Research On College Teachers’ Politeness Strategies In EFL Classrooms

Politeness is a common phenomenon in human society. This research consists of a theoretical study and a practical research. In the theoretical study it firstly states four perspectives on politeness:the social norm; the conversational maxim; the face saving and the conversational contract. Next it reviews Brown and Levinson’s Face Theory (1978,1987) including the notion of face, politeness strategies and three sociological variables. Lastly it gives a brief introduction of context theory. The practical research involves:1) class observations on teachers’ language;2) survey questionnaires about students’ comprehension of teachers’ politeness strategies and their evaluation on the importance of teachers’ application of politeness strategies; and3) semi-structured interviews concerning students’ expectations of teachers’ politeness strategies and attitudes towards teachers’ application of politeness strategies.Based on Brown and Levinson’s Politeness Model and through a series of research methods, the researcher aims at exploring the following questions:1) What politeness strategies are used by the teacher in EFL classrooms?2) What factors may affect students’ comprehension of teachers’politeness?As is indicated in the empirical study, the teacher does adopt more favorable strategies such as negative and positive politeness. Examining two student factors, the researcher finds out that there exists some gap between teachers’ initial purpose and students’ final interpretation in terms of politeness. What’s more, students’ contextual understanding and politeness comprehension are correlated by their English proficiency. Language is an important instrument to express politeness (He Ziran,1997). Both teachers and students need increase their politeness awareness. Teachers’ politeness strategies are of much importance in EFL classrooms and can promote the establishment of harmonious relation between teachers and students. In addition to that, a relaxed learning environment helps to stimulate students’ interests and improve their comprehensive skills in using English.