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.