CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1. Background
After observing the learning process of students at the school, we found that students
of many courses, especially second-year students at Hue University of Foreign
Languages, complained about their low scores in speaking. We decided to dive in to
find out what the reason was, some students told us it was a lack of eye contact.
Our eyes are an important place to express our moods and attitudes that everyone
looks at first when making direct contact and communication. A recent study by
Stephen Janik and Rodney Wellens at the University of Miami found that 12.6% of a
person's attraction is created by the mouth and up to 43.4% of the attraction is created
by the eyes. .
"Eye contact is a fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication and social
interaction from birth throughout adulthood" (Kleinke 1986). "Eye contact is an
important indicator for healthy bonding between mother and child at early ages and for
the diagnosis of mental disorders later in life" (Auyeung et al. 2015; Farroni et al.
2002). "Furthermore, it is a fundamental factor in interpersonal relationship building"
(MacDonald 2009). Not surprisingly, eye has been the focus of research in various
disciplines, such as
communication sciences, social psychology, and psychiatry, and various approaches
have been used to asses it. After many times of researching the documents, we found
that there is no article that specifically mentions the situation that second-year students
at Hue University of Foreign Languages have been using eye contact when
communicating. Previous articles are only based on personal experience and
implementation in a certain country, and are general without specificity. As one of
HUCFL's students, we wanted to learn about this issue, so our group would like to
choose the topic "The perception of using eye contact in English communication of
second year students at Hue University of Foreign Languages". Hopefully, through
this topic, students will be provided with the right methods of eye contact, the reality
of using eye contact is more and more commonly used and more effective.
Keywords: eye contact, communication, skill.
2. Purpose of the study:
Our study aims to find out and provide more information about the situation that 2nd
year students at Hue University of Foreign Languages use eye-contact when
communicating in English and useful tips for using eye contact. Contacts of students.
Our research has focused on the following questions:

To what extent do HUFL second-year English-majoring students use eye

contact in communication English ?
What are the benefits and challenges students encounter when using eye
contact in English communication ?
3. The importance of this study:

This study will investigate the actual use of eye contact when communicating that 2nd
year students studying at Hue University of Foreign Languages have been using.
Unlike previous research papers, we focus on specifically and thoroughly exploiting
the difficulties and common errors when making eye contact, thereby providing more
useful information for students who may have adjust or step forward yourself.

4. Research scope:
This study will be conducted at Hue University of Foreign Languages, the subjects are
2nd year students studying foreign languages. Through student-specific approaches
such as interviews, using questionnaires. Although it is not possible for all Hue
university students to participate, we will try and hope this research will have some
success. Find out how much students really use eye contact when communicating
during communication as well as during training.

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter begins by presenting the definition of “eye contact” and “, the importance
of using eye contact in English communication. And finally, the difficulties and
common mistakes that students often encounter when making eye contact, from that,
give tips and solutions to use it more effectively.
1. Definition of “ eye contact“
The definition of eye contac is very diverse. For example, according to Cambridge
Dictionary,it defines that: “the act of looking directly in the eyes of another person as
the other person looks at you”, or in Commercial English explain that “a situation in
which two people look directly into each other's eyes. Eye contact is considered to be
an important part of effective communication”
Eye contact occurs when two animals look into each other's eyes at the same time. In
humans, eye contact is a form of nonverbal communication and is believed to have a
major influence on social behavior. Coined in the early to mid-1960s, the term came
from the West to generally define the act as a significant and important sign of
confidence, respect, and the ability to socialize. . The customs and meanings of eye
contact vary between societies, with religious and social differences often altering its
meaning greatly.
Eye contact is a fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication and therefore
important for understanding human interaction.
Eye contact is a very tricky art to master, but vital to effective communication. It has
always existed and occupied a very important part in the communication of people. In
certain situations it is even crucial. Eye contact is used in everyday conversation
between people. When we are talking to someone, talking to a group, only listening,
debating, reading something to someone, when we have some speech, responding to a
question asked, when we ask a question, when we teach a lesson etc. The importance
of the eye contact is great because through it we transfer a large part of the message
we want to convey to the other. Happiness, sadness, worry, satisfaction, security or
fear and discomfort…The eyes are often called, with some justification, 'the windows
of the soul' as they can send many different non-verbal signals. The application of eye
contact can greatly facilitate the work of the teachers and students because it will
provide a better understanding between them.
Eye contact provides social information to the person you are listening to and talking
to. Too much eye contact and you could be seen as aggressive, too little eye contact
and you can be seen as having no interest in the person speaking. It is an often
overlooked skill to have and an under utilised skill when communicating with people,
especially when communicating in English
2. The importance of eye contact
Eye contact is the most powerful form of nonverbal contact to complement regular
verbal communication. In daily communication, in addition to words, gestures, and
actions, the eyes also play an extremely important role, especially the first impression.
Before listening and understanding what you say, the other person has already had an
impression of you through the outside look. They will make a preliminary assessment
through tone, gestures, body language including eye contact skills. In English
communication, eye contact says a lot about who you are.

In the classroom, students who are more confident and dominant are probably better
able to make eye contact with their teachers. However, there are also many other
students who are not confident in the class, especially when mixing and sharing with
other students, will be timid and do not dare to look at the opposite person, look far
away. And you know, often teachers will also evaluate and give points on the
confidence part. Of course, those who know how to make eye contact will have higher
scores.

When communicating, eye contact is the foundation of trust and the fundamental
starting point for bringing a team together. By looking away, into the distance, the
other person will feel that you are not focused or that you are not interested in the
story, so you will miss a lot of things from them. On the contrary, when you can make
eye contact with each other, it means that you and them have made a big step in
developing mutual respect, staying together, and being willing to talk and support each
other.

3. Common mistakes when making eye contact

We may learn to practice eye contact on our own and in discussions to convey the
proper message if we want to be a better listener, speaker, and have a more persuasive
presence. Making eye contact becomes more challenging when the person we're
speaking with becomes more powerful or scary. It's unfortunate that during these
moments we also frequently need to project confidence in order to capture the
attention of our audience, making it more crucial than ever to unwind. And here are
some typical errors.
  Avoid other people's eyes
You may find it challenging to look someone in the eye when you don't know
them, or if they have more power than you, like a teacher. Avoiding eye contact
at these times may make you feel safer, but it's entirely incorrect since it
conveys a lack of confidence, a weakness, and a sense of inferiority to the other
person.
 Blinking too much, eyes wandering erratically
According to psychologists, this is a signal of lying, causing no one to trust to
listen.
 Dull eyes
Lifeless, tired, empty eyes also make others think that you are not focused on
the story, on the presentation, creating superficial emotions and as a result, no
matter how good the content is, no one will listen to you anymore.
4. Some tips for effective eye contact

It's an artistic process. Where should we put our eyes and how should we change
dynamically during the speaking process? Keep for yourself a few of the following
tips to be able to completely make eye contact, make the best and most attractive
English contact with the opposite person:

 Looking directly into the opposite person in a harmonious and reasonable way
Looking into the eyes and face of the person you are talking to is the minimum
courtesy. However, staring straight ahead all day would be awkward for both of
them. Be flexible with the frame and eyes, sometimes moving your eyes to the
surrounding area so that both of you are not stressed and tired. However, you
must not roll your eyes continuously, that is very impolite and elegant.
 Do not flirt with people of the opposite sex, unless you are describing
something funny.
 Do not lower your head, look down at your feet, this is a very obvious or
common behavior in the offender.
 Listening skills are also very important and can be completely integrated to
harmonize with eye contact. When listening to other people talk, we should all
have attentive, focused eyes to show respect. ... Good eye contact also affects
effective presentation skills