to communicate extends beyond hand signs and facial expressions. We know from
experience that how students enter a classroom, where and how they stand or sit, all register
subconscious messages to the teacher, and to fellow students. All of this nonverbal communication
helps us in discerning appropriate adjustments in our teaching. The tricky part of this for the Western
teacher working in Japan is that although fashion and mannerisms may appear the same as in the West,
they do not necessarily mean the same thing. Western teachers must learn to re-examine their
assumptions, while creating new categories for accessing classroom nonverbal clues.

One of the hardest lessons for me to remember, is that many of my long held devices for assessing
students in my own cultural environment, as by their clothing, their age, their major at university, their
hair and make-up, etc., usually do not hold in Japan. I must continually remind myself that, though a
student may dress and act as an American student, he or she may very well share none of the same
political, social, or aesthetic values. Just because a student may be majoring in business administration
or English literature, he or she may not have any knowledge or even interest in the subject, the motive
for studying based on a very different set of assumptions. What may have been true in New York very
often will not be true in Kyoto.

Without a common first language or common cultural references, the Western teacher and Japanese
student must rely heavily on nonverbal signals to communicate. Students are faced with the additional
challenge of communicating on two levels, to the teacher who may have certain cultural and professional
expectations and to their peers who often have very different expectations.

Japanese, like Arab and Mediterranean people, are said to have a “high context” (HC) culture, i.e. most
of the information in messages are already inside the person receiving it. Americans and Northern
Europeans are said to be “low context” (LC), i.e. communicators require more explicit background
information.1 Therefore, in the classroom the non-Japanese teacher is at a distinct disadvantage when
interpreting behavior.

In Kabuki theater an actor will freeze in a gesture, holding this for a length of time, while members of
the audience cheer his subtlety and strength. To the Western observer this all feels exotic and
incomprehensible, except on a rather intuitive level. Yet in time, I believe teachers will begin to recognize
that students are using a similar vocabulary of gestures, with a subtle theatrical execution, in a wide
variety of situations.

There is for example, several ways of expressing ‘proud-modesty’, a combination not as common in the
West. When an outgoing male succeeds at a difficult task in front of the class, he will often use a hand
on the back of the neck to express puzzlement at his success. If he succeeds again, he may arch his back
backwards in fawned surprise, and then with another successful answer flash a victory sign to his friends.

After repeated observations of similar responses, I have begun to recognize these gestures and their many
aesthetic variations, and have even begun to appreciate the artistry in their execution. Their source in
traditional theater and comedy has also become apparent, as I find myself recognizing familiar gestures
in a variety of traditional theater styles, and have even come to appreciate the emotional impact of these
silent sustained gestures.

When I feel offended by student behavior, I must always ask myself “Did the student mean to be offensive,
or have I judged the student's action from a narrow cultural perspective, limited by my own cultural
prejudices?” If I want to change student behavior to my Western expectations, for example, values in
attendance, class participation, the use of intuition and creativity in conversation, etc., then I need to face
the enormous task of educating each new student, to a radically new way of perceiving the classroom.

In some cases this may be necessary, though I must keep reminding myself that this is a large task that I
am taking upon myself, and one that may not be so easy. Sleeping and talking in class is a good example.
All a teacher need do is stroll the halls of any Japanese university, and there will be dozens of students
in every classroom chatting together, sleeping conspicuously, combing their hair, working on other
assignments, etc. while the instructor is speaking into a microphone over the noise. To many Western
teachers this is incomprehensibly rude and pedagogically absurd behavior.

Yet, not only is this considered permissible, but many of the Japanese professors now teaching in
universities behaved in a similar way when they were students. Professional student note-takers often sit
diligently taking down each detail in the professor's lectures, and later these notes will be made available,
often for a price, so that the majority may cram for the final test. Often only Western teachers demand
complete attention, by every student, in every class. Attendance, is considered a good will gesture by
some students, who usually attend the first class to learn the class requirements, and the last class to find
out what will be on the final test.

For the student who is sleeping in class, because he has not eaten properly, because he finds my lesson
relaxing, because he is tired from drinking, or his part time job, or his club activities, or whatever reason
the Japanese student has, somehow I will need to let him know that I find his sleeping in my class
offensive, and his participation desirable.

When he and his friends smoke in the classroom between classes, I must find ways to communicate how
much I hate it, though I know it is considered male license to smoke in Japan. And when he and his
classmates are yelling in the hall during class, I must find a way to communicate my needs, while
recognizing that in his culture, anywhere outside the classroom is considered neutral territory, outside
the jurisdiction of instructors. I try and remember, though not always successfully, that what I perceive
as offensive may not be meant as such. Most students are living within the assumptions of their own
culture, and are actually well behaved, according to Japanese values. It is I who often need to temper my
responses within the context of the culture.

The body gestures, at the end of this chapter, are chosen for their frequency in the classroom and for their
interest to the EFL teacher. I have verified my interpretations, with students and faculty from a variety
of college grade levels in a variety of colleges, though degree of frequency varies with the gender mix of
the class, and the type of interaction encouraged. For example, I prefer an animated class with a high
variety of physical and social interaction, which naturally encourages the use of body gestures, a more
somber lecture style will seldom solicit such variety.

Though I may seem to be painting a grim picture, by highlighting negative behavior, there are always
many more students who have excellent study habits, a willingness to learn, and the cultural openness to
engage with new and innovative teaching methodology. As the more diligent students are more likely to
find ways to communicate to the teacher, it is not as necessary to translate their non-verbals, but since
they remain a constant source of confirmation and encouragement, I look for their facial and body signs
for moral support, and comprehension confirmation.

Students assume here in Japan that a teacher is the person who establishes the rules inside the classroom.
If students cannot live with these rules they must try again next year with a different teacher, therefore
discipline is seldom a serious problem. Most of the mis-signaling that I and other teachers experience is
within the first few years of teaching in Japan, and is usually generated by the differing expectations of
student and teacher.

While students may express an expectation which is similar to that of the teacher's, the actual
interpretation of this expectation can be quite different. For example, most students express a wish to
have free conversation, yet, in fact, most students have very little, if any, skill at sustaining an
unstructured, improvised dialogue. Students will generally look to the teacher to specify what to talk
about during free conversation, and if the teacher does not provide direction, they will begin talking in
Japanese.

Therefore it is necessary for teachers to read the big picture. Though students say one thing, the full
message comes in how they actually react with their bodies. The message may be in Japanese body
language, different in meaning to that of the expectations or assumptions of the Western teacher. Body
gestures are different than hand and facial expressions, in that they are often calculated to project an idea
across the room to the teacher and classmates. Where the face may reveal subtle emotions and the hands
a secret message, body gestures are generally used for public display, a theatrical method for
communicating to an audience.
Body Gestures
1. Pratfalls, theatrical slips and comical side steps
There are various ways to act surprised or amazed. These are used to make others laugh, poke fun at
someone, or to lighten a tense situation. Many of these are classical and found in traditional theater
while others are developed by famous TV personalities and mimicked by students in class.

The "Whoops! How Embarrassing! I made a mistake" Pratfall.

The "Baka! (You Fool!)" head slap, meaning, ‘You silly

person you, why did you do that?’.

2. Where and when to sit

Traditionally Japanese sit nearer or further from the seat of honor according
to their rank. A new employee, for example, will sit closest to the door while
the supervisor will have his own desk at the head of the room. Permission is
needed to sit when entering a room for the first time. Permission is needed
for leaving when a superior or teacher is present.

Japanese students usually sit at the back of the classroom instinctively for several reasons; as a show of
insecurity in the subject matter, to be free to talk or sleep, to slip out unnoticed, to be with friends, or
out of respect for the teacher. Also sitting in front of the class near the teacher may be seen as showing
off or acting superior by classmates.

3. Listening with eyes closed, dozing

In the National Diet one can see important statesmen

sleeping. If asked, they would likely say they were listening
with their eyes closed. In Japan the act of attendance often
has more significance than actual participation. Also
Japanese people maintain long working hours, so catching a
quick nap is affectionately tolerated almost everywhere.
Students will assume they can sleep in class unless told
otherwise, particularly if they have been drinking the night before, have an after-school job (arubaito),
or belong to a club or sports team in training.

4. How close is too close?

 In reading the body signs of students, I have come to realize how often the
distance I create between myself and the student creates a reaction. Students
seldom violate my space, and are continuously sending me signals to back off.
Western cultures vary greatly in their sense of personal space, yet within the
individual culture very clear parameters are visible. Western teachers who are
new to Japan will continually step into the personal space of their students. The
recoil reaction of students is a reminder to the Western teacher to increase the
space between teacher and student.

5. Bimbo Usuri (poor people's shaking)

A continually shaking leg while sitting. Usually a nervous reaction and

unconscious, this gesture can also be used to express anxiety or a lack of
confidence.

6. Folded Arms

With eyes lowered this can suggest someone is thinking hard. With eyes
open, folded arms may suggest you are disagreeing with the argument of
the speaker and can be considered somewhat defiant and hostile.

7. Sitting with legs spread

can be seen as a symbol of confidence and superiority or a sign of

arrogance and rudeness, depending on the social relation and the situation.

8. Receiving and giving

Done with two hands, held out in front

with a bow, when receiving gifts, rewards and diplomas. Some students
may surprise Western teachers with the formality in which they give or
receive certain papers. An additional thank you when departing is to
hold the gift in two hands in front and bow again. This is one way
students will let you know they have invested a great deal in their work or how much they appreciate
the teacher's efforts.

9. Ojigi (Bowing from the waist)

This traditional gesture of respect is very important. The degree of

inclination, from very slight to very low, depends on the relationship of the
people involved and the occasion. There is an art to this and foreigners would
be well advised to get some lessons from a friend before trying it at a
formal affair or business meeting. In the classroom teachers will find a
nodding bow useful for acknowledging the more polite farewell or excuse
me bows used by some students. Knowing the nuances implied in
bowing helps me read both conscious and subconscious signals by
students.
 10. Unconscious bowing

So accustomed to bowing, people will bow even when it appears unnecessary,

as when on the telephone. This can also illustrate the severity of a situation, as
when an employee is being chastised on the phone. In the classroom students
will do it when they have inadvertently inconvenienced classmates or the
teacher. In some cases students remembering Westerners do not bow will bow
in apology for bowing.

11. Sitting on
desks, Standing on chairs

Japanese people think shoes are dirty. So they always take them off before
standing on a chair. Also, they do not usually sit on desks and tables. Recently
some punk-dressed students have started walking on chairs with shoes on and
sitting on desks. This is bold arrogant behavior designed to look fashionable, or
rebellious. Also I have noticed among students who have traveled in
America, sitting on desks can be a symbol of Western behavior and used
in conversation classes to show enthusiasm.

12. O’s and X’s

Once the Western teacher becomes aware of these signs you will see
them employed everywhere, but as body language, they are
particularly used in a classroom for determining if something is
correct, as to ask the teacher for confirmation, or when playing
games, as in scoring.

O shape = O.K., present, good, score, etc. and can be represented by the okay hand sign used in
America. Often both hands and arms are made into a big circle around the head.

X shape = No good, absent, bad, no score, etc. made by crossing two fingers like an X, or by crossing
the forearms at chest level, in front of the face, or over the head.

13. Hands in your pants pockets

Considered a sign of laziness, or casual arrogance, particularly when done in

the presence of a teacher or superior, this is a common sign of the tsuppari
(‘pushy’ teenage hoodlums).

14. BANZAI! (HOORAY!)

literally means ‘ten thousand years’ and is a cheer performed

by raising both arms above the head three times while
shouting. Students enjoy doing this and some teachers use it to
playfully celebrate a special occasion. Japanese students seem
to enjoy ways to express excitement.

15. Rajio taiso (Radio Exercises)

The custom of exercising together, by loud speaker instructions before
starting work, is widespread and fairly standardized. The gestures include
stretches, jumping-jacks, squats, and toe-touching.

Most student sport clubs use variations of these when together. Teachers
can use exercising to create solidarity within a group. Students welcome
chances to stretch in class and are seldom hesitant to participate if the class
performs together. When students refuse, or show passive resistance, to group exercises this can be a
sign that harmony has not yet been established in the class among the students or between the students
and teacher.

The use of the silence

Roy Miller, in his book Japan's Modern Myth, argues against the mythical proportions attributed to the
difficulty in learning Japanese or the impossibility of acquiring fluency in silence. 1 As someone who
has attempted to master both, I would be more sympathetic with the opinion of Saint Francis Xavier,
the sixteenth-century Jesuit missionary to Japan, who called the Japanese language “the devil's tongue.”
Both spoken and silent Japanese demand considerable study.

The use of silence in communication is not an exclusively Japanese phenomenon and all languages make
extensive use of it. In Japan, however, it is a particularly important part of the language, and I have found
it helpful knowing how to use it. Each day in the classroom, I find myself becoming more aware of what
my students are saying when they are not speaking, in those delicate pauses placed inside their comments.
I am beginning to understand better what is actually being said.

While we in the West have fine-tuned ourselves to listen for hidden meaning in the words, trying to read
between the lines, Japanese students listen to the silences, for hidden innuendo and deeper meaning,
almost as if reading between the words. Just as the white space on the paper in Japanese graphics is an
integral part of the design, spoken Japanese flows among the silent spaces. Silence speaks loudly and
clearly to the Japanese, much like the emptiness found in Zen rhetoric, or the silent spaces surrounding
the notes of a bamboo flute. There are many examples in Japanese culture where silence expresses
meaning with great force or subliminal elegance.

In the EFL classroom, where fluency is developed through spontaneous use of the new language, silence
can be frustrating for the teacher. The teacher struggles to understand what has caused the silence and
how it may be overcome. A Western student may use silence to draw the listener in, to slow down the
flow of events, or encourage the teacher to pay attention while the student justifies or explains. In the
Japanese classroom, however, silence may be a polite acknowledgment of failure or inability. Students
often assume there is only one specific way to answer, as is customary in test-oriented Japanese education.
Silence signals to the teacher to move on to the next student, maintaining the flow and harmony within
the classroom.

While an American student may try and explain his dilemma, the Japanese student, particularly the
majority unfamiliar with foreign expectations, will tend to become more reticent. Seldom will the student
abandon the silence. This may appear to be obstinacy from the viewpoint of a non-Japanese instructor.
To the student however, either silence or the correct answer is the only socially acceptable reaction. The
teacher needs either to instruct the student in a variety of correct reactions, or to design exercises which
take the spotlight off the student. The student's identity among his or her peers is usually the student’s
first concern. From the students’ perspective, their ability to adjust to their own society will serve them
far more than acquiring a foreign style of expression.

Students who consistently follow the behavior patterns of the target culture and not their own, may face
social ostracism and even employment and marriage problems further down the line. Though this may
seem extreme, it is a factor that students and analysts often use to explain student behavior in the EFL
classroom.
The following are all social skills far more useful to most students than learning English;

• A student’s ability to keep his or her opinion silent, surrendering to the will of the group or
those in charge.
• A student’s ability to sublimate strong emotional reactions with polite silence, for the sake of
harmony within the group.
• A women’s femininity expressed with silent blushed innocence and lowered eyes.
• A man’s strength expressed with his silent stoic stare of defiance.

The first step in overcoming silence is to recognize its importance to the student, and then to find ways
to encourage the small talk and other social language skills which are considered equally useful within
the framework of the culture.

As advanced students move up to new challenging levels, they begin to face the issue of two distinct
codes of behavior. Most learn to deal with the Western anxieties towards Japanese silence by developing
two distinct ways of communicating, one for the Japanese environment and one for Western audiences.
Within the framework of the Japanese classroom, the code of silence will almost always take precedence
over the Western argumentative and expressive forms of classroom behavior. However, in an
environment where most people are non-Japanese, as the student’s familiarity with Western patterns
grow, eventually Western patterns of behavior can take over.

For those teachers working in Japan, silence remains a crucial element in the classroom. Learning to
accept its presence calmly, to read the messages behind it clearly, and to develop methodology to work
around it, or even with it, is essential. The following section is an overview of the different kinds of
silences that I have come to understand in the Japanese classroom.

Surprised Silence

When students are caught off guard they will seldom respond to questions. Instead, women will place
their hand on their chest and look wide-eyed with their jaw hung open, or turn away shielding their
face. Men may do a variation of this or with extended jaw and raised eyebrows express surprise.
Pointing to the nose and asking ‘Me?’ (boku? or watashi?) signals a recognition of a question, without
yet establishing responsibility. If students are genuinely frightened, they may laugh from nervousness,
blink nervously nervous tics are common when pressure is applied by superiors, wipe their moistened
palms on their pants, shake their legs unconsciously, tilt their head against their shoulders a sign of
incomprehension or confusion, nod as if in agreement as a sign of compliance and apology, or scratch
and hold the back of their head to express bafflement and modesty, a gesture considered humorous and
non-offensive.

Silence as an Expression of Agreement or Disagreement

Using silence to suggest agreement or disagreement is common in many cultures. Clarification is made
through accompanying body signs. Generally agreement in Japan is expressed with nods of the head, as
in the up and down of a yes. Sometimes, where nodding would be too conspicuous, widening eyes
accompanied by an almost invisible nod, grin, or raised eyebrow is used. When a person is placed in a
position where spelling out true feelings would be improper, as when asking students about classmates
who are guilty of some impropriety, the silent expressions help suggest the truth behind the words
being spoken.

Disagreement or other negative acknowledgement is often accompanied with a nod to the side, toward
the shoulder, though at times ever so slight. Grimacing, frowns, squinted eyes, wrinkling the nose,
pouting, and other signs are common. A hand shielding a pointing finger, or a silent yet mouthed
response, can help clarify who or what is being talked about. This kind of silent communicating is
practiced even when there is no real chance of being overheard. This may come from years of living in
houses with thin walls, or as a symbolic recognition of the power of authority.
Silence as an Expression of Femininity

It is still a common belief in Japan that an ideal woman should speak softly and only when spoken to,
with her head and eyes lowered in respect and modesty, especially in the company of men. A true
gentleman will ask this fragile flower of a woman only suitable, easily answerable questions and if she
cannot answer gracefully, she should sit silently, preferably blushing at the cheeks, her hands gently
resting on her lap.

Though this picture of innocence may appear ill-appropriate for the EFL classroom, many women,
particularly when there are men in the room, will maintain this posture throughout the school year.
Even English majors with extraordinary ability to read and write English, will become unbearably coy
when asked to speak English with a man, or in front of the class. As most Japanese women need to
practice this posture, for it is often what their parents or employers expect, even the most gregarious of
female students may fall into coy silence from time to time.

There is a male variation of this mukuchi (no mouth) behavior. Sometimes mukuchi is born out of
genuine shyness and/or having nothing much to say. Some students, having never been in a coed class
before, may not know what to talk about with the opposite sex. Other students may be on the bottom
rung of some social ladder within the dynamics of the classroom, a victim of ijime (bullying). His silent
responses are often very similar to that of his female counterpart, except that he runs the added risk of
becoming the laughing stock of the class. As with shy women, when placed in group activities with
students he feels comfortable with, this reserve can disappear, only to resume when he senses the class
is again watching.

Silence as an Expression of Defiance

Have you ever felt someone's eyes looking at you, only to find, when you looked up quickly, that
someone was indeed watching you? Usually, most people, when you have caught them staring, will
quickly look away. If they do not, things can get very uncomfortable. Why is he staring? Is something
wrong? Is he crazy? Is he angry at me? If the person continues to stare, we may get continually more
uncomfortable or even angry. This feeling of discomfort from being watched, is fairly universal and in
Japan it has become an accepted code of behavior to use eye contact only for important messages.
Therefore, generally speaking, eye contact is avoided unless an explicit message is intended.

In the classroom, prolonged eye contact can be used to convey a message, as in acknowledging interest
in the lesson, expressing disbelief, or as angry defiance. Angry defiance is usually only used when a
student's pride is seriously challenged, as in response to a punishment which he or she considers unjust.
Students respect the power of a teacher and will generally avoid public defiance. However, most
teachers will eventually have to deal with it sooner or later.

Usually dissatisfaction is expressed by choruses of moaning and groaning from the class or from more
outgoing students. More serious problems may be expressed by students slamming their books around,
exaggerated dragged out body gestures, or other ‘childish’ behavior. If a student challenges a teacher
with a long hard unflinching stare, the student is stating publicly that your imposition goes beyond
acceptable behavior, and the student is willing to risk failure to preserve pride.

On that rare occasion when this has happened in my class, in retrospect I saw how my body language
might have been misinterpreted. What I had meant as a joke had been misunderstood. Also after setting
a standard considered unreasonably difficult by a particular student, things have escalated into a serious
confrontation. Now that I have come to better understand Japanese etiquette and the predisposition of
Japanese students, these confrontations are rare. However, since I maintain a standard based on my
own educational ideals, confrontation is still possible.

Knowing the appropriate code of behavior for eye contact, as well as how to read different students’
sense of territory, with a sensitivity to their body signals, will help prevent miscommunication before it
becomes problematic. Most conflicts of defiance are because both parties are unmoving. By carefully
monitoring the students’ non-verbals, I find myself predicting and adjusting my feelings and my
standards on problematic issues before they get out of hand. In those cases where I ask students to do
things outside of the norm, like all students participating in every exercise, I do not make it an issue of
confrontation, but one of negotiation, where students feel they understand their options, and the
motives behind my directives.

Silence and Mixed Classes

Sex, family matters such as Korean, Chinese, and Brakumin ancestry, or other subjects considered
personal by Japanese students, may not be easy subjects for casual discussion in the mixed Japanese
classroom. By mixed, I am referring to:

• classes where both men and women are present

• classes where a student of a different social rank is present

While the problems of coed classes may be self evident, though of a slightly different flavor than in
other countries, social rank offers a particular challenge to Western teachers in Japan. Rank can be
delineated by:

• university year, i.e., freshman, junior, sophomore, senior

• club and sports affiliations, team membership and rank within these teams
• economics, rich verses poor
• academic status, achievers verses loafers
• social sects, i.e., Korean, rock music lovers, Christians, etc.

I have found by understanding outsider and insider relationships in the classroom I can regulate group
work, so that everyone has a chance to participate without being unduly embarrassed. Learning these
ranking systems will take a bit of time, as students are always aware of them but will seldom discuss
them out of fear of complicating the situation any further. As most students want, to a certain extent, to
belong to the group, they will do their best to avoid overt animosity to those outside their own social
rank, hesitating at first but then joining in.

Many students are reluctant to talk about personal issues in the classroom. Yet, as in all countries, these
topics are often of tremendous interest to the students and usually everyone has an opinion when
talking about themselves.

Sex, and other personal subjects, are not a taboo, as in the Judeo-Christian tradition of good and evil
behavior. But personal talk, about things that reveal inside information to someone from the outside, is
usually avoided. By talking about your family's personal affairs (inside) to the class (outside), or by
talking about classmates (inside) to a guest student (outside), one is endangering the solidarity and
harmony of the group. The speaker, naturally, does not wish to create disharmony, either by
introducing controversy or by unduly embarrassing anyone.

Although students often ask intimate questions of others, and sometimes of the teacher, nobody is ever
really expected to answer. Most people simply answer with the usual variations of silence, short
evasive statements, or giggles. Western teachers that I work with often express surprise at the number
and variety of standardizations that exist in Japan. For example, twenty-five is a standard age for
marriage, before thirty is the standard age when to have children, two is the standard number of how
many children to have, etc. and people use these as yardsticks in determining their responses. People,
for whatever reason, who do not match these patterns of behavior down play the differences and their
friends avoid these touchy subjects. Polite people do not discuss discrepancies in social behavior
publicly, particularly if it may embarrass people in the room.

I believe the Japanese are masters at flirtation, due perhaps to social pressure to keep romance
secretive. Eye contact, broken side glances, often from different places in the room, generally initiate
the process. Most teachers will be well aware, at least subliminally, before flirtation advances further
and will seldom need to dissuade a student. Only in private or business classes can this matter get out
of hand when student and teacher meet outside the classroom, but common sense will do. While
students may enjoy having a crush on the teacher, few will ever initiate anything without
encouragement.
Politics as a topic of discussion is not a taboo, though Japanese do not express as much interest in
discussing controversial issues as their American counterparts. A few subjects are sensitive, and may
receive silent responses: the Emperor System (particularly the Emperor's role in the Second World
War), the existence of an outcaste class (burakumin or the old name eta), the large Korean population
living in Japan, Japanese colonial history and the atrocities associated with it, the organized criminal
gangs (yakuza), or any other subjects that challenge the credibility of the nation, community, or school.
1

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 - The following paragraphs from Yukio Mishima's The Decay of the Angel graphically illustrates the
values adhered to by some Japanese young people.

“ . . . What the world asks of a young person is that he be a devoted listener, nothing more. You're the
winner if you let him do the talking. You must not forget that for a moment.

The world does not ask brilliance of a young person, and at the same time too firm a steadiness arouses
suspicions. You should have a harmless little eccentricity or two, something to interest him. You must
have little addictions, not too expensive and not related to politics. Very abstract, very average.
Tinkering with machinery, or baseball or a trumpet. Once he knows what they are he feels safe. He
knows where your enemies can go. You can even seem a little carried away by your hobbies if you want
to.

You should go in for sports but not let them interfere with your studies, and they should be the sports
that show off your good health. It has the advantage of making you look stupid. There are no virtues
more highly prized in Japan than indifference to politics and devotion to the team. . .”

Silence as Passive Resistance

For the EFL teacher, determining whether a student's silence is a form of passive resistance or simply
an innocent reaction to something else, can be a difficult task. Passive resistance is a means of
expression for students dissatisfied with their class. In Japan, where silence is considered a virtue and
can hardly be challenged on its own, students have learned to use passive resistance to cast their vote
for or against a lesson activity.

Patience is the first skill an experienced teacher should use when confronted with silence. By
challenging a student unjustly, a teacher can turn the natural hesitation of a learner into a point of
contention, in effect raising the student's affective filter. 1 While silence is a warning flag for the EFL
teacher, in the Japanese classroom it is not a red flag but simply a cautionary one, and there is no need
to panic. As I have learned the hard way, overreaction is usually the cause of resistance, not the
solution.

By getting feedback through other means, e.g. student journals, private consultations, compositions,
alternative activities, etc., a teacher can determine a student's motivation and hopefully resolve or work
around problems. As Japanese tend to distrust angry or extreme reactions, and because foreign teachers
often lack the language skill necessary to understand a student's apprehension, the best policy is to
assume the exercise to be at fault and not the student. In time students will recognize a teacher's efforts
and attempt to overcome their inability to respond effectively.

I recommend placing students in a variety of interactive situations to determine the nature of their
silence. Most will behave differently in small groups, or with members of their own sex or peer group,
than when the whole class is listening. Students can often explain in writing, what they are too reticent
to express verbally, so I often ask problem students to explain themselves in letter or composition form.
When I clearly outline the class objectives and methodology, uncooperative students usually recognize
their responsibility and react accordingly.

Games to encourage fluency in a non-threatening environment work well, as do lessons explaining the
importance of speaking in Western cultures. However, silence has a long and respected history in Japan
and will not disappear just because it is not conducive to language learning. Instead I suggest the
foreign teachers in Japan open their peripheral vision to the variety and frequency of nonverbal signals
and develop an inner criteria for imaginative and spontaneous interaction within the silences.
Developing awareness to how Japanese students communicate their feelings silently will lead, I
believe, to more efficient ways of relaxing students and engaging them in the lesson.

Conclusion

To summarize what I have stated thus far, the key factors for understanding the prominent use of non-
verbals and silence in the Japanese EFL classroom are:

• Students are traditionally not encouraged to speak out of turn, or in ways that suggest a
challenge to the authority of others. This Confucian educational tradition, which later adapted
the European lecture and Grammar translation methods, encourages students to remain silent,
placing emphasis on nonverbal signaling in classroom communication.

• Speaking often is not as necessary, as it is in American classrooms. Japan is a high context

culture in which students already assume the meaning behind interpersonal activity. In a low
context culture, as in North America or in Northern Europe, explanation is considered part of
social etiquette, making speaking-up more important than in Japan.

• Japanese students retain a positive trust in implied or intuitive meaning, and less in
dialectical skills. While Western education draws its sources in the Socratic techniques of
exposing false beliefs and eliciting truth through dialectics, Japanese education evolves out of
Buddhist and Taoist philosophy, where all intellectually inspired ideas are suspect, experience
and intuition taking precedence over thought. This places more emphasis on the gestalt of each
moment and not the ideas behind them.

• Japanese culture assumes an interdependence and commonality within each group. Values
are to be shared and assumed and are considered essential for harmony. Complaisance in the
group presupposes a collective consciousness that needn't be articulated. Western pluralistic
societies require much more negotiation for consensus, and so sharing divergent opinions in
discussion is a respected part of Western education, not necessarily encouraged in Japan.

• Expressing divergent, conflicting opinions is considered rude. In pre-Meji Japan, sword

carrying Samurai could kill commoners for ill-chosen words. To express the slightest nuance
of disrespect could result in instant death. Though Samurai no longer walk the streets of Japan,
remnants of their values still exist, with students hesitant to express themselves spontaneously.

• Students are insecure about their English abilities, most having had very little first hand
experience expressing themselves, despite years of English study.

• Students, particularly those from the smaller cities and towns, have had very little experience
being with Westerners, and often feel ill-prepared for Western instructors and their
expectations.

• Many students study throughout their educational careers in all-boy or all-girl schools, and
so feel flustered and insecure in coed classes, or with teachers of the opposite sex.

• In situations where two people do not share a common language, as in a Japanese classroom
where the teacher does not speak Japanese, it is a natural tendency to use body sign language.
Unfortunately these signs may not necessarily be recognizable, based on different cultural
traditions.

Conversely, the use of non-verbals and silence by Japanese students in the EFL classroom can create
situations which are not advantageous:
 • Western teachers cannot completely comprehend the implied meaning of students and
therefore may miss clues to their learning needs.

• Teachers may wish to encourage spontaneous use of the target language, and discourage
students from mental translation or oral reticence.

• Students may trigger Western teacher's anxieties about silence or reliance on non-verbals in
the classroom, or appear indifferent, or hostile, to the teacher.

• Students need to eventually comprehend the linguistical and social patterns of the target
language, including the appropriate use of non-verbals.

Despite these differences, between the realities of the Japanese classroom and the needs of the EFL
instructor, Western instructors may wish to employ patience before stepping in to correct what may
appear to be excessive use of silence or non-verbals. As Charles A. Curran writes “. . .one runs the
danger of overstanding, thereby creating defense and resistance on the part of others. This can happen,
for example, when one is teaching, or otherwise offering instruction or information that is threatening
or confronting; he or she will then have to cease ‘standing for’ and begin to ‘understand’ if open
communication is to be once again restored.” 1 Given the realities of the Japanese classroom that have
been discussed thus far, the following steps can be recommended:

• Vary exercises, to allow students with different learning styles to find ways to join in. As
students may be reacting to a wide variety of factors, silence and restlessness may be a sign
that the situation is uncomfortable. Unfortunately Japanese students find it difficult to express
directly when and why they are not responding well to a lesson.

• Solicit feedback, through written journals, private interviews, and exercises that allow
students to discuss their feelings and ideas about the class. Among other advantages, this has
helped me understand better the nonverbal messages sent by students that I may have found
puzzling.

• Design lesson plans and class activities around related themes, i.e., nonverbal
communication, contrasting cultural behavior, techniques for answering verbally questions
normally answered with silence, ways of saying a no and a yes in English, etc. As students
learn of the differences, and how they cause cultural miscommunication, they will usually
make an effort to overcome them.

• Look for subtle body movements and facial changes in your students. I find the more
carefully I watch for nonverbal clues, the better I get at guessing the feelings of my students.
Though I still may misread my students, by showing an active interest in my students, they
become more willing to express themselves to me.

- Look to the face to monitor subconscious forces, like the emotional response of a
student to the interaction.

- Look to the hands to intercept messages being sent to the teacher or other students.

- Look to body gestures to receive the broad theatrical displays used to rectify or
clarify a student's social message. This tells how the student wishes to convey
himself or herself to the class.

The challenge of teaching English as a foreign language in Japan continues to test the skills of the
serious EFL professional. Though Japan spends more money on English education than any other
nation, it can still be considered a monolingual society. Most college students have studied English for
six to eight years, yet most feel incapable of saying even the most rudimentary things in English.
Of course this kind of statistical view of language training is misleading. Most of the money spent on
language learning is in fact throwing good money after bad. Yet many good programs have been born
from it. Class sizes remain too large, many programs are ill directed, with institutional change slow and
not necessarily helpful. Yet I cannot help but feel, as I continue to meet new dynamic EFL
professionals working on my campuses each year, that new answers are just around the corner.

Though Japanese students do in fact study English in high school, they do so from nonnative speakers
who, in many cases, cannot speak English. Often these English teachers stress grammatical rules and
vocabulary, designed to help students pass college entrance examinations. Yet each year I meet
students inspired by their high school teacher enough to make the study of English a life long pursuit.
And each year, from a variety of factors, students seem to be getting better and better.

Despite this cycle of non-speakers teaching non-speakers, or perhaps because of it, a fertile field exists
here in Japan. All over the country, teachers are sowing seeds of English into the hearts of millions of
young Japanese students. From these seeds blossom enthusiasm and interest, recognizable by that
special sparkle in their eyes. New students come each spring stronger and more willing to learn, than
ever before.

My task at the university is to nurture this fragile flower of interest, so that it may bloom again and
again throughout each student's life. For me, the tough part about this nurturing, has been putting my
teaching methodology into cultural perspective. While at college in New York, I enjoyed debating
controversial issues in spicy fervor, testing the skills of my peers, while improving my own
argumentative talents. As this thesis tries to illustrate, this is not how people generally learn speaking
skills in Japan.

While my friends and I would accelerate the intensity of the discussion by jumping in with witticisms,
critique, and challenges, here I find meaning dependent on inferred and subtle innuendo, accented with
seas of silence. Here my style appears rude and one-sided, lacking the very qualities of subtlety and
strength I believe I had in New York. I find myself diving into this silence, desperately trying to fill a
void, an emptiness I am beginning to understand was always quite full of meaning, if I had only taken
the time to see it.

Now is the time for me to grow, to become culturally multilingual, not only as a teacher but as a
member of a world society. I have before me a wonderful opportunity, to overcome my American need
to fill the silences and to learn to listen. Cross-cultural communication can be elegant and rich when
care is taken.

As I allow myself to open up to the multitudes of nonverbal messages being sent by my students, I feel
my classes improving. I am enjoying my classes more, because student behavior makes more sense to
me now. I feel more in control and more relaxed, and just as important to me, my students appear more
relaxed and more willing to try. The idiom Mi ni shimite wakaru (understanding seeps into my body) is
how I feel about my evolution as a teacher in Japan. Much of what I experience still remains alien
intellectually, yet if I allow my pores to remain open, intuitive insights seep through my skin and I feel
that things do in fact make sense. As a teacher, where once I found alienation in the silences of my
class, I now find moments of peace and inspiration. It is my hope that by describing what I have
experienced and learned in the Japanese EFL classroom, I have helped other Western teachers to be
aware of the challenges they face. I hope they can begin with greater understanding in order to become
culturally multilingual and to teach more effectively in Japan.