English abstract
This study aims to shed light on the understanding and use of non-verbal communication skills by Islamic Education female teachers in the Sultanate of Oman. The study sample consists of (37) tenth grade female teachers in Dhofar Governorate. To achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher used two tools: 1) the non-verbal communication skills test comprising (35) questions, and 2) the observation sheet for the use of the non-verbal communication skills comprising (21) phrases. The two tools have been tested for reliability by a number of panelists. The non-verbal communication skills test achieved a reliability score of (0.64) while the observation sheet got a reliability score of (0.83). For the data analysis, the researcher used arithmetic means, standard deviations, the T-test and the Pearson Correlation Coefficient measure.
The researcher concluded with a number of findings, the most important of which are as follows:
• Islamic Education female teachers have low understanding of non-verbal communication skills.
• The use of non-verbal communication skills by Islamic Education female
teachers is moderate:
• There is no correlational relationship between the understanding and the use of non-verbal communication skills by Islamic Education teachers.
· The researcher recommends that colleges of education should offer course on non-verbal communication skills as key elements in the teacher preparatory programs, and provide teachers with on-the-job training on the use of non-verbal communication skills. The researcher also recommends a descriptive study to investigate how much Islamic Education teachers are equipped with the non verbal communication skills. She further recommends a pilot study on the effectiveness of a non-verbal communication skills training programs on the performance of Islamic Education teachers and its reflection on student performance.
