Non-Verbal Communication in Education: Teachers' Views and Perceptions in Greece

Abstract

This paper investigates the role of non-verbal communication (NVC) in Greek education, focusing on teachers' views, practices, readiness, and challenges. The results show that teachers universally recognize the high importance of NVC, believing that it significantly improves the teacher-student relationship, comprehension of material, and classroom atmosphere. They frequently use it in the classroom for teaching and behavior management, mainly empirically and intuitively. However, most teachers have not received formal training in NVC, leading to moderate self-assessed readiness and difficulties in application. The research emphasizes the imperative need to integrate NVC into initial and ongoing teacher training, with an emphasis on experiential methods, to fully utilize its potential.