Cover not available
Article published In:
Gesture
Vol. 22:2 (2023) ► pp.189–226

Do teachers adapt their gestures in linguistically heterogeneous second language teaching to learners’ language proficiencies?

ORCID logo | German Institute for Adult Education – Leibniz Centre for Lifelong Learning
ORCID logo | TU Dortmund University
Teachers’ use of gestures in the classroom can support the language acquisition of learners in learning a second language (Stam & Tellier, 2022). Depending on learners’ language skills, different dimensions of gestures (e.g., deictic, metaphorical) are considered to facilitate successful language comprehension. This study investigates which gestures teachers use in German as a second language (GSL) classrooms and to what extent teachers adapt their gestures to learners’ language proficiency. Teacher gestures in 10 video-recorded integration and preparation classes were analyzed. Two coders reliably identified 4143 gestures. Results show that GSL teachers predominantly used deictic gestures, metaphorical gestures, and feedback by head movements. Moreover, between-learner variability in teachers’ use of deictic and metaphorical gestures was explained by teacher-perceived German language proficiency of learners. These results suggest that teachers systematically adapt some dimensions of gestures in GSL classes, thus emphasizing the importance of studying nonverbal interactions for a better understanding of language acquisition processes.
Keywords: second language acquisition, teachers’ gestures, adaptive teaching
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • The role of gestures in second language learning
    • Dimensions of gestures
    • Adaption of gestures and language proficiency of the interlocutors
  • Present study
  • Method
    • Sample
    • Materials and procedure
      • Videos / session structure
      • Annotations of gestures and targets
      • Questionnaire data and language proficiency test
      • Reliability of measurement
      • Analysis
  • Results
    • RQ1: What dimensions of gestures do teachers use in GSL classes?
    • RQ2: Does teachers’ use of gestures vary between teachers and between learners of the same learning group?
    • RQ3: Can the variance in the use of teachers’ gestures be explained by the teacher’s perceived German proficiency of the learners?
  • Discussion and conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].

Published online: 2 April 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/gest.22023.sah
References (71)
References
Adams, T. W. (1998). Gesture in foreigner talk. [Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania.]
Alibali, M. W., & Nathan, M. J. (2006). Teachers’ gestures as a means of scaffolding students’ understanding: Evidence from an early algebra lesson. In R. Goldman, R. Pea, B. Barron, & S. J. Denny (Eds.), Video Research in the Learning Sciences (pp. 349–365). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Alibali, M. W., Nathan, M. J., Boncoddo, R., & Pier, E. (2019). Managing common ground in the classroom: Teachers use gestures to support students’ contributions to classroom discourse. ZDM, 51 (2), 347–360. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Alibali, M. W., Nathan, M. J., Church, R. B., Wolfgram, M. S., Kim, S., & Knuth, E. J. (2013). Teachers’ gestures and speech in mathematics lessons: forging common ground by resolving trouble spots. ZDM, 45 (3), 425–440. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Azaoui, B. (2013). One Teacher, Two Instructional Contexts. Same Teaching Gestures? TiGeR : Tilburg Gesture research meeting, 1–4. [URL]
(2016). Mise en abyme des interactions didactiques [Putting didactic interactions in perspective]. Recherches en Didactique des Langues et des Cultures, 13 (1). [URL]. DOI logo
(2020). On pointing in first and foreign language classes. GESPIN proceedings. Stockholm, Sweden. [URL]
Bleakley, H., & Chin, A. (2004). Language skills and earnings: Evidence from childhood immigrants Review of Economics and Statistics, 86 (2), 481–496. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Brennan, S. E., & Hanna, J. E. (2009). Partner-specific adaptation in dialog. Topics in Cognitive Science, 1 (2), 274–291. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dargue, N., Sweller, N., & Jones, M. P. (2019). When our hands help us understand: A meta-analysis into the effects of gesture on comprehension. Psychological Bulletin, 145 (8), 765–784. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Derwing, T. M. (1987). Individual differences in foreigner talk: factors in successful communication with non-native speakers [University of Alberta Libraries]. DataCite.Google Scholar
Eckes, T., & Grotjahn, R. (2006). A closer look at the construct validity of C-tests. Language Testing, 23 (3), 290–325. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ellis, R. (2005). Principles of instructed language learning. System, 33 (2), 209–224. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Esser, H. (2006). Sprache und Integration: Die sozialen Bedingungen und Folgen des Spracherwerbs von Migranten [Language and Integration: The Social Conditions and Consequences of Migrants’ Language Acquisition]. Campus-Verl.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. A. (1975). Toward a characterization of English foreigner talk. Anthropological Linguistics, 17 1, 1–14.Google Scholar
Giles, H., Coupland, N., & Coupland, J. (1991). Accommodation theory: Communication, context, and consequence. Contexts of Accommodation. Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Goldin-Meadow, S. (2000). Beyond words: The importance of gesture to researchers and learners. Child Development, 71 (1), 231–239. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Grotjahn, R. (2019). C-Tests. In S. Jeuk & J. Settinieri (Eds.), DaZ-Handbücher: Band 2. Sprachdiagnostik Deutsch als Zweitsprache: Ein Handbuch (pp. 585–610). de Gruyter. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gullberg, M. (2006). Some reasons for studying gesture and second language acquisition (Hommage à Adam Kendon). IRAL – International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 44 (2). DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2010). Methodological reflections on gesture analysis in second language acquisition and bilingualism research. Second Language Research, 26 (1), 75–102. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Guven, C., & Islam, A. (2015). Age at migration, language proficiency, and socioeconomic outcomes: Evidence from Australia. Demography, 52 (2), 513–542. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hadar, U., Dar, R., & Teitelman, A. (2002). Gesture during speech in first and second language. Gesture, 1 (2), 151–165. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hammond, J., & Gibbons, P. (2005). Putting scaffolding to work: The contribution of scaffolding in articulating ESL education. Prospect, 20 (1), 6–30.Google Scholar
Hardy, I., Decristan, J., & Klieme, E. (2019). Adaptive teaching in research on learning and instruction. Journal for Educational Research Online (11), 169–191. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hauge, E. (1998). Gesture in the EFL class: an aid to communication or a source of confusion? In Danielle Killick & Mike Parry (Eds.), Cross-cultural capability – the why, the ways and the means: New theories and methodologies in language education, pp. 271–280. Proceedings of the conference at Leeds Metropolitan University Dec. 1997.
(1999). Some common emblems used by British English teachers in EFL classes. In Danielle Killick & Mike Parry (Eds.), Cross-cultural capability – promoting the discipline: Marking boundaries and crossing borders, pp. 405–420. Proceedings of the conference at Leeds Metropolitan University Dec. 1998.
Hochman, O., & Davidov, E. (2014). Relations between second-language proficiency and national identification: The case of immigrants in Germany. European Sociological Review, 30 (3), 344–359. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hostetter, A. B. (2011). When do gestures communicate? A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 137 (2), 297–315. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Howe, C., & Abedin, M. (2013). Classroom dialogue: A systematic review across four decades of research. Cambridge Journal of Education, 43 (3), 325–356. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hupp, J. M., & Gingras, M. C. (2016). The role of gesture meaningfulness in word learning. Gesture, 15 (3), 340–356. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Johnston, P., Dozier, C., & Smit, J. (2016). How language supports adaptive teaching through a responsive learning culture. Theory into Practice, 55 (3), 189–196. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kendon, A. (2010). Gesture: Visible action as utterance. Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Krashen, S. (1989). We Acquire Vocabulary and Spelling by Reading: Additional Evidence for the Input Hypothesis. The Modern Language Journal, 73(4), 440–464. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lazaraton, A. (2004). Gesture and speech in the vocabulary explanations of one ESL teacher: A microanalytic inquiry. Language Learning, 54 (1), 79–117. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lazaraton, A., & Ishihara, N. (2005). Understanding second language teacher practice using microanalysis and self-reflection: A collaborative case study. Modern Language Journal, 89 (4), 529–542. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lim, F. V. (2021). Investigating intersemiosis: A systemic functional multimodal discourse analysis of the relationship between language and gesture in classroom discourse. Visual Communication, 20 (1), 34–58. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Loewen, S., & Sato, M. (2018). Interaction and instructed second language acquisition. Language Teaching, 51 (3), 285–329. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Long, M. H. (1983). Native speaker/non-native speaker conversation and the negotiation of comprehensible input1. Applied Linguistics, 4 (2), 126–141. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Martinovic, B., van Tubergen, F., & Maas, I. (2009). Dynamics of interethnic contact: A panel study of immigrants in the Netherlands. European Sociological Review, 25 (3), 303–318. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Matsumoto, Y., & Dobs, A. M. (2017). Pedagogical gestures as interactional resources for teaching and learning tense and aspect in the ESL grammar classroom. Language Learning, 67 1, 7–42. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
McCafferty, S. G., & Stam, G. (Eds.). (2008). ESL & applied linguistics professional series. Gesture: Second language acquisition and classroom research. Routledge.Google Scholar
McNeill, D. (1992). Hand and mind: What gestures reveal about thought. University of Chicago Press. [URL]
(2005). Gesture and Thought. University of Chicago Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Otto, J., Migas, K., Austermann, N., & Bos, W. (2016). Integration neu zugewanderter Kinder und Jugendlicher ohne Deutschkenntnisse. Möglichkeiten, Herausforderungen und Perspektiven [Integration of newly immigrated children and young people without German language skills. Possibilities, challenges and perspectives]. Waxmann. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Parsons, S. A., Vaughn, M., Scales, R. Q., Gallagher, M. A., Parsons, A. W., Davis, S. G., Pierczynski, M., & Allen, M. (2018). Teachers’ instructional adaptations: A research synthesis. Review of Educational Research, 88 (2), 205–242. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Sato, R. (2020). Gestures in EFL classroom: Their relations with complexity, accuracy, and fluency in EFL teachers’ L2 utterances. System, 89 1, Article 102215. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Schmidt, T., & Wörner, K. (2014). EXMARaLDA. In U. G. Jacques Durand & Gjert Kristoffersen (Eds.), Handbook on Corpus Phonology, pp. 402–419. Oxford University Press. [URL]
Sime, D. (2001). The use and perception of illustrators in the foreign language classroom. In C. Cave, I. Guaitella, & S. Santi (Eds.), Oralité et gestualité: Interactions et comportements multimodaux dans la communication (pp. 582–585). L’Harmattan.Google Scholar
(2006). What do learners make of teachers’ gestures in the language classroom? International Review of Applied Linguistics, 44 (2), 211–230. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2008). “Because of her gesture, it’s very easy to understand”: Learners’ perceptions of teachers’ gestures in the foreign language class. In S. G. McCafferty & G. Stam (Eds.), Gesture: Second language acquisition and classroom research, pp. 259–279. Routledge.Google Scholar
Smotrova, T. (2017). Making pronunciation visible: Gesture in teaching pronunciation. TESOL Q, 51 1, 59–89. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Smotrova, T. & Lantolf, J. P. (2013). The function of gesture in lexically focused L2 instructional conversations. Modern Language Journal, 97 1, 397–416. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stam, G. (2012). Second Language Acquisition and Gesture. In The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics, C. A. Chapelle (Ed.). DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2016). Gesture as a window onto conceptualization in multiple tasks: Implications for second language teaching. Yearbook of the German Cognitive Linguistics Association, 4 (1), 289–314. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stam, G., & Tellier, M. (2022). Gesture helps second and foreign language learning and teaching. In A. Morgenstern & S. Goldin-Meadow (Eds.), Gesture in language: Development across the lifespan, pp. 335–363. De Gruyter Mouton; American Psychological Association. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stam, G., & Urbanski, K. (Buescher) (eds.). (2023). Gesture and multimodality in second language acquisition: A Research Guide. Routledge.Google Scholar
Sueyoshi, A., & Hardison, D. M. (2005). The role of gestures and facial cues in second language listening comprehension. Language Learning, 55 (4), 661–699. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tabensky, A. (2008). Expository discourse in a second language classroom: How learners use gesture. In S. G. McCafferty & G. Stam (Eds.), Gesture: Second language acquisition and classroom research, pp. 298–320. Routledge.Google Scholar
Tellier, M. (2008). Dire avec des gestes [Say it with gestures]. Français Dans le Monde, Recherche et Application, 44 1, 40–50.Google Scholar
(2009). Usage pedagogique et perception de la multimodalite pour l’acces au sens en langue etrangere [Educational use and perception of multimodality for access to meaning in a foreign language]. In R. Bergeron, G. Plessis-Belaire, & L. Lafontaine (Eds.), La place des savoirs oraux dans le contexte scolaire d’aujourd’hui, pp. 223–245. Presses de l’Universite du Quebec.Google Scholar
Tellier, M., & Cadet, L. (2013). Dans la peau d’un natif: Etat des lieux sur l’enseignement des gestes culturels [In the skin of a native: State of play on the teaching of cultural gestures in French as a foreign language]. La Revue Française d’Education Comparée, 9 1, 111–140.Google Scholar
Tellier, M. (2016). Prendre son cours à bras le corps. De l’articulation des modalités kinésiques avec la parole [Taking the class by the hand. Articulating kinesic modalities with speech]. Recherches en didactique des langues et des cultures. Les cahiers de l'Acedle, 13 (13–1). DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tellier, M., Stam, G., & Ghio, A. (2021). Handling language. Gesture, 20 (1), 30–62. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tellier, M., & Yerian, K. (2023). How to Study Pedagogical Gesture in Naturalistic Settings. In G. Stam & K. (Buescher) Urbanski, Gesture and Multimodality in Second Language Acquisition, pp. 99–123. Routledge.Google Scholar
Thoms, J. J. (2012). Classroom discourse in foreign language classrooms: A review of the literature. Foreign Language Annals, 45 (s1), s8–s27. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tissot, A., Croisier, J., Pietrantuono, G., Baier, A., Ninke, L., Rother, N., & Babka von Gostomski, C. (2019). Zwischenbericht I zum Forschungsprojekt “Evaluation der Integrationskurse (EvIk)”: erste Analysen und Erkenntnisse [Interim report I on the research project “Evaluation of the integration courses (EvIk)”: main results] (Bd. 331). SSOAR, GESIS – Leibniz-Institut für Sozialwissenschaften e.V; Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF) Forschungszentrum Migration, Integration und Asyl (FZ).Google Scholar
Ulichny. (1979). Adult foreigner talk: Input language to L2 learners. Studi Italiani Di Linguistica Teorica Ed Applicata, 8 1, 187.Google Scholar
Urbanski, K., & Stam, G. (2023). Overview of multimodality and gesture in second language acquisition. In G. Stam & K. (Buescher) Urbanski, Gesture and Multimodality in Second Language Acquisition, pp. 1–25. Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Urhahne, D., & Wijnia, L. (2021). A review on the accuracy of teacher judgments. Educational Research Review, 32 1, 100374. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in Society: Development of Higher Psychological Processes Harvard University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wang, W., & Loewen, S. (2016). Nonverbal behavior and corrective feedback in nine ESL university-level classrooms. Language Teaching Research, 20 (4), 459–478. DOI logoGoogle Scholar