Abstract:

The use of body language in foreign language teaching has a social, cultural and communicative function. For whatever purpose (public domain, professional field, private field, educational field) a person is learning a language, he needs the indicators of body language in order to explain and be understood. An effective communication takes place when the limits of the body are well known. Body language comes into play in meaningful and/or meaningless silences between people and reflects people's inner world. Contact in communication media takes place not only in the physical sense, but also in the intellectual sense. Language enables people from different societies and cultures to meet. The use of body language can become an indicator of culture as well as being universal. The increase in cultural differences in gestures or mimics causes the diversity of meaning and intention. This situation leads to misunderstandings by creating different messages for both the instructor and the learners. Body language, which is used in every part of life, tells the reality and ironies of society (series, movies, theatre, etc.). Language learners' mastery of body language cues in the world of the target language and making comparisons with the world in which they exist increase the interest in culture and ensure effective communication. Considering that even the country we live in has a hot and cold climate, its contribution to communication environments cannot be ignored, considering that it is reflected in the body language of the person. The aim of this study is to question the functionality of body language in teaching Turkish as a foreign language, to examine intercultural body language differences and to include activities on body language use related to language skills. In the research, "document analysis", one of the widely preferred qualitative research methods, was used. In the light of the findings, it has been seen that body language is effective in recognizing the culture, increasing motivation and interaction, teaching vocabulary, and developing language skills, but using body language alone is not enough. This is due to the idea that living language develops with verbal and nonverbal stimuli. In the study, suggestions were presented that the opinions of those who learn Turkish as a foreign language can be taken about the body language mistakes they experience in communication environments, and that idioms that contain various emotional states can be taught by making use of body language. It is hoped that the research will be beneficial for the teachers working in the field of teaching Turkish as a foreign language and for future studies.

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