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A Serious Look at Laughter

Jaime Vickers

Masters Degree Action Research Project

ED6o5—Chapman University

Dr. Jonathan Greenberg April 9, 2007

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A Serious Look at Laughter: Project Synopsisby Jaime Vickers

Laughter is a highly beneficial activity. A large quantity of research focuses upon laughter’s positive results on a physiological level: increasing the body’s ability to heal and decreasing susceptibility to disease. Laughter also positively affects mental activity, activating and energizing the entire brain - especially areas of the higher brain where memory, logic, language, sensation, and emotion come together - and leaves a lingering heightened mental awareness.

It should come as no great surprise that laughter is a beneficial activity in a learning environment. Besides activating mental processes and elevating attention levels, laughter is also useful for teachers in building rapport and uniting a group, putting students at ease, breaking down negative attitudes of students toward authority, and allowing students to feel safe and accepted. Used correctly, laughter is an excellent tool in the classroom. However it is very easy to use laughter and humor incorrectly, and for this reason many teachers shy away from this tool. The subjects that are most often found humorous are often inappropriate in a classroom setting, and without proper classroom management it is easy for laughter to lead to chaos.

This researcher’s project was to rescue laughter from these potential problems and find a viable method for teachers to bring laughter and its accompanying benefits into their classrooms. Specifically, the researcher was looking for an exercise that a teacher could easily implement to focus and motivate her students prior to standardized testing so as to maximize testing results; similar to the way a coach is able to implement strategies to focus and motivate his athletes prior to competition.

The particular strategy researched in this paper was that of laughter yoga. Laughter yoga consists of various deliberate laughter exercises that stimulate spontaneous laughter without relying upon humor of any kind. This action research project involved administering a test similar to a standardized test to several groups of students one day, and on a subsequent day administering a very similar test to the same groups following a laughter yoga exercise.

The hypothesis was that the test results would increase in the second testing situation. Unfortunately, the outcome was that the test results decreased in the second testing situation.Across almost all racial, ethnic, and time-of-day variables test scores decreased from slightly to dramatically. The most likely explanations for this outcome are the inexperience of the researcher in leading laughter yoga exercises, and the student groups’ lack of familiarity and resulting lack of comfort with laughter yoga. It is also possible that the researcher’s confidence in laughter’s appropriateness in the classroom is misdirected; these results may indicate that laughter is overly- stimulating to the brain, making it difficult for students to focus soon afterward and thereby rendering laughter in general (not just laughter yoga) inefficient as a strategy for increasing test results.

ED604 Action Research Paper April 9, 2007


Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction lBackground 1Demographic Information on the Population 2Statement of the Problem 3Importance of the Study 9Purpose Statement 10Hypothesis 10Research Question 11Definition of Terms 11

Chapter 2: R eview o f th e Literature / R elated R esearch 12

Chapter 3: R esearch D esign / M ethod 29Sample 29

Chart: Ethnicity and Gender Breakdown 29Table: Number o f Students Surveyed;

Ethnic and Gender Breakdown by Class Period 30Materials 30Procedure 30

Chapter 4: A nalysis / R esult 33Table: Raw Data 33

Ethnic and Gender Breakdowns:Table: Resulting Score Differentials by Class Period 35Chart: Resulting Score Differentials, Daily Average 35Chart: Resulting Score Differentials, 2nd Period 36Chart: Resulting Score Differentials, 4th Period 36Chart: Resulting Score Differentials, 5th Period 36

Gendered Test Scores by Class Period:Table/Chart: General Student Population 37Table/Chart: Hispanic Student Population 38Table/Chart: Black Student Population 39Table/Chart: Caucasian Student Population 40Table/Chart: Vietnamese Student Population 41Table/Chart: Filipino Student Population 42Table/Chart: Other Asian Student Population 43Table/Chart: Samoan Student Population 44

Chapter 5: Im plications for Teaching:Suggestions for Further R esearch 45

Limitations of Study 45Discussion / Conclusion 4bSuggestions for Further Research 49

Chapter 6: R eferences 52

Chapter 7: A ppendices 54Appendix A: Copy of Control Test 55Appendix B: Copy of Variable Test 62Appendix C: Instructions for Leading Laughter Yoga 69


Chapter l: Introduction

Background

The re sea rch e r ta u g h t public h igh school fo r th ree years. T hose years w ere

ded icated to teach ing English to 10th an d 11th grade s tu d e n ts a t a large

com prehensive h igh school in E aste rn R iverside County. H er classes w ere m ade

up of s tu d e n ts achieving a t an average level: th e w ork assigned in h e r classroom

is n e ith e r advanced n o r rem ed ia ted . As is th e case w ith m any teach e rs w ho are

young an d en th u s ia stic ab o u t th e ir calling, th e research er en joyed a strong

rap p o rt w ith h e r s tu d e n ts an d popu larity w ith in h e r school.

Before th e re sea rch e r began teach ing u n d e r a co n trac t a t h e r long-te rm job

site, she w as em ployed fo r tw o years as a su b s titu te -teach e r serv ing th e en tire ty

of h e r school d istric t. D uring th e last six m o n th s o f h e r em ploym en t as a

su b s titu te -teach er she w as assigned p erm an en tly to a single h igh school in th e

d istrict: she w ould serve in d ifferen t classroom s each day accord ing to need, b u t

she w as alw ays a t th e sam e school. S tuden ts a t th is school quickly go t to know

th e resea rch er’s face, nam e, an d expectations, an d so th is experience allow ed h e r

to bu ild a ra p p o rt w ith a body o f s tu d e n ts such as few su b s titu te -teach ers get to

experience. A lthough she h a d im ag ined from th e tim e she w as a ch ild th a t she

w ould becom e a teach e r “w hen she grew u p ”, an d a lthough she h a d experienced

teach ing in non-pub lic school se ttings, i t w as th e tim e sp e n t sub stitu te -teach in g

in th is capacity th a t allow ed h e r to feel w ith confidence th a t th is profession was

one she w an ted to pu rsue .

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Because th e re sea rch e r w as n o t aw are, w hile still in college, o f th e

d irec tion th a t life w ould tak e her, she does n o t possess a degree in th e sub ject

th a t she tau g h t. H e r u n d e rg ra d u a te degree from UC R iverside is in Philosophy

an d w as o b ta in ed in th e su m m er o f 2001; she becam e qualified v ia exam ina tion

to teach E nglish in th e Spring o f 2 0 0 3 . She o b ta in ed h e r p re lim in a ry teach ing

creden tia l th ro u g h C hapm an U niversity in th e su m m er o f 2 0 0 4 , a n d she looks

fo rw ard to receiving h e r M asters in T eaching from C hapm an U n iversity in th e

sp rin g o f 2007.

A lthough she w as a d a m a n t in p rocla im ing th a t h e r th ird y ear o f teach ing

w as h e r m o st successful, th e re sea rch e r d id n o t e lect to re tu rn fo r a fo u rth due to

h e r d o u b t w ith reg a rd to h e r longevity in th is p rofession . She o ften found h e r

class en th u s ia sm d efla ted by b u reau c ra tic an d ad m in is tra tiv e obstacles. She

looks fo rw ard to p u rsu in g teach ing in an o th e r educa tional se ttin g in th e fu tu re .

Demographic Information on the Population

This h igh school serves exactly 2 ,3 0 0 s tu d e n ts in g rad es n in e th ro u g h

twelve. T here a re 1,133 fem ale s tu d e n ts an d 1,177 m ale s tu d e n ts w ith in th is

popu la tion .

E th n ic g ro u p s se rved include 1,223 H ispan ic o r L atino s tu d e n ts , 587 Black

o r A frican A m erican s tu d e n ts , 358 C aucasian s tu d e n ts , e leven A laskan N ative

stu d en ts , five C hinese s tu d e n ts , fo u r Ja p an e se s tu d en ts , tw o K orean s tu d en ts ,

e igh teen V ie tnam ese s tu d e n ts , th re e A sian In d ian s tu d e n ts , six L ao tian s tu d en ts ,

fou r C am bodian s tu d e n ts , fo rty -n ine F ilip ino s tu d en ts , tw en ty -th ree s tu d e n ts

categorized as ‘O th e r A sian ’, five G uam an ian s tu d en ts , five S am oan s tu d en ts , an d

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seven s tu d en ts categorized as ‘O ther Pacific Is lan d er’. A lthough th e E thnic

groups of A m erican Ind ian , H aw aiian, and T ahitian are recognized, no studen ts

of such descen t a tten d th is institu tion .

S tudents receiving free o r reduced lunch com prise 76% o f th e population

a t th is school. In fo rm ation w ith regard to s tu d en ts’ socio-econom ic sta tus,

language abilities, special education services, p a ren ta l education , and

standard ized tes ting scores was no t m ade available.

Statement of the Problem

S tandard ized tes ting began in th e U nited S tates in th e late 1970’s as a

m ethod of de te rm in ing w he ther h igh school d ip lom as w ere being given as a social

p rom otion courtesy o r if s tu d en ts w ere equally achieving a quan tifiab le level of

education (Bracey). Since th en standard ized testing has grow n to becom e one of

the cen tral po in ts in A m erica’s public schools. Schools are m erited according to

th e ir A cadem ic Perform ance Index (API), m uch to th e chagrin o f m ost educators.

W hat th is m eans is th a t all o f th e w ork th a t a teacher p u ts in to h e r classroom , all

of the aspects o f a public school setting , and all o f th e e lem ents o f creativity th a t

a re fostered in s tu d en ts becom e quantifiab le according to bubb le m arks th a t

studen ts place on a series of papers over th e d u ra tio n of som e o f th e m ost

stressfu l an d least m otivating days o f th e school year.

These bubble m arks a re supposed to rep resen t th e p rogress th a t s tuden ts

have m ade in learn ing th e s ta te -m an d ated s tan d ard s fo r th e ir pa rticu la r age

group, b u t in reality these m arks tell a m uch b ro ad er sto ry th a n th is. In addition

to represen ting th e level o f p repara tion each has s tu d e n t received for th a t

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p a rticu la r te s t ( th a t is, th e a m o u n t in fo rm ation th e s tu d e n t h a s received from th e

teacher o n th e sub ject), th e resu lts o f these te s ts a re also in fluenced by a n u m b er

of o th e r factors, m any o f w hich a re com pletely o u tside o f a te a c h e r’s contro l, an d

m ost o f w hich a re o u tside th e scope o f th e s ta te s ta n d a rd s .

W hen a s tu d e n t firs t s tep s in to a te a c h e r’s c lassroom h e h a s a lready h ad a

n u m b er o f years o f school a n d h as a lready acq u ired ce rta in skills, failed to

acquire certa in skills, a n d fo rm ed stro n g op in ions a b o u t b o th ed u ca tio n an d tes t-

tak ing . For som e s tu d en ts , an extensive a m o u n t o f tim e m u s t be d ed ica ted to

catch ing u p a n d filling in ho les in skill a reas th a t sh o u ld have b een acqu ired in

previous years befo re an y new in fo rm atio n can adequate ly be tra n sm itte d

(Petress, 84).

M any fac to rs co n trib u te to even an academ ically w e ll-p rep ared s tu d e n t’s

expected success on s ta n d a rd ize d tests . The s tu d e n t’s hom e-life p lays an

im p o rtan t ro le in th e academ ic success th a t th e ch ild will likely achieve (Bracey).

Specifically, th e level o f im p o rtan ce th a t th e ch ild ’s p a re n ts p lace u p o n education

is a critical fac to r, as is th e level o f chaos o r s tab ility p re se n t in th e ch ild ’s hom e

an d social life (“M aslow ’s H ierarchy o f N eeds”, 20 0 4 ; P e tress, 89 ). O ther factors

such as s tu d e n ts ’ n u tritio n , s tre ss levels, physical a n d m en ta l com fort w ith in th e

classroom , feelings o f m otiva tion , will all p ro found ly affect th e perfo rm ance th a t

a s tu d e n t d e m o n s tra te s o n a b u bb le sh ee t (W ein traub , P e tress 87, “R educe T est

Anxiety to Im prove S tu d en t P erfo rm ance”, 2 005 , 5).

W ith so m any obstacles in th e w ay o f h e r s tu d e n ts ’ d e m o n s tra tio n o f

proficiency on s ta te m a n d a te d tes ts , a teach e r needs to em ploy creative stra teg ies

in o rd er to give h e r s tu d e n ts an advan tage w ith in th e chaos o f a s tan d ard ized

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testing env ironm ent. Som e teachers use m otivational stra teg ies a n d focusing

exercises w ith th e ir s tu d en ts , s im ila r to those u tilized by coaches to m otivate and

focus th e ir a th le tes. O f th e m any such exercises regularly im p lem en ted by

coaches, those th a t encourage relaxation , concen tra tion , a n d deliberately

increased energy levels - in th is p ap er refe rred to as m ood-alte ring activities -

are o f in te res t to th is researcher, particu larly th o se th a t do n o t req u ire an

extensive am o u n t o f class tim e. A teacher equ ipped w ith sim ple m ood-altering

activities th a t can be im p lem en ted quickly an d effectively to increase her

s tu d e n ts’ focus an d m otivate th em to do well in a te s t tak ing s itu a tio n is indeed

well a rm ed in th e b a ttle th a t s tan d ard ized tes tin g has becom e. T herefore, th e

m ood-altering activity th a t th is resea rcher h as chosen to explore is th a t of

laughter.

L augh ter’s s tu d ied benefits a re qu ite n u m ero u s a n d varied , b u t the

m ajority o f th e scientific a tten tio n th a t lau g h ter receives is from th e perspective

of th e m edical hea lth benefits th a t th is sim ple activity provides. L augh ter was

first legitim ized as m edically beneficial by N orm an C ousins in 1978 (S trubble, 9).

Since th e n th e p le th o ra o f m edical research ded ica ted to th e science o f laugh ter

(gelotology) has revealed th a t lau g h ter w orks p reven tatively to b o o st th e im m une

system to p rev en t m ore th a n seventy p e rcen t o f illnesses th a t a re connected to

stress (H oldcroft). L augh ter can also con tribu te to th e healing p rocess by

regulating th e body’s levels o f ho rm ones, cells, an d n a tu ra l chem icals (“Laugh

and Be W ell,” 2 0 02 , 9). L augh ter provides equ ivalen t o r in som e cases superio r

resu lts to an aerob ic card iovascu lar w orkou t (Doskoch, 33; S trubb le; “Laugh an d

Be W ell,” 2 0 02 , 8).

4/9/2007 Vickers, 5


In add ition to th e physiological hea lth benefits o f laugh ter, th e re is also

research ind icating th a t laugh ter elicits an in tense cerebral response and leaves a

lingering h e igh tened m en ta l aw areness. L aughter stim u la tes a charged wave of

electricity th a t sw eeps th ro u g h th e en tire cerebral cortex, activating m any areas

of th e b ra in includ ing th e h igher b ra in (Doskoch, 34). Specifically th e b ra in ’s

frontal lobe - th e region w here m em ory, logic, language, sensation , an d em otion

come to g e th er - is a p rim ary location o f b ra in activity du ring lau g h ter (Johnson ,

25). A dditionally th e b ra in ’s occipital zone, associated w ith senso ry processing,

receives a jo lt o f stim u la tion resu lting in increased fluc tuations o f de lta waves

(Griffiths, 18). T here is d isag reem en t w ith in th e scientific com m unity regarding

w hat effect th is in tense stim u la tion m ay have u p o n an indiv idual; one hypotheses

is th a t th is wave o f activity sharpens th e m ind, refreshes it, an d allow s the

individual to re tu rn to h e r o r his regu lar env ironm en t m ore a le rt (G riffiths, 18).

L aughter is a highly social activity th a t is enjoyed by a n u m b er of different

species, n o t exclusively h um ans. M any m am m als, m ost com m only b u t not

lim ited to p rim ates, u tilize lau g h ter as a form o f in te rac tion a n d com m unication

(Provine; Jo h n so n 24). W ith in h u m an popu lations, lau g h ter can com m unicate

social h ierarch ies an d is o ften u sed w ith in h ierarch ical s tru c tu re s as a m ethod of

control o r su b o rd in a tio n (S trubble; Provine).

Given lau g h te r’s highly social n a tu re an d th e capability o f lau g h ter to

stim u la te an d increase b ra in activity, it is no t su rp rising th a t lau g h te r has long

been u sed as a tool in educational settings. In th e sam e w ay th a t a co rpora te

m anager uses lau g h te r an d h u m o r to elicit th e a tten tio n an d ad m ira tio n o f he r

4/9/2007 Vickers, 6


subord inates, a classroom teacher m ay m ake use o f lau g h te r in h e r lessons and

classroom m anagem ent. This is m ore com m only observed in e lem entary school

settings th a n high school, though laugh ter rem ains effective if u sed correctly a t

all levels o f education.

The classroom benefits o f laugh ter - bo th in te rm s o f classroom

m anagem ent an d in te rm s o f tran sm ission o f educative in fo rm ation - are

num erous an d com pelling. C lassroom lau g h ter b reaks m onotony, p u ts s tuden ts

a t ease, and aids in s tu d e n t learn ing . L aughter elevates a tten tio n levels allows

a tten tion levels to rem ain elevated fo r a period o f tim e afterw ards, providing

teachers oppo rtun ities to tran sm it in fo rm ation to receptively-m inded studen ts

(Zillman, W illiam s, Jenn ings, Boynton, W olf, 170). A teach er w ho utilizes

laugh ter in h e r classroom also increases he r credibility in th e eyes o f h e r s tuden ts

and builds rap p o rt, she encourages and m odels creative th ink ing , she breaks

dow n h e r s tu d e n ts ’ po ten tially negative a ttitudes tow ard au tho rity , she allows her

s tuden ts to feel safe an d accepted, she reduces fatigue in b o th h e rse lf and her

students, an d she activates h e r s tu d e n ts’ long te rm m em ory (Tam blyn).

A ppropria te an d responsib le use o f h u m o r or lau g h ter is vital to laugh ter’s

effectiveness in any g roup situation , especially a public school classroom

environm ent. M any o f th e th ings th a t a re com m only laughed a t a re no t

app ropria te top ics fo r a teacher to p resen t to h e r class; often h u m o r relies upon

offensive and in ap p ro p ria te subject m a tte r such as derogative an d sarcastic

com m ents, b igo ted rem arks, obscenity, political com m entaries, o r delighting in

o thers’ m isfortune. For th is reason it is un d ers tan d ab le th a t m any teachers shy

away from deliberately b ring ing laugh ter in to th e ir classroom se tting . Some

4/9/2007 Vickers, 7


savvy teachers a re able to rescue classroom laugh ter from th is po ten tia l downfall;

a teacher who is w illing to w ear som ething silly, o r who dedicates a bu lle tin board

to posting fun cartoons, o r w ho m akes fun o f he rse lf m ay very well find success in

incorporating laugh ter in to h e r classroom routine. H ow ever an o th e r option

exists for teachers w ho a re in te rested in bringing th e benefits of laugh ter in to

th e ir classroom w ithou t also inviting in th e po ten tia l hazards. This involves

laughing deliberately as a group, w ithou t a hum orous stim u lus - otherw ise

know n as lau g h ter yoga.

L aughter yoga w as created in 1995 by Dr. M adan K ataria o f India. After

years o f observing in h is pa tien ts th e m any health benefits o f laugh ter he sought

to develop a deliberate, non-hum or-based m ethod of inco rpora ting laugh ter’s

m any benefits in to h is p a tien ts ’ daily lives in th e fo rm of a yogic exercise. He

found th a t deliberately g enerated laugh ter from yoga exercises incites the

m ajority o f th e sam e hea lth benefits as na tu ra l spon taneous laugh ter, and th a t

deliberate lau g h ter has the added benefit o f no t relying u p o n h u m o r which

som etim es flops o r ru n s ou t o r is often no t universally sh a red am ong a group.

His theo ry a n d resu lting m ethod quickly gained far-reach ing popularity ; by 2002

over 5 ,000 ‘laugh ter clubs’ h ad been form ed w orldw ide in Dr. K ataria’s nam e, led

by individuals tra in ed an d certified in laugh ter yoga. Such clubs’ m em bers are

dedicated to com ing to g e th er regularly to practice laugh ter yoga exercises and

reap the hea lth benefits.

T hrough b ra in research perfo rm ed upon epileptic p a tien ts , it has been

dem onstra ted th a t th e various physiological an d psychological benefits a ttribu ted

to laugh ter resu lt from th e p h ysica l p rocess o f laugh ter. D eliberate laugh ter can

4/9/2007 Vickers, 8


be p roduced by sc ien tis ts’ p rodd ing of portions o f th e b ra in associated w ith

laughter using an electronic stim ulus. In such an instance, m any o f th e sam e

benefits resu lt. T herefore it is n o t th e act o f recognizing som e hum orous

response as funny an d th e n responding to th a t hu m o r w ith th e classic rhythm ic-

spastic sound th a t elicits such trem endous benefits; it is sim ply th e ro te physical

activity involved in genera ting th a t rhythm ic-spastic so u n d th a t is so beneficial

(Strubble).

A lthough Dr. K ataria’s m ethod p rom otes laugh ter for th e pu rpose of

health benefits a n d does no t focus upon the m ental refocusing resu lts o f laughter

as a m ood-altering , c lassroom -based activity, th e researcher believes th a t

laugh ter yoga could also yield positive resu lts as such in a c lassroom setting. The

researcher p lans to inco rpora te yogic laugh ter in to a p re-testin g classroom

setting. The hope is th a t such exercises u sed in th e fo rm o f m ood-altering

activities will allow stu d en ts to m ore efficiently focus upon th e ta sk im m ediately

following th e exercise, in th is case standard ized testing .

Importance of the Study

As th e expectations p laced u pon teachers increase in o u r con tem porary

educational setting , teachers m u st find an d im plem en t creative so lu tions and

strategies to keep up w ith new so rts o f dem ands. T eachers find them selves

receiving p raise o r rebuke w ith regard to th e ir s tu d e n ts’ level o f achievem ent on

standard ized tests , b u t it has been show n th a t having been exposed to certain

pieces of in fo rm ation - even having been exposed to certa in pieces of

in form ation in an effective an d dynam ic way - is n o t sufficient to en su re th a t a

4/9/2007 Vickers, 9


s tu d en t will score w ell o n an exam ination o f th a t very in fo rm a tio n . T here is a

p le th o ra o f variab les in p lace th a t have a sign ifican t im p ac t u p o n a s tu d e n t’s

actual perfo rm ance , very few o f w hich a re u n d e r th e te a c h e r’s con tro l.

I f th e concep t is co rrect, th e n th is s tu d y will y ield a s im p le a n d easily-

inco rpora ted , te s ta b le s tra teg y th a t teach e rs can im p lem en t in th e ir classroom to

increase s tu d e n t p e rfo rm an ce o n s tan d a rd ized tes ts . S im ply hav ing s tu d e n ts

laugh - n o t th ro u g h com edy o r cunn ing b u t th ro u g h exercises th a t can be

in co rp o ra ted in to an in d iv id u a l’s o r a c lass’s daily ro u tin e - is a s tra teg y fo r

stim u la ting th e b ra in to b e m ore productive.

Purpose Statement

T he p u rp o se o f th is ac tion resea rch w as to d e te rm in e to w h a t ex ten t m ood-

a ltering activ ities effect s tu d e n t p e rfo rm an ce on a s ta n d a rd iz e d com prehensive

te s t for e leven th g rade s tu d en ts .

Hypothesis

A ltering an in d iv id u a l’s m ood in a positive w ay sh o u ld y ield a positive

resu lt, q u an tifiab le o n a s ta n d a rd ize d te s t. The e n d o rp h in re lease will stim u la te

th e h u m an b ra in to be p roductive, an d if th e ta sk req u ired o f th a t b ra in

im m edia te ly a fte r th e e n d o rp h in release is to tak e a te s t, th e n th e resu lts o f th a t

te s t sh o u ld reflect th a t p roductiv ity th ro u g h im proved scores. O f course, m any

factors co n trib u te to a s tu d e n t’s success on te s ts o f th is so rt, so a lte rin g a

s tu d e n t’s m ood will n o t g u a ran tee success. H ow ever s ta n d a rd ize d te s t resu lts

4/9/2007 Vickers, 10


shou ld reflect th a t lau g h te r p rio r to a te s t p roduces only a positive o r n eu tra l

effect.

Research Question

Do m o od-a lte ring activ ities affect s tu d e n t p e rfo rm an ce on a s tan d ard ized

com prehensive te s t fo r e leven th g rade s tu d en ts?

Definition of Terms

1. L augh ter - bodily convulsions a n d vocal explosions in re sp o n se to

deligh tfu l stim uli.

2 . H u m o r - A ud ito ry o r v isual stim uli, designed to elicit laugh ter.

3 * M ood - an in d iv id u a l’s psychological d isposition , d irec tly re la ted to the

ind iv idua l’s em otional an d m otivational levels.

4 * M ood-altering activ ity — an activ ity designed to have a positive effect upon

an ind iv idua l’s m ood, th e reb y increasing th a t in d iv id u a l’s em otional an d

m o tiva tional levels.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 11


Chapter 2.:

Review of the Literature / Related Research

W h en a s tu d e n t s te p s in to a te a c h e r’s c la ssro o m o n th e f irs t d ay o f school,

he is n o t a b la n k s la te , n o r is h e ex p ec ted to be . H e a lre a d y h a s h a d a n u m b e r o f

years o f schoo l (w ith th e p o ss ib le ex cep tio n o f a s tu d e n t e n te r in g k in d e rg a rte n )

du rin g w hich t im e h e h a s a c q u ire d c e rta in skills, fa iled to a c q u ire c e r ta in skills,

a n d fo rm ed s tro n g o p in io n s a b o u t b o th e d u c a tio n a n d te s t- ta k in g (W e in tra u b ).

S ta te s ta n d a rd s a llow so m e ro o m fo r th e rev iew o f sk ills th a t sh o u ld have b e e n

lea rn ed in p rev io u s g rad es ; h o w ev er n o ex tensive a m o u n t o f tim e is officially

p e rm itte d fo r th is . D esp ite th is , it re m a in s th e case fo r so m e s tu d e n ts th a t an

extensive a m o u n t o f tim e m u s t b e d e d ic a ted to ca tch in g u p a n d filling in h o les in

skill a re as th a t sh o u ld hav e b e e n a c q u ire d in p rev io u s y ea rs b e fo re th e n ex t level

o f in fo rm a tio n can a d e q u a te ly b e tra n s m it te d (P e tre ss , 8 4 ).

E ven th o se s tu d e n ts w ho w ere n o t ov e rlo o k ed ov e r th e c o u rse o f th e ir

ed u ca tio n a n d w h o rece iv ed a d e q u a te in s tru c tio n in all p rev io u s g rad e levels do

n o t e n te r a c la ss ro o m o n eq u a l foo ting . S tu d e n ts w ho co m e fro m h o u se h o ld s th a t

va lue e d u ca tio n - m o s t o ften b ecau se th e ir p a re n ts a re w e ll-e d u c a te d - g enera lly

fare b e tte r in e d u c a tio n a l se ttin g s a n d th e re fo re o n s ta n d a rd iz e d te s ts th a n do

th o se s tu d e n ts w h o se fam ilies do n o t h o ld e d u c a tio n in su c h h ig h e s teem

(P e tress , 8 9 ). S tu d e n ts w h o hav e p a re n ts w h o re a d to th e m a t h o m e te n d to

develop s tro n g e r lan g u a g e ab ilities . I t d o e sn ’t m a tte r h o w c lev er o r e ffic ien t o r

in sp ira tio n a l a te a c h e r is; if w h a t sh e is te a c h in g in th e c la ss ro o m is n o t p u t in to

4/9/2007 Vickers, 12


prac tice o r even se e n as v a lu ab le in th e s tu d e n ts ’ h o m es, th e n h e r e ffo rts w ill n o t

be as effective as th o se o f te a c h e r o f s tu d e n ts w ith a d iffe re n t h o m e-life (Bracey).

M any s tu d e n ts have p ro b lem s p re se n t in th e ir p e rso n a l lives th a t tak e

p recedence ov e r schoo l w ork . M aslow h a s to ld u s th a t u n til a n in d iv id u a l feels a

sense o f sa fe ty a n d w ell-b e in g in h e r o r h is life, su b se q u e n t m e n ta l s ta te s c an n o t

be reached . T h ere fo re , s tu d e n ts w ho have abusive h o m e lives, w ho have chao tic

social lives, o r w ho a re re sp o n sib le fo r h e lp in g to s u p p o r t th e ir fam ilies

financia lly a re u n lik e ly to do w ell in an acad em ic se ttin g , even if th e y a re

in te llec tua lly w e ll-p re p a re d (“M aslow ’s H ie ra rch y o f N e e d s”, 2 0 0 4 ) .

M any s tu d e n ts see ex am s in g en era l as a so u rce o f s tre ss , a n d a re

especially a ffec ted b y e x am s o f th e m ag n itu d e a n d d u ra tio n a sso c ia ted w ith s ta te

m a n d a te d s ta n d a rd iz e d te s tin g . S u d d en ly s tu d e n ts f in d th em se lv e s in c lassroom

a tm o sp h e re s th a t a re n o t w h a t th e y a re u se d to (even if s tu d e n ts te s t in th e ir ow n

c lassroom s, p o s te rs a re o ften covered u p o r ta k e n d o w n a n d d esk s a re a rra n g e d

d ifferen tly ). T h e ir te a c h e rs ta k e o n d iffe ren t p e rso n a litie s : rea d in g fro m sc rip ts

ra th e r th a n sp e ak in g to th e m sincerely , a n d en fo rc in g a n ew se t o f s ta te -

m a n d a te d ru le s th a t go so fa r as to re q u ire th a t s tu d e n ts b e e sco rte d to u se th e

re s tro o m (W e in tra u b ). T h e ir reg u la r c la ssro o m activ ities a re in te r ru p te d a n d

rep laced b y h o u rs a n d h o u rs o f m o n o to n o u s te s tin g . I f th is sc en a rio d o e sn ’t

so u n d s tre ssfu l enough , te s tin g days, in m an y schoo ls, a re a lso acad em ic days

(“R educe T es t A nxie ty to Im p ro v e S tu d e n t P e rfo rm a n ce ”, 2 0 0 5 , 5). T he s tre ss

lo ad o f a re g u la r schoo l d ay is c o m p o u n d e d d u rin g a sch o o l’s te s tin g schedu le .

A t th e sa m e tim e , th e re a re th o se s tu d e n ts w h o do n o t feel a n y s tre ss

d u rin g th is tim e . M any s tu d e n ts have fig u red o u t th a t s ta n d a rd iz e d te s ts have no

4/9/2007 Vickers, 13


b earin g on th e ir in d iv id u a l acad em ic success, a n d th e re fo re th e y do n o t p u t any

tim e o r e ffo rt in to th is p e rio d o f tes tin g . T h ere is s im p ly n o th in g in p lace to

m otiva te th e m to try h a rd on th e se tes ts . In th e ir m in d s , fina lly schoo l has

a llo tted th e m a coup le o f h o u rs fo r w hich th e y a re n o t h e ld acco u n tab le , so it is

n o t u n c o m m o n to see te s t sh e e ts o n w hich s tu d e n ts have s im p ly filled in ran d o m

bubb les o r w h ich have n o t b e en filled in a t all (W ein trau b ).

T he e n v iro n m e n t in a c lassroom can also a ffect a s tu d e n t’s p e rfo rm an ce on

an exam . M any c la ssro o m s a re u n co m fo rtab ly h o t o r cold. D esks a re

u n co m fo rtab le to s it in fo r th e 57 m in u te s o f c lass-tim e , le t a lo n e fo r lo n g er

periods o f te s tin g . M in o r d is trac tio n s p re se n t in th e ro o m can b e d isa s tro u s fo r

th e resu lts o f an exam . W hile th e se fac to rs a re so m ew h a t w ith in a te a c h e r’s

con tro l, th ey a re n o t en tire ly a lte rab le (W ein traub ).

All o f th e se fac to rs a re obstac les in th e p a th o f s tu d e n t success on

s ta n d a rd ize d te s ts . T eachers a re h e ld acco u n tab le fo r th e ir s tu d e n t’s scores, even

th o u g h m an y o f th e fac to rs th a t d e te rm in e th e se sco res a re co m p le te ly o u t o f th e

con tro l o f th e teach e r. T h ere fo re tea ch e rs n eed to f in d w ays to co m p en sa te fo r

u n reaso n ab le fac to rs th a t h in d e r th e ir s tu d e n ts a n d th a t te a c h e rs th em se lv es a re

u ltim ate ly ju d g e d by. C oaches have long fo u n d th em se lv es in a s im ila r d ilem m a:

th e ir a th le te s ’ p e rfo rm an c e s a re large ly d e te rm in e d b y physica l s tre n g th a n d

a th le tic skill, w h ich is w h a t th e coach fo ste rs in th e a th le te . B ut th e sam e

d is trac tin g e le m e n ts as th o se lis ted above can be d e tr im e n ta l to even a well-

p rep a red a th le te ’s p e rfo rm an ce . In o rd e r to c o u n te ra c t th e se fac to rs , coaches

have fo u n d s tra te g ie s fo r m o tiv a tin g a n d m en ta lly -re fo cu sin g th e ir a th le te s , th u s

4/9/2007 Vickers, 14


increasing th e ir chances fo r success (M urphy , 8). Som e o f th e se s tra teg ie s can be

a d o p ted by tea ch e rs a n d a p p lied to a c lassroom se ttin g .

In d iv id u a ls in all fie lds te n d to achieve a h ig h e r d eg ree o f success - no

m a tte r th e ir s ta r tin g skill level - if th ey focus u p o n e igh t g en e ra l skills. F ocusing

u p o n lo n g -te rm g o a ls allow s an ind iv idua l to see th e b ig g er p ic tu re th a t th e ir

im m ed ia te e ffo rt c o n tr ib u te s to . F ostering c rea tive th in k in g a llow s an ind iv idual

to b u ild th e m en ta l skills n ecessa ry to th in k h is w ay th ro u g h a s itu a tio n .

Id e n tify in g specific w e a k n e sse s a n d im p ro v in g th em a llow s th e p ro cess o f self-

im p ro v em en t to h a p p e n in a logical, s tep -b y -s tep w ay, ra th e r th a n seem ing like

an overw helm ing task . R e la x a tio n exercises can he lp a n in d iv id u a l refocus

du rin g tim es o f in te n se s tre ss . C o n cen tra tio n exercises a llow a n ind iv idua l to p u t

to th e side d is trac tio n s a n d in s te a d focus u p o n th e ta sk a t h a n d . L earn ing to

conti'o l e m o tio n allow s a n ind iv idua l to keep a cool h e a d a n d n o t b e d raw n in to a

less efficient m o d e o f dea ling w ith a s itu a tio n . L earn ing to consciously increase

en e rg y levels is u sefu l b ecau se ind iv idua ls do n o t alw ays n a tu ra lly possess all th e

energy n ecessa ry to co m p le te a task . A nd lastly , m a in ta in in g c o n sis ten cy is

im p o rta n t b ecause , as w e all know : slow a n d s tead y w ins th e race (M urphy , 8).

W hile all o f th e se sk ills can b e ta u g h t over a p e rio d o f tim e by a tea ch e r to

h e r class, th e y a re n o t p a r t o f th e s ta te s ta n d a rd s , a n d so tim e is n o t officially

available fo r t ra in in g s tu d e n ts in th e se w ays. F o r th is rea so n , th e re se a rc h e r is

focusing u p o n exercises th a t can b e im p le m e n te d o n a b a s is o f im m ediacy .

R elaxation exercises, c o n c e n tra tio n exercises, a n d e n erg y -in creasin g exercises

seem to b e th e m o s t likely can d id a te s fo r im p le m e n ta tio n o n a n im m ed ia te basis

in a c lassroom . T h ere a re a p le th o ra o f exercises th a t can c o n tr ib u te to one o r

4/9/2007 Vickers, 15


several o f th e se effects. Such exercises will, in th is ac tio n re sea rch p ap e r, be

re fe rred to as ‘m o o d -a lte rin g ac tiv ities’. T hese activ ities a re im p le m e n te d w ith

th e in te n tio n o f b rin g in g s tu d e n ts m en ta lly to a p o in t w h e re th e y can b e tte r

co n cen tra te o n th e ta s k o f te s t- tak in g . T he m o o d -a lte rin g ac tiv ity th a t th is

resea rch e r h a s chosen to explore is th a t o f lau g h te r.

L augh ter is in genera l a h igh ly-beneficia l activity . D octo rs, p sy ch ia tris ts

an d m en ta l h e a lth p ro fessio n a ls a re increasing ly p resc rib in g ‘la u g h te r th e ra p y ’ to

th e ir p a tien ts as a m ea n s o f cop ing w ith a v a rie ty physical, m en ta l, a n d sp iritu a l

issues (S trubb le). H ea lth p ro fessio n a ls a re in c re a s in g ly w illing to associate

them selves p ro fessiona lly w ith th is school o f th o u g h t. A re la tive ly new m edical

resea rch field k n o w n as P sy choneu ro im m uno logy s tu d ie s h o w e m o tio n s affect

th e im m u n e sy stem (S trubb le). C u rren tly over f iv e -h u n d red academ ic ians

belong to th e In te rn a tio n a l Society fo r H u m o r S tud ies, re fe rrin g to them selves as

‘ge lo to log ists’ (from th e G reek gelos, m ean in g lau g h te r) (S tru b b le ). T he

A m erican A ssocia tion fo r T h erap eu tic H u m o r (AATH), c re a te d in 1987, s ta r te d

o u t sim ply ed u ca tin g h e a lth care p ro fessiona ls a b o u t th e b e n efits o f la u g h te r b u t

has since ex p an d ed to in c lu d e p as to ra l care-g ivers, social w orkers, educa to rs ,

b u sin ess p ro fessio n a ls in lec tu re s a n d conferences a b o u t th e th e ra p e u tic u ses o f

b o th lau g h te r a n d h u m o r in th e w orkp lace (S trubb le).

T he f irs t tim e la u g h te r w as leg itim ized as m ed ically benefic ia l w as in th e

hook A natom y o f an Illness by N o rm an C ousins in 1978. C ousins n o ted h is ow n

experience w ith A nkylosing S pondy litis (a d eg en era tiv e d isease o f connective

tissue), m u sc u la r sp asm s, a n d a rth ritis , c la im ing th a t lau g h in g h e a rtily for te n

m in u tes cou ld give h im tw o h o u rs o f pa in less s leep (S tru b b le ). M ore recently ,

4/9/2007 Vickers, 16


P sycho neu ro im m uno log is ts D rs. Lee B erk a n d S tan ley T an o f L om a L inda

U niversity M edical C en te r w ere ab le to exp la in physio log ically w hy th is w as th e

case fo r C ousins. B erk a n d T an ’s re sea rch show ed th a t la u g h te r reg u la te s th e

body’s ab ility to heal itse lf by b o o stin g p ro d u c tio n o f th e positive h o rm o n es an d

cells th a t he lp to w a rd o ff in fec tio n a n d d isease a n d red u c in g levels o f negative

s tre ss-re la ted chem icals . L au g h te r a lso low ers levels o f e p in e p h rin e (a

n e u ro tra n sm itte r) a n d co rtiso l (a s tre ss-in d u c in g chem ical), a n d in creases

p ro d u c tio n o f n a tu ra l k ille r cells (recognize a n d rem ove v iru s a n d tu m o r cells),

g am m a in te rfe ro n (a d isease-figh ting p ro te in ), T cells (p a r t o f th e im m u n e

response), B cells (m ake d isease-d estro y in g an tib o d ies), a n d sa livary

im m un o g lo b u lin A (d efen d s ag a in st in fec tious o rg an ism s e n te r in g th ro u g h th e

resp ira to ry tra c t) (S trubb le ; G riffiths, 18). L au g h te r s tim u la te s b lo o d c ircu la tion ,

he lp ing to t r a n s p o r t n u tr ie n ts all over th e body a n d s tre n g th e n in g th e re sp ira to ry

system , in c reas in g th e su p p ly o f oxygen th ro u g h o u t th e b o d y (“L augh a n d Be

W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 9). L au g h te r w orks p reven ta tive ly too , b o o stin g th e im m u n e system

to p rev en t m o re th a n sev en ty p e rc e n t o f illnesses th a t a re c o n n ec te d to s tre ss

(H oldcroft). A m ong th e illnesses th a t la u g h te r can h e lp to p rev e n t a re h igh b lood

p ressu re , h e a r t d isease , anxiety , dep ress ion , fre q u e n t coughs a n d colds, pep tic

ulcers, in so m n ia , a llerg ies, a s th m a , m en s tru a l d ifficu lties, s to m ac h u p se ts , an d

even cancer (“L augh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 9). T his is b ecau se la u g h te r s tim u la te s

th e h y p o th a lam u s, w h ich governs p ro d u c tio n o f h o rm o n es a n d h e lp s w ith

im m une reg u la tio n , a n d also p ro d u ces an a n tic ip a to ry re sp o n se in th e b ra in ,

w hich p ro d u ces positive s tre ss (G riffiths, 18; H oldcro ft).

4/9/2007 Vickers, 17


In fact, la u g h te r exercises m uscles th ro u g h o u t th e b o d y a n d does n o t d iffer

in any crucial fash io n fro m aero b ic exercise (S tru b b le). L au g h te r p rov ides an

aerob ic w o rk o u t fo r th e h e a r t a n d lungs, th e re b y in c re as in g an in d iv id u a l’s

b rea th in g ra te (H o ldcro ft). W hile laugh ing , an in d iv id u a l d ispe ls m o re a ir th a n

she o r he tak e s in , so it is one o f th e b e s t exercises fo r p eo p le w ith a s th m a an d

b ronch itis ; i t im p ro v es lu n g capacity a n d b lo o d oxygen levels, a n d h e lp s d ispel

m ucous from th e re sp ira to ry p assage (S trubb le). Like ru n n in g , la u g h te r re leases

se ro to n in th ro u g h o u t th e body , a n d te m p o ra rily ra ises th e h e a r t ra te a n d b lo o d

p ressu re . H ow ever u n lik e ru n n in g , la u g h te r s tim u la te s th e se p ro cesses w ith o u t

th e d isad v an tag eo u s effects o f ac tiva ting th e b o d y ’s m e tab o lism o r p ro d u cin g

dangerous free -rad ica ls . S ta n fo rd ’s D r. W illiam F ry a sse rts th a t o n e m in u te o f

co n tinuous la u g h te r is eq u iv a len t to te n m in u te s w ork ing o u t o n a row ing

m ach ine (“L augh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8 ). Follow ing a b o u t o f lau g h te r, h e a r t ra te

an d b lood p re s su re d ro p be low th e n o rm al la te , a llow ing an in d iv id u a l to feel

p ro found ly re laxed . E n d o rp h in s , th e body ’s n a tu ra l p a in -k ille r, a re re leased in

h igh n u m b ers . T h e re is a fee ling o f eu p h o ria fo llow ing a p e rio d o f h e a r ty lau g h te r

(D oskoch, 33).

So w hy a re re sea rch e rs c u rre n tly p o u rin g all o f th is en erg y in to

encou rag ing lau g h te r? I t seem s th a t lau g h in g is so m e th in g w e do na tu ra lly ;

h u m an s d o n ’t n e e d th e ir d o c to rs ’ ap p ro v a l in o rd e r to receive th e b e n efits th a t

lau g h te r h a s to offer. W hile th is is certa in ly tru e , liv ing as a n a d u lt in

co n tem p o ra ry socie ty is se rio u s b u sin ess . T he average ch ild lau g h s over fo u r-

h u n d re d tim e s daily , w hile a d u lts lau g h on ly a b o u t fifteen t im e s p e r day (“Laugh

an d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8). P e rh ap s th e re is less to lau g h a b o u t in th e life o f an

4/9/2007 Vickers, 18


adult, w ith all o f its responsib ilitie s a n d b ills a n d p re ssu re s a n d s tre sso rs , th a n

th e re is in th e life o f a child . A nd th ese responsib ilitie s , b ills , p re ssu re s , an d

s tresso rs m u s t b e m o u n tin g in p re se n t society b ecau se th e y a re p ro d u c in g a m ore

sto ic co m m u n ity now th a n th ey d id in p a s t years. A du lts lau g h fa r less o ften th a n

they d id in th e p a s t. T his is n o t sim ply nosta lg ia fo r a bygone era ; c u rre n t

research show s th a t o n average a n a d u lt laughs fo r a to ta l o f less th a n six m in u te s

p e r day; s ta tis tic s from th e 1950’s show th e average p e rso n lau g h in g ab o u t

eighteen m in u te s p e r d ay (“L augh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8). T h is m ay he lp to

explain w hy in c id en ces o f cancer a n d o th e r illnesses a re a p p e a rin g a t h ig h er ra tes

cu rren tly th a n th e y w ere in th e 1950’s, d esp ite a h ig h e r accu m u la tio n o f scientific

know ledge th ro u g h m ed ical resea rch (“Laugh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8).

N ot on ly is lau g h te r good fo r th e body o n a physio log ical level, it is a lso

highly s tim u la tin g to th e b ra in . T he fu n n ie r a n ind iv idua l fin d s a s itu a tio n to be,

th e m ore b ra in activ ity re su lts (Jo h n so n , 24). M otivation , em o tio n s, a n d lau g h te r

are highly co n tro lled by th e b ra in ’s lim bic system ; how ever u n lik e em o tio n s an d

m otivation , w hich on ly s tim u la te specific a re a s o f th e b ra in , la u g h te r is connec ted

to various o th e r b ra in reg ions (S trubb le). L aughing p ro d u ces a ch arg ed w ave o f

electricity th a t sw eeps th ro u g h th e en tire cereb ra l cortex . T h is m ea n s th a t m ost

o r possib ly even all o f a n in d iv id u a l’s h ig h er b ra in p lays a ro le in la u g h te r

(Uoslcoch, 34). T he p a rtic u la r a reas o f th e b ra in th a t a re s tim u la te d d ep en d u p o n

th e reaso n fo r th e lau g h te r. F o r exam ple, p u n s a re u n d e rs to o d by th e gyri on th e

left side o f th e b ra in a n d n o n -w o rd p lay jo k es a re p ro cessed b y th e r ig h t side gyri

(S trubble). W h en an in d iv id u a l h e a rs a joke o r perceives a s itu a tio n to be funny,

th e b ra in ’s le ft h e m isp h e re beg in s th e analy tical fu n c tio n o f p ro cess in g w h a t is

4/9/2007 Vickers, 19


occurring . T he fro n ta l lobe - w h ere co m p o n en ts o f se lf-aw aren ess su ch as

m em ory, logic, language , se n sa tio n , a n d e m o tio n com e to g e th e r - is a p rim a ry

location o f b ra in activ ity becau se all o f th e se c o m p o n e n ts n e e d to be s tim u la te d

sim u ltan eo u sly in o rd e r fo r so m e th in g h u m o ro u s to be p e rce iv ed a s such

(Jo h n so n , 25). T he b ra in ’s rig h t h e m isp h e re ac tiva tes as th e sy n th esis

capab ilities o f th a t reg ion jo in th e p ro cess in g th a t th e le ft h e m isp h e re b eg an in an

effort to ‘g e t th e jo k e ’. A dd itiona lly th e b ra in ’s occip ita l zone, a sso c ia ted w ith

sensory p ro cess in g , receives a jo lt o f s tim u la tio n , re su ltin g in in c re ased

flu c tu a tio n s o f d e lta w aves (G riffiths, 18).

All o f th is h a p p e n s n o t sequen tia lly , b u t in concert, a n d th e effects linger.

H u m o r gets th e b ra in to w o rk in u n iso n so it can be m o re e ffic ien t in find ing

exp lana tions (such as u n d e rs ta n d in g th e p u n c h -lin e o f a jo k e ) , b u t th is effect

carries o n even a f te r th e jo k e is u n d e rs to o d a n d la u g h te r ceases. T h e re is

d isag reem en t re g a rd in g th e effect o n th e b ra in o f a n in c re a se d flux o f d e lta waves.

P e te r D erks, a p sycho log is t a t W illiam a n d M ary, th eo rize s th a t th is s tim u la tio n

sh a rp en s th e m in d , re fre sh es it, a n d allow s an in d iv id u a l to re tu rn to h e r o r h is

reg u la r e n v iro n m e n t m o re a le rt. H ow ever o th e r re se a rc h e rs hav e co rre la ted th e

in creased d e lta w aves w ith a d ecrea sed ab ility to pay a tte n tio n (G riffiths, 18).

In o rd e r to u n d e rs ta n d h u m o r, all o f th e p a r ts o f th is p ro cess m u st be

activated . I f a n in d iv id u a l f in d s a jo k e funny , th e m ed ia l v e n tra l p re fro n ta l co rtex

will activa te; if s h e /h e does n o t fin d it funny , th e a re a w ill n o t ac tiva te . P a tien ts

w ho have h a d d am ag e to th e ir b ra in ’s r ig h t h e m isp h e re te n d to hav e very a

ru d im e n ta ry sen se o f h u m o r (Jo h n so n , 25). M ost re sea rch reg a rd in g th e b ra in

p rocess d u rin g la u g h te r a re h igh ly lin k ed to h u m o r a n d w h a t goes o n w h en an

4/9/2007 Vickers, 20


individual hears a joke or sees som ething perceived as funny. However, Dr.

Itzhak Fried, the director of epilepsy surgery at UCLA Medical center, showed

that the process of understanding hum or, and the beneficial brain stim ulation

that results, can be effectively sim ulated. Dr. Fried worked w ith a young woman

who was prone to seizures, and he exposed her to electronically induced brain

stimulation. At low levels of stim ulation, the wom an simply sm iled or giggled,

but higher levels enticed full belly-laughs. W hen she was asked what she found

to be so funny, she would point out whatever was in front of her visual field;

usually the things she claim ed to find hum orous were very ordinary non-hum or-

enticing sights (Strubble). Dr. Fried’s research seem s to indicate th a t ju s t as a

genuinely hum orous situation results in stim ulation to brain, th is stim ulation can

be entirely sim ulated, resulting in a feeling of m irth th a t the m irthful individual

does not recognize as false.

So why do we laugh? H um or is not learned; it is a genetic, biological

characteristic (Strubble). So why did hum ans as a species develop th is unique

trait? Actually, hum ans are not the only anim als th a t laugh. Although primarily

thought of as a hum an characteristic, laughter is actually the m ost animalistic of

our common utterances (Provine). Darwin noted laughter am ong chimps and

other great apes in 1872. Although audible, ape laughter sounds m ore like a

form of fast heavy panting because of the structure of the ape’s vocal organs

(Provine). O ther m am m als, such as dogs and rats, also dem onstrate this panting

form of laughter in situations where they are m irthful or happily excited

(Johnson, 24). Evolutionary theorists speculate th a t laughter may have begun

among early hum ans as an acknowledgement of m utual relief a t the passing of

4/9/2007 Vickers, 21

with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproducer rePfoduct,on prohibited without permission.

d an g er (S trubb le). In a s itu a tio n w h ere surv ival w as a da ily activ ity , la u g h te r

w ould have h e lp e d to re lieve te n s io n a n d c o u n te r th e b io log ical f ig h t-o r-flig h t

response (S tru b b le). H u m a n s have alw ays b e e n social c re a tu re s , a n d lau g h te r

w orked as a p re -lin g u is tic in d ic a to r o f t r u s t in o n e ’s c o m p an io n s , th u s

s tren g th en in g c o m m u n a l c o n n ec tio n s (S tru b b le). L au g h te r is co n tag io u s , so it

w as (an d still is) a w ay to b rin g u n ity to m em b ers o f a soc ie ty (P rov ine).

L au g h te r’s ev o lu tio n ary ro o t in s tre n g th e n in g co m m u n a l co n n ec tio n s is

ev iden t to d ay b y th e h igh ly social n a tu re o f th is activ ity . I t is v e ry ra re fo r an

ind iv idual to lau g h a lone; i t seem s th a t a critica l s tim u lu s fo r la u g h te r is a n o th e r ’s

p resence (P rov ine). In fact, g iven th e sam e s tim u li p eo p le a re th ir ty tim es m ore

likely to lau g h if th e y a re p re s e n t in a g roup se ttin g (S tru b b le ). A n in d iv id u a l’s

role in a g ro u p se ttin g a lso c o n tr ib u te s to w h en a n d h o w o ften th a t ind iv idua l w ill

laugh. In so m e soc ie ties (especially in th ird w o rld c o u n tr ie s ) la u g h te r is u se d as a

self-effacing b e h av io r o f su b o rd in a tio n (P rov ine). B u t it is m o re o ften th e case

(especially in o u r ow n society) th a t th e p e rso n in charge o f a g ro u p w ill d isp lay

m ore la u g h te r (S tru b b le). T he p e rso n sp eak in g in a g ro u p te n d s to lau g h fifty

p e rcen t m o re o ften th a n th e ir au d ien ce (P rov ine). A c h ie f o r b o ss o r p a tr ia rc h

will te n d to u se m o re h u m o r a n d lau g h m o re freq u e n tly th a n h e r /h is u n d erlin g s,

u sing la u g h te r as a w ay to c o n tro l o f th e g ro u p ’s m o o d (S tru b b le ).

I f th a t ch ie f o r b o ss o r p a tr ia rc h is sk illed in e lic iting la u g h te r from th o se

she o r he is in ch arg e of, th e n in fac t she o r h e exercises c o n tro l o v e r n o t only th e

u ioods o f th e in d iv id u a ls in th e g ro u p , b u t a lso th e b o d ily p ro cesses o f th o se

ind iv iduals. M ak ing a n o th e r p e rso n laugh re su lts in m ak in g th e ir h e a r t b e a t

fas te r a n d a su b se q u e n t in c rease in th e ir c ircu la tio n w h ich th e re fo re changes

4/9/2007 Vickers, 22


their breathing pattern; the laughing individual’s hormones and immune

elements in their bloodstream are increased, and certain of their muscles are

forced to be active while others are allowed to relax; all of this results in the

laughing individual feeling physically weakened (Strubble). If a person feels

physically weakened, but enjoys the process that led to this weakened state, then

the individual who put him or her through this process has indeed exercised

control over that person.

Many teachers employ laughter as a tool through which they can relate to

their students and transmit information in a way that students enjoy.

Professional trainers and public speakers attest that humor helps people to learn

more effectively (Tamblyn). This is because humorous stimuli draw markedly

intense attention reactions from an audience. Once an individual’s attention is

forced to a high level through the use of humor the attention level will remain

elevated even after the humorous stimuli has passed, thus facilitating the

learning of the subsequent educational message (Zillman, Williams, Jennings,

Boynton, Wolf, 170). Thus an inattentive student can be drawn into an

educational message through the use of humorous stimuli, and his alertness will

extend into at least portions of a message that would otherwise have been only

vaguely processed (Zillman, et al., 171). A teacher who employs humor effectively

in her classroom increases her credibility in the eyes of her students and builds

rapport; she encourages and models creative thinking; she allows her students to

feel safe and accepted; she reduces fatigue in both herself and her students; and

she activates her students’ long term memory (Tamblyn). Laughter within a

group of students will tend to stabilize the group’s mood and relax individual’s

4/9/2007 Vickers, 23


brains. Communication is enhanced when a group feels m irthful together

(Gardner).

A n e lem en ta ry school teach e r is fa r m o re likely to u tilize lau g h te r in h e r

c lassroom s th a n is a h igh school tea ch e r (G ardner). M any h igh schoo l teachers

do no t feel co n fid en t in re la tin g hum orously w ith teen ag e rs w hile still

m ain ta in ing o rd e r in th e c lassroom ; a lterna te ly , it is com m on to fin d h igh school

teachers w ho feel th a t th e ir course sh o u ld be v iew ed as a se rio u s endeavor, an d

who th ere fo re try to d istance them selves from th e m irth fu l a tm o sp h e re of an

e lem entary school c lassroom (G ardner). W hile it is t ru e th a t re la tin g to teenagers

th ro u g h la u g h te r can be challenging, u ndergo ing su ch a challenge is w rough t

w ith rew ard . T eachers w ho effectively utilize h u m o r in th e ir c lassroom find th a t

so doing b reak s c lassroom m ono tony , p u ts th e ir s tu d e n ts a t ease (especially in a

h igh -stress s itu a tio n su ch as d u rin g exam s), a n d a ids in s tu d e n t lea rn in g

(Z illm an, e t al., 172). T eenagers can o ften be very hostile to w a rd au tho rity ;

how ever lau g h te r in a h igh school c lassroom is ex trem ely usefu l in b reak in g dow n

teenage a ttitu d e s a n d th u s d raw ing s tu d e n ts to lea rn in g (T am blyn).

O f cou rse an irresp o n sib le u se o f h u m o r in a class o f s tu d e n ts a t any age

can lead to a loss o f co n tro l o n th e p a r t o f th e teacher. W ith o r w ith o u t h u m o r in

th e class, c lassroom m an a g em en t tech n iq u es m u st be u tilized . W hen h u m o r is

u sed occasionally a n d stra teg ically , teach e rs generally re p o rt th a t th ey feel

confiden t th a t th ey will be ab le to h o ld th e ir s tu d e n ts ’ a tte n tio n fo r som e tim e

after a re so rt to h u m o r (Z illm an, e t al., 171). T his is analogous to h u m o r often

being u sed b y bosses as a m eans o f m anag ing su b o rd in a te s ; so long as th e

indiv idual is sk illed in keep ing a g ro u p ’s excitem en t from g e ttin g o u t o f hand ,

4/9/2007 Vickers, 24


hu m o r is an excellen t w ay to con tro l peop le a n d m a in ta in a feeling o f am iab ility

betw een th e co n tro lle r a n d th o se be ing con tro lled .

O bviously it is im p o r ta n t fo r a teach e r to d isc rim in a te in th e types of

hu m o r she chooses to engage; m any o f th e th in g s o u r society fin d s to be funny

rely u p o n offensive a n d in ap p ro p ria te sub jec t m a tte r su ch as derogative an d

sarcastic co m m en ts , b ig o ted rem ark s, obscenity , o r po litica l co m m en ta rie s

(Tam blyn). G iven th e re s tric tio n s on c o n ten t th a t a re necessa ry in a p ro fessional

educational se ttin g , m any teach e rs lack confidence in th e ir ab ility to be funny.

But hum or in the classroom does not have to mean taking on the roll of stand-up

comedian or cracking jokes instead of delivering educational inform ation.

Something as sim ple as wearing a funny button or a strange tie can be effective.

Some teachers will dedicate a bulletin board to postings of silly cartoons.

T eachers w ho le a rn to in co rp o ra te h u m o ro u s educa tional activ ities in to th e ir

assignm en t sch ed u le (such as c rossw ord puzzle w orkshee ts , w o rd gam es, an d

recall gam es such as ‘Je o p a rd y ’) w ill f ind th a t th e ir s tu d e n ts a re m o re w illing to

p a rtic ip a te in su ch a ss ig n m en ts (T am blyn; G ardner). I f a te a c h e r is w illing to try

it, d irec ting h u m o ro u s rem a rk s to w ard h e rse lf is a su re b e t fo r so lic iting laughs

from teen ag ers (G ard n er). Sim ply hav ing a p layful a ttitu d e can sign ifican tly

convert a d ra b ed u ca tio n a l affa ir in to so m eth in g m o re en joyab le (T am blyn).

E d u ca to rs in te re s te d in in co rp o ra tin g la u g h te r in th e ir c lassroom s shou ld

b ear in m in d th a t th e re a re th re e basic rea so n s fo r laugh ing , a n d all o f th em

p resen t ce rta in obstac les in a pub lic school se tting . T here is la u g h te r because o f

relief fro m som e so r t o f rea l o r im ag ined th re a t; th e re is la u g h te r re su ltin g from

som e so rt o f in co n g ru ity su ch as a w ord p u n o r som e s itu a tio n w h ere th in g s d o n ’t

4/9/2007 Vickers, 25


quite go to g e th er; an d th e re is lau g h te r due to a feeling o f su p e rio rity w hich

banks o n de ligh ting in o th e r p eo p le ’s m istakes, s tup id ity , o r m isfo rtu n es

(S trubble). I t is th e th ird category, o f de ligh ting in o th e r’s m isfo rtu n es, th a t m ost

easily e licits a s tro n g lau g h te r response , b u t obviously u sin g th is as a s tim u lu s for

lau g h te r in a pub lic school w ou ld be irresp o n sib le o n th e p a r t o f th e educato r,

prov id ing a p o o r exam ple to ch ild ren . T he firs t category , o f feeling re lie f from

som e so rt o f th re a t, is one th a t sh o u ld certa in ly be allow ed to h a p p e n na tu ra lly

b u t th a t w ould be sad istic to in co rp o ra te p u rpose ly in to a c lassroom on a regu la r

basis. T he rem a in in g category , th e second one, o f lau g h in g due to som e

incongru ity o r w ord p u n , is w h a t we m o st o ften assoc ia te w ith te lling jokes.

Surprising ly less th a n tw e n ty p e rcen t o f lau g h te r is in re sp o n se to any th ing

resem bling a tra d itio n a l joke (S trubb le). T he use o f jo k e -in d u ced la u g h te r in a

c lassroom se ttin g is te n u o u s because com edic lau g h te r n o n -u n iv e rsa l - th a t is,

w ha t one finds to be com edic is h igh ly sub jective acco rd ing to cu ltu ra l

b ack g ro u n d a n d p e rso n a l p refe ren ce - an d because o f th e p o ten tia lly offensive

n a tu re o f h u m o r. O ne so lu tio n to th is com plica tion is to rem ove th e e lem en t o f

h u m o r from th e ac tion o f laugh ing . I t is possib le to laugh as an exercise ra th e r

th a n as a resp o n se to h u m o r.

Dr. M adan K ataria is a physic ian in In d ia w ho observed in h is ow n

p a tien ts m an y o f th e h e a lth benefits o f laugh ter. In 1995 he cam e u p w ith th e

idea o f la u g h te r yoga, a lso called H asya Yoga (“L augh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8),

b ecause he fe lt th a t it is n o t h u m o r p e r se th a t incites th e se h e a lth benefits ; ra th e r

it is th e physical ac t o f laugh ing . P lus, he observed th a t h u m o r so m etim es flops

o r ru n s ou t, a n d h is goal w as to c rea te a de libera te w ay to lau g h a t an y tim e, free

4/9/2007 Vickers, 26


from th e th o u g h t req u ire d to p rocess h u m o r a n d reg a rd less o f o u tsid e

s tim u la tio n (S trubb le). A typ ical tw en ty -m in u te class in la u g h te r yoga s ta r ts o u t

w ith conven tiona l yoga s tre tc h in g a n d yogic deep b rea th in g , a n d th e n

inco rpo ra tes v a rio u s la u g h te r exercises: tech n iq u es such as ‘h e a r ty la u g h te r’,

‘s ilen t la u g h te r’, ‘lion la u g h te r’, ‘sw inging la u g h te r’, ‘o n e -m e te r la u g h te r’, cocktail

lau g h te r’, a n d ‘g ra d ie n t la u g h te r’ (S trubb le; “L augh a n d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 5 , 9).

Laughter yoga devotees are not bothered by the seeming incongruity

between laughter exercises and w hat one m ight refer to as ‘genuine laughter’.

The lau g h te r exercises p ro d u ce th e sam e rh y th m ic m o v em en ts o f th e d iap h rag m

an d ab d o m in al m usc les as sp o n ta n eo u s lau g h te r, a n d so b o th le a d to th e sam e

physiological changes in th e body (S trubb le). E ven if th e la u g h te r is n o t

p roduced by som e g en u in e re sp o n se to s tim u lu s , th e ac tion still re leases

h o rm ones th ro u g h o u t th e b o d y w hich e n g en d e r a feeling o f h a p p in e ss a n d w ell

being (S trubb le). E ven d u rin g s im u la ted lau g h te r th e m a jo rity o f la u g h te r’s

hea lth b en efits a re re ta in ed : th e p a ra sy m p a th e tic system (th e ca lm ing b ran c h of

th e n e rv o u s system ) is s tim u la te d , th e b o d y ’s n e t su p p ly o f oxygen is increased ,

th e d igestive t r a c t is m assaged , c ircu la tion is s tim u la ted , b lo o d su p p ly to th e

in te rn a l o rg an s is im proved , a n d th e re sp ira to ry o rg an s w hich su p p lie s oxygen to

th e body a re im p ro v ed (S trubb le).

In a g ro u p se ttin g , la u g h te r yoga usua lly s ta r ts o u t as a se t o f exercises an d

th en leads to tru e m irth a n d sp o n ta n eo u s lau g h te r (S tru b b le), cap ita liz ing on th e

con tag ious q u a lity o f la u g h te r am ong h u m an s . A nd so p ra c titio n e rs o f lau g h te r

yoga u n a sh am e d ly exp la in th e ir tech n iq u e as “...fake it u n til y ou m ake it (“L augh

an d Be W ell,” 2 0 0 2 , 8 ) .” T oday th e re a re over 5 0 0 0 c lubs d e d ic a ted en tire ly to

4/9/2007 Vickers, 27


laugh ter yoga all over th e w orld , w ith over 5 0 0 e s tab lish ed in th e U n ited S ta tes

alone (“L augh ter G ives th e H e a rt a n d Lungs a W orkou t, S tud ies Show ,” 2002 ).

These clubs, led b y ind iv idua ls tra in e d a n d certified in la u g h te r yoga, a re sim ply

g roups o f peop le w ho m ee t regu larly to p rac tice la u g h te r yoga tec h n iq u e s a n d to

reap th e psychological a n d physiological benefits to g e th e r (S trubb le). As corny as

laugh ter yoga m ay so u n d , th e ex ten t o f its follow ing is te s ta m e n t to its

effectiveness.

The re sea rch e r p lan s to in co rp o ra te yogic la u g h te r in to a p re -te s tin g

classroom se tting . T he ho p e is th a t such exercises u se d in th e fo rm o f m ood-

a ltering activ ities w ill allow s tu d e n ts to m ore efficiently focus u p o n th e task

im m ediate ly fo llow ing th e exercise, in th is case testing .

4/9/2007 Vickers, 28


Chapter 3 :

R esearch Design / Method

Sample

T h e sa m p le su rv e y ed fo r th is p ro je c t w as m a d e u p o f s tu d e n ts in e lev en th

g rade , all o f w h o m w ere b e tw e e n th e ages o f fifteen a n d se v e n te e n . P a r tic ip a n ts

in c lu d ed se v e n ty - th re e s tu d e n ts m ad e u p o f th ir ty -s ix fem a le s a n d th ir ty -se v e n

m ales. T h e e th n ic b a c k g ro u n d o f th e p a r t ic ip a n ts b re a k s d o w n a s fo llow s:

H ispan ic / L a tin o : th ir ty - tw o s tu d e n ts ; B lack / A frican A m e ric an : tw e n ty

s tu d e n ts ; C au casian : tw e lve s tu d e n ts V ie tn am ese : fo u r s tu d e n ts ; F ilip ino : tw o

s tu d e n ts ; O th e r A sian : tw o s tu d e n ts ; a n d S am o an : o n e s tu d e n t.

S tu d e n ts w ere se lec te d acco rd in g to e n ro llm e n t in th e re s e a rc h e r’s

e leven th g ra d e E n g lish co u rse . F o r s tu d e n ts e n ro lle d in th is co u rse , p a rtic ip a tio n

m th e ac tiv ity w as m a d e m a n d a to ry . S tu d e n ts w ho w ere n o t p re s e n t o n b o th o f

th e te s tin g d ay s w e re n o t fa c to re d in to th is s tu d y .

Ethnicity and Gender Breakdown

1 2 1 1 3

14—20%—

□ HF■ HM

n.'.: □ BF□ BM

6 ■ CF8% □ CM

■ VF4 □ VM

5% ■ FF■ FM□ OAF

1 117o%

□ SF

4/9/2007 Vickers, 29


E th n ic a n d G e n d e r B r e a k d o w n b y C la ss P e r io d — N u m b e r o f S tu d e n t s S u r v e y e d

G ro u p H B C V F O A S T o ta

1

2 ™ Period Fem ales 6 5 0 0 0 1 0 12

2 nd Period M ales 6 2 3 0 O 0 O 11

2nd Period N on-

Gendered12 7 3 0 0 1 O 2 3

4 th Period Fem ales 5 5 3 1 0 0 0 144 in Period M ales 8 2 2 3 0 0 0 154 Ln Period N on -

Gendered13 7 5 4 0 0 0 2 9

5in Period Fem ales 2 4 l 0 l 1 1 1 0

5 in Period M ales 5 2 3 0 l 0 0 11

5 th Period N on-

Gendered7 6 4 0 2 1 1 21

Alt Fem ales 13 14 4 l l 2 1 3 6All M ales 19 6 8 3 1 0 0 37N on-G endered Total 32 2 0 12 4 2 2 1 73

Materials

T h e m a te r ia l n e e d e d fo r th is a c tio n re se a rc h is v e ry s im p le . P ro g re ss w as

q u a n tif ie d in th e sa m e w ay th a t s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t a c h ie v e m e n t is q u a n tif ie d - b y

n o tin g c o rre c t a n d in c o rre c t a n sw e rs o n a m u ltip le cho ice s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t. Tw o

s im ila r v e rs io n s o f a s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t w ere av a ilab le th ro u g h a P re n tic e H all

te a c h e r’s re so u rc e b o ok . S tu d e n ts rece iv ed o n e v e rs io n o f th is te s t a lo n g w ith a

sc a n -tro n sh e e t a n d a N o. 2 pencil. T hey c o m p le te d th e i r t e s t a n d te s ts w ere

sco red u s in g a s c a n - tro n sc o rin g m ac h in e . N o th in g w as re q u ire d in th e

d e v e lo p m e n t o f th is te s t — it w as s im p ly p h o to c o p ie d f ro m th e so u rceb o o k .

T h e sa m e p ro c e d u re m a in ta in e d fo r th e se c o n d v e rs io n o f th e te s t, ex cep t

s tu d e n ts rece iv ed v e rb a l in s tru c tio n s a n d a d e m o n s tra tio n o n yogic la u g h te r , a n d

4/9/2007 Vickers, 30


th en th e class as a w hole p a rtic ip a te d in a yogic la u g h te r exercise b efo re th e

tes ting com m enced .

Procedure

In w eek one, s tu d e n ts w ere given a fifty -question s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t

designed to a sc e rta in ab ilities a n d skill-level in g ra d e -a p p ro p ria te language a rts

exercises. S tu d e n ts w ere a lso p ro v id ed sc a n -tro n sh ee ts a n d No. 2 pencils. The

te s t w as tim e d a t fo rty m in u tes .

S tu d e n ts w ere in fo rm e d th a t th is te s t is n o t a c o n tr ib u tin g fac to r to th e ir

academ ic g rad e fo r th is cou rse , how ever th ey w ere ask ed to p a rtic ip a te to th e b est

o f th e ir ab ility a n d th e y w ere o ffered ex tra c red it on an in d iv id u a l b a s is fo r h igh

ach ievem en t a n d th ey w ere offered a c lass-w ide incen tive fo r h igh c lass-average

scores. T he p resen ce o f incen tives is desig n ed to d ecrease th e freq u en cy o f n o n

rep resen ta tiv e sco res d u e to lack o f e ffo rt from n o n -m o tiv a te d s tu d e n ts . T hese

te s ts w ere th e n sco red e lec tron ica lly a n d th ese sco res w ere re c o rd ed b y th e

researcher.

In th e in te r im b e tw een th e tw o te s t a d m in is tra tio n s , s tu d e n ts w ere n o t

allow ed to k n o w th e ir ow n score, o r an y th in g a b o u t h o w each class fared .

Students were not given inform ation on their own success or failure in obtaining

incentives m entioned above.

O ne w eek la te r, s tu d e n ts w ere given a very s im ila r te s tin g s itu a tio n . T he

re sea rch e r re m in d e d h e r s tu d e n ts o f la s t w eek’s activ ity a n d to ld th e m th a t a

sim ila r te s t w o u ld be a d m in is te re d o n th is day. Id en tica l in cen tiv es w ere offered

for h igh ach iev em en t. T ests w ere p a sse d o u t a long w ith sc a n -tro n sh ee ts a n d No.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 31


2 pencils. A tim er was set for forty m inutes. However th is tim e, before the

testing situation began, students were given a b rief description and

dem onstration of yogic laughter before they were led, by the researcher, in a

class-wide yogic laughter exercise. Because of tim e constraints, th is yogic

laughter exercise was only m aintained for ten m inutes. Students were not forced

to participate in the laughter yoga, b u t they were strongly encouraged to join in.

Immediately after the exercise, students were asked to regain their composure

and begin their test. The tim er was started and students began testing. These

tests were also scored electronically and these scores were recorded by the

researcher.

W ith th is data, the researcher was able to determ ine the effect of yogic

laughter on individual scores as well as class-period-averages, gender-averages,

ethnicity-averages, and averages overall.

Vickers, 324/9/2007

Reproduced with permission of thecopyright owner Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

Chapter 4:

Analysis / Results

Follow ing th e a d m in is tra t io n o f b o th te s ts , s tu d e n ts ’ sc o re s w e re re c o rd e d

o n to a c h a r t th a t a lso in d ic a te s w h ich c lass p e r io d th e s tu d e n t b e lo n g e d to a n d

th e s tu d e n t’s race a n d g e n d e r. T h e te s ts h e re a f te r w ill b e re fe r re d to as th e

C on tro l te s t ( th e te s t a d m in is te re d w ith o u t a p re c e d in g la u g h te r yo g a exercise;

th a t is, u n d e r n o rm a l, c o n tro lle d c o n d itio n s) a n d th e V ariab le t e s t ( th e te s t

a d m in is te re d a f te r a la u g h te r yoga exerc ise). T h e c h a r t a lso sh o w s th e v a lu e

d iffe ren tia l b e tw e e n th e C o n tro l sco re a n d th e V ariab le sco re ; sc o re d ec rea ses a re

in d ic a te d w ith a n e g a tiv e n u m b e r a n d sco re in c re a se s a re in d ic a te d w ith a

positive n u m b e r . B ecause th e re a re o v e rw h elm in g m o re n e g a tiv e re su ltin g sco res

th a n p ositive , p o s itiv e sco res a re b o ld ed . S tu d e n ts a re s ig n if ie d w ith a n a rb itra ry

id en tific a tio n n u m b e r r a th e r th a n by n am e , a n d th e c h a r t ’s in fo rm a tio n is

g ro u p e d a cc o rd in g to th e rac e a n d g e n d e r o f th e in d ic a te d s tu d e n t.

R a w D a ta

ID F/M Race Per Control Var Res1 F H 2 14 11 -32 F H 2 15 lO -5

3 F H 2 0 9 15 + 6

4 F H 2 18 14 -4

5 F H 2 16 l i -5

6 F H 2 16 15 - l

7 F H 4 14 16 + 2

8 F H 4 13 0 3 -10

9 F H 4 lO 0 6 -4

10 F H 4 09 0 5 -4

ID F/M Race Per Control Var Res

11 F H 4 13 15 + 2

12 F H 5 15 12 -3

13 F H 5 13 13 o

14 M H 2 15 13 -2

15 M H 2 06 05 -1

16 M H 2 20 15 -5

17 M H 2 18 08 -10

18 M H 2 12 10 -2

19 M H 2 16 13 -320 M H 4 07 05 -2

4/9/2007 Vickers, 33


ID F/M Race Per Control Var Res21 M H 4 18 18 O2a M H 4 14 11 -323 M H 4 18 17 - l

24 M H 4 17 16 - l

25 M H 4 lO 0 6 -426 M H 4 0 8 06 -2

27 M H 4 16 09 -728 M H 5 19 21 + 2

29 M H 5 12 08 -430 M H 5 14 12 -2

31 M H 5 14 0 9 -532 M H 5 16 15 - l

33 F B 2 16 13 -3

34 F B 2 17 18 +1

35 F B 2 15 18 + 336 F B 2 16 19 + 3

37 F B 2 2 0 15 -53 8 F B 4 0 9 0 7 -2

39 F B 4 11 0 7 -44 0 F B 4 lO 14 + 4

41 F B 4 11 0 4 -742 F B 4 10 11 +1

4 3 F B 5 14 10 -4

4 4 F B 5 13 12 -1

45 F B 5 14 14 0

46 F B 5 14 12 -2

47 M B 2 0 9 18 + 9

4 8 M B 2 0 9 lO +1

ID F/M Race Per Control Var Res

4 9 M B 4 17 15 -2

5 0 M B 4 13 07 -6

51 M B 5 11 0 5 -6

5 2 M B 5 0 9 07 -2

5 3 F C 4 17 16 -1

5 4 F C 4 16 20 + 4

55 F c 4 11 16 + 5

5 6 F c 5 16 19 +357 M c 2 16 15 - l

5 8 M c 2 20 15 -5

5 9 M c 2 06 06 0

60 M c 4 20 17 -3

61 M c 4 13 lO -3

62 M c 5 13 0 7 -6

63 M c 5 16 lO -6

64 M c 5 21 16 -5

65 F V 4 lO lO 0

66 M V 4 0 8 0 8 0

67 M V 4 0 8 0 7 -1

68 M V 4 15 13 -2

69 F p 5 0 7 0 5 -2

7 0 M p 5 11 14 +371 F s 5 15 12 -3

72 F OA 2 16 11 -5

73 F OA 5 17 19 + 2

T he ra w d a ta in th e p re v io u s c h a r t w as a n a ly ze d a n d b ro k e n d o w n so as to

o ffer in s ig h t re g a rd in g th e re s u lts sh a re d b y su b g ro u p s w ith in th e su rv ey ed

p o p u la tio n . T h o se su b g ro u p s in c lu d e c lass p e rio d , e th n ic ity , a n d g e n d e r. T he

sco res o f all m e m b e rs o f each su b g ro u p w ere a v e rag e d a n d th e n g ra p h e d fo r th e

p u rp o se o f n o tin g t r e n d s w ith in a n y p a r t ic u la r g ro u p . T h is an a ly s is is

4/9/2007 Vickers, 34


re p re se n te d in th e fo llow ing c h a r t a n d g rap h , w h ich sh o w th e re su ltin g sco re

d iffe ren tia l fo r fem a le s fo r each p e rio d o f th e day , th e sco re d iffe ren tia l fo r m ales

fo r each p e r io d o f th e day , th e sco re d iffe ren tia l fo r each p e r io d o f th e d ay w ith o u t

reg a rd to g e n d e r, a n d th e sco re d iffe ren tia l fo r each g e n d e r w ith o u t re g a rd to

p e rio d o f th e day , a ll c a teg o rize d acco rd in g to e th n ic ity .

E th n ic a n d G e n d e r B r e a k d o w n b y C la ss P e r io d — R e s u lt in g S c o r e D if fe r e n t ia lsG roup N um ber H B C V F O A S A vg.2™ Penod Females 12 -2 .00 -0 .20 n /a n /a n /a -5-00 n /a -1.502nd Penod Males 11 -3-83 + 5 .0 0 -2 .00 n /a n /a n /a n /a -1.962nd Period M /FA vg. 23 -2.91 -0.14 -2 .00 n /a n /a - 5 0 0 n /a -1.624th Penod Females 14 -2 .80 -1.60 + 2-75 0 .0 0 n /a n /a n /a -1.004th Period Males 15 -2.50 -4 .00 -3 .00 -1.67 n /a n /a n /a -2.474m Period M /F Avg. 29 -2.62 -2 .28 + 0 .4 0 - 0.75 n /a n /a n /a -1.765tn Period Females lO -2 .50 - 1-75 + 3 -0 0 n /a -2 .0 0 + 2 .0 0 - 3 0 0 -1.005,h Period Males 11 -2 .00 -4 .00 -5-67 n /a + 3 .0 0 n /a n /a -2.915m Period M /FA vg. 21 -1.85 -2 .50 -3-50 n /a + 0 .5 0 + 2 .0 0 - 3 0 0 -2 .00Avg. for all Females 36 -2.23 -2.55 + 2 .7 5 0 .0 0 -2 .00 -1.50 -3 .00 -1.17Avg. io r an Males 37 -2.79 -1.00 -3 6 3 -1.67 + 3 .0 0 n /a n /a -2.43M /F Avg. for all

Periods73 -2.57 -1.10 -1.50

......

-0.75 + 0 .5 0 -1.50 - 3 0 0 -1.79

Ethnic and G ender Breakdown of Score Differentials - Daily Average

- 1.00to CO

m :-4.00

C V F OA

G e n d e r / Ethnicity

P Male

■ F em ale

4/9/2007 Vickers, 35


Ethnic and G ender Breakdown of Score Differentials - 2nd Period


□ Male B F em ale

Ethnic and G ender Breakdown of Score Differentials - 4th Period


□ Male

B F em a le

Ethnic and G ender Breakdown of Score Differentials - 5th Period


□ Male B F em ale

T h e fo llow ing c h a r t c o m p a re s sco res (o u t o f a p o ss ib le th ir ty p o in ts ) over

th e co u rse o f th e day, d iffe re n tia tin g b e tw e e n fem ale av erag es , m a le averages,

a n d n o n -g e n d e r-sp e c if ic av erag es. E th n ic ity w as n o t a fa c to r in th is co m p ariso n .

4/9/2007 Vickers, 36


G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la s s P e r io d

G roup N u m b e r C on tro l V a r ia b le R e su lt2nd Period Females 12 15-67 14.17 -1.502nd Period Males 11 13-36 11.64 -1.962nd Period M/F Avg. 23 14-57 12.95 -1.624th Penod Females 14 11.71 10.71 -1.004th Period Males 15 13.47 11.00 -2.474th Period M /FAvg. 29 12.62 10.86 -1.765th Period Females lO 1 3 8 0 12.80 -1.005th Period Males l i 14.18 11.27 -2.915th Period M /F Avg. 21 14.00 12.00 -2 .00Avg. for all Females 36 13.61 12.44 -1.17Avg. for all Males 37 13.70 11.24 -2.43M/b Avg. for all Periods 73 13.63 11.84 - 1.79

Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

C lass P e r io d /G e n d e r Group

P Variable

B Contro l

S ubsequen tly , th e sam e score in fo rm a tio n w as analyzed a n d d isp layed

according to fem ale averages, m ale averages, a n d n o n -g en d er-sp ec ific averages,

how ever th ese co rre sp o n d in g c h a rts a n d g rap h s also fac to r in race . T he ch arts

d isplay g en d e r-d iffe ren tia ted a n d c la ss-p e rio d -d iffe ren tia ted in fo rm a tio n fo r

each o f th e su rveyed race p o p u la tio n s.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 37


H is p a n ic G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la s s P e r io d

G roup N u m b e r C o n tr o l V a r ia b le R e s u lt

2nd Period H Females 6 14-67 12.67 -2 .00

2nd Period H Males 6 14.50 10.67 -3 .83

2nd Period H F/M Avg. 12 14.58 11.67 -2.91

4 th Period H Females 5 11.80 9 .00 -2 .8 0

4 th Period H Males 8 13-50 11.00 -2.50

4 th Period H F/M Avg. 13 12.85 10.23 -2.62

5th Period H Females 2 14.00 12.50 -1.50

5th Period H Males 5 1 5 0 0 1 3 0 0 -2 .00

5th Period H F/M Avg. 7 14-71 12.86 -1.85

All H Females 13 13.46 11.23 -2.23

All H Males 19 14.21 11.42 -2.79

F/M H Avg. for all Periods 32 13-91 11-34 -2.57

Hispanic Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

□ Variable

B C on tro l

C la s s P e r io d /G e n d e r G ro u p

4/9/2007 Vickers, 38


B la ck G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la s s P e r io d

G roup N u m b e r C on tro l V a r ia b le R e su lt2nd Penod B Females 5 16.80 16.60 -0 .202na Period B Males 2 9 .00 14.00 + 5 -o o2nd Penod B F/M Avg. 7 14-57 15.85 + 1 .2 84tn Period B Females 5 10.20 8.60 -1.604m Penod B Males 2 15-00 11.00 -4 .004th Period B F/M Avg. 7 11.57 9.29 -2.285W Penod B Females 4 13-75 12.00 - 1-755th Penod B Males 2 10.00 6.00 -4 .005th Period B F/M Avg. 6 12.50 10.00 -2.50All B Females 14 13-57 12.43 -2.55All B Males 6 11-33 10.33 -1.00F/M B Avg. for all Periods 20 12.90 11.80 -1.10

Black Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

□ Variable H C ontro l

2F 2M 2 4F 4M 4 5F 5M 5 F M Avg.

C la s s P e r io d /G e n d e r G roup

4/9/2007 Vickers, 39


C o n tr o l V a r ia b le R e s u lt j

n /nG rou p N u m b e r

2nd Period C Females o n /a n /a n/a

2nd Period C Males 3 14.00 12.00 -2 .00

2nd Period C F/M Avg. 3 14.00 12.00

4th Period C Females 3 14.66 17.33 + 2«07

4th Period C Males 2 16.50 13-50 -3 .00+0.40

4lh Period C F/M Avg. 5 15.40 1 15.80

5th Period C Females l 16.00 19.00 Tj*uu

5th Period C Males 3 16.67 11.00 -5.07

5th Period C F/M Avg. 4 16.50 1 3 0 0 -3 .50

All C Females 4 15-00 17-75 + 2 .7 5

All C Males 8 1563 12.00 -3.63

F/M C Avg, for all Periods 2!_______15-42 1 3 9 2 -1.50

Caucasian Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

30-tfl "a■S £ 20

1 8 Q- to 10

0

□ Variable

■ C o n tro l

4F 4M 4 5F 5M C la s s P e r io d /G e n d e r G ro u p

4/9/2007

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner

Vickers, 40

Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

V ie t n a m e s e G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la s s P e r io d


2nd Period V Females o n /a n /a n /a

2nd Period V Males o n /a n /a n /a

2nd Period V F/M Avg. o n /a n /a n /a

4 th Period V Females 1 10.00 10.00 0 .0 0

4th Period V Males 3 10.33 9-33 -1.00

4 th Period V F/M Avg. 4 10.25 9-50 - 0.75

5th Period V Females o n /a n /a n /a

5th Period V Males o n /a n /a n /a

5th Period V F/M Avg. o n /a n /a n /a

All V Females 1 10.00 10.00 0 .0 0

All V Males 3 10.33 9-33 -1.00

F/M V Avg. for all Periods 4 10.25 9-50 -0.75

Vietnam ese Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

C la ss P e riod /G ender G roup

□ Variable ■ Control

4/9/2007 Vickers, 41


F il ip in o G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la ss P e r io d

G roup N u m b e r C on tro l V ariab le R e su lt2nd Period F Females o n/a n /a n /a2nd Period F Males o n /a n/a n /a2nd Period F F/M Avg. o n /a n /a n /a4 ,h Period F Females 0 n /a n /a n /a

4th Period F Males o n /a n /a n /a4th Period F F/M Avg. 0 n /a n /a n /a

5th Period F Females 1 7.00 5 0 0 -2.005m Period F Males 1 11.00 14.00 + 3 .0 0

5th Period F F/M Avg. 2 9.00 9-50 + 0 .5 0All F Females 1 7.00 5 0 0 -2.00All F Males 1 11.00 14.00 + 3 .0 0

F/M F Avg. for all Periods 2 9.00 9-50 + 0 .5 0

Filipino Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

30

J2c■a£ 20

‘0a.

00

<0 10

02F 2M 2 4F 4M 4 5F 5M 5

C la ss P e r io d /G en d e r G roup

M Avg.

□ Variable ■ Control

4/9/2007 Vickers, 42


O th er A s ia n G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la ss P e r io d

G roup N u m b e r C on tro l V ariab le R e su lt2nd Penod OA Females l 16.00 11.00 -5-002nd Period OA Males o n /a n/a n /a2nd Penod OA F/M Avg. l 16.00 11.00 - 5 0 0

4 m Penod OA Females o n /a n /a n /a4th Period OA Males o n /a n /a n /a4th Period OA F/M Avg. 0 n/a n/a n/a5th Period OA Females 1 17.00 19.00 + 2 .0 05th Period OA Males o n /a n /a n /a5th Period OA F/M Avg. 1 17.00 19.00 + 2 .0 0Ail OA Females 2 16.50 1500 -1.50All OA Males 0 n/a n/a n /aF/M OA Avg. for all Periods

2 16.50 1500 -1.50

Other Asian Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

D Variable

■ Control

C lass P e r io d /G en d e r Group

4/9/2007 Vickers, 43


S a m o a n G e n d e r e d T e s t S c o r e s b y C la s s P e r io d


2nd Period S Females o n /a n /a n /a

2nd Period S Males 0 n /a n /a n /a

2nd Period S F/M Avg. o n /a n /a n /a

4th Period S Fem ales o n /a n /a n /a

4 th Period S Males o n /a n /a n /a

4th Period S F/M Avg. o n /a n /a n /a

5th Period S Females 1 15-00 12.00 -3-00

5th Period S Males o n /a n /a n /a

5th Period S F/M Avg. 1 i5 -oo 12.00 -3-00

All S Females 1 1 5 0 0 12.00 -3-00

All S Males o n /a n /a n /a

F/M S Avg. for all Periods 1 15-00 12.00 -3-00

Sam oan Gendered Test Scores by Class Period

□ Variable

■ C on tro l

C la s s P e r io d /G e n d e r G ro u p

4/9/2007 Vickers, 44

Reproduced with permission o f the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

Chapter 5:

Implications for Teaching: Suggestions for Further

Research

Limitations of Study

This study is lim ited by a num ber of factors, lim iting the researcher’s ability to

genera lize th e c o rre sp o n d in g re su lts w ith a d e q u a te c red ib ility . S uch lim ita tio n s

include:

Descriptive Research Design: T h is s tu d y is l im ite d to a fac tu a l d a ta

b a se w h ich d e sc rib e s o n ly ex is tin g p h e n o m e n o n ; to ta k e a n e x tra s te p a n d

im p ly th a t th e re s u lts y ie ld ed a re re p re se n ta tiv e o f a la rg e r p o p u la tio n

w o u ld b e o u ts id e th e sco p e o f th is re s e a rc h e r ’s a u th o rity .

■ Internal Validity: T he ex is ten ce o f d e lib e ra te ly m is le ad in g -re sp o n se s is

a key fa c to r th a t m ay b e re d u c e d in im p o r ta n c e b y s ig n ific an tly in c reas in g

th e size a n d d iv e rs ity o f th e s tu d e n t re sp o n d e n ts . S om e s tu d e n ts w h o a re

u n m o tiv a te d b y th e e n tic e m e n t o f e x tra c re d it a n d w h o a re u n in te re s te d in

p lay in g th e p a r t o f ‘g u in e a p ig ’, m ay hav e d e lib e ra te ly d o n e p o o rly o n th e se

su rv ey te s ts in th e in te re s t o f n o n -c o o p e ra tio n . In a d d itio n , w h ile th e

sa m p le te s ts a d m in is te re d w ere ch o sen b e c a u se o f th e i r s im ila r ity in

c o n te n t a n d d iv e rs ity to s ta te - is su e d s ta n d a rd iz e d te s ts , th e y w ere

d is s im ila r to s ta te - is s u e d s ta n d a rd iz e d te s ts in le n g th d u e to tim e

lim ita tio n s . W ith a te s t m a d e u p o f a m e re th ir ty q u e s tio n s , each q u e s tio n

4/9/2007 Vickers, 45


carries a s ig n ifican t a m o u n t o f w eight, a n d so th e im p rec is io n o f th is

su rvey in s tru m e n t co n fo u n d s th e accuracy o f th e re su lts y ielded .

External Validity: E xte rna l va lid ity seeks to v a lid a te th e re su lts as

in fo rm a tio n th a t can b e genera lized o r accu ra te ly p red ic ted . T he

rep re se n ta tio n a l scope o f th e se ttin g th a t is se lec ted fo r re sea rch will

d e te rm in e ho w ex tensively th e find ings can b e app lied . T hese resu lts

w ere o b ta in ed th ro u g h a sing le tr ia l a n d w ith in a h igh ly specific

p o p u la tio n se ttin g , a n d so s im ila r re su lts can on ly be p ro jec te d w ith any

degree o f con fidence in an exactly s im ila r p o p u la tio n .

■ Additional Variables: T he re se a rc h e r’s ow n lack o f experience in

lead ing th e p re - te s tin g la u g h te r yoga activ ity m ay h ave a ffec ted m o re th an

ju s t th e sm o o th im p le m e n ta tio n o f th is activ ity o r th e s tu d e n ts ’ w illingness

to p a rtic ip a te ; th e re se a rc h e r’s d isp lay o f a lack o f to ta l confidence is

so m e th in g th a t th e s tu d e n ts m ay have unco n sc io u sly p icked u p u p o n an d

th e n m irro re d w h en th e y w ere called u p o n to p e rfo rm w ell. A m ore

co n fiden t la u g h te r yoga lead er, w hile sh e o r h e m ay hav e h a d ju s t as m uch

d ifficu lty g e ttin g a g ro u p o f s tu d e n ts to p a rtic ip a te in su ch a qu irky

activity , m ay have tra n s m itte d m ore o f a n a tm o sp h e re o f confidence a n d

s tre n g th th a t w ou ld have h a d im p lica tio n th a t c a rr ie d over in to th e te s tin g

p e rio d a n d re su ltin g scores.

Discussion / Conclusion

A ny m an ag er, p u b lic speaker, o r sa le sp e rso n know s th e v a lu e o f lau g h te r

in gu ided h u m a n in te rac tio n . As a te a c h e r it is m y jo b is to m an a g e m y

4/9/2007 Vickers, 46


classroom, engage my students as I speak with them, and ‘sell’ my subject.

Incorporating laughter into my classroom setting has always been very natural

and unintentional for me. Following this research, however, I have made it a

much more deliberate endeavor to make laughing part of my daily routine. I

believe that by being even more focused and deliberate in the utilization of

laughter in the classroom, I can tighten up my classroom managem ent even

further and make more efficient use of time and resources in the classroom.

Although laughter yoga was difficult to incorporate suddenly into a

classroom setting, I believe that in the future I could “sneak” such exercises into

my classroom environm ent at a more subtle level and with a more gradual

integration. Fostering the same or similar activities without the students’

awareness tha t we are doing something as “kooky” as yoga or tha t I have an

educational purpose in enticing their smiles and giggles will allow laughter yoga-

type exercises (and also their benefits) to be a part of what happens normally in

the classroom. Eliminating the strangeness and abruptness of the activity, I

believe, is vital to its success. Even bringing laughter yoga into my classroom

forthrightly could work as long as the groundwork is set out so that students

perceive such an activity as understandable and predictable, albeit strange. So

there are various means through which I will attem pt to incorporate formal

laughter yoga into my classroom in the future.

However there are various alternative ways of bringing laughter and its

inherent benefits into my classroom in the future. I don’t feel particularly

committed to the idea that laughter without humor is necessary to reap laughter’s

benefits in this setting. I am very open to using humor, silliness, or whatever a

4/9/2007 Vickers, 47


particular class’s group dynamic seems best served by to bring laughter into the

classroom setting with more frequency. After conducting this research on

laughter I am especially eager for more opportunities to “play” with students.

For the purpose of this paper, experimentation was conducted as a formal

and almost sterile procedure. However papers and college degrees and action

research aside, all of life has potential to be experimental, so long as one allows

this to be her/h is outlook. When I enter my classroom I see thirty-six guinea pigs

seated in front of me. Of course I also see thirty-six students; I need to transm it

information to them and nurture them and not simply use them for my own

purposes like some land of mad scientist. But part of my role as a teacher is

leading by example, so if I want my students to strive to become lifelong learners,

then I need to show them what lifelong learning looks like, and tha t it can be an

enjoyable endeavor. “Ok kids, I’m going to perform some experiments on you

again.” This should be the battle cry of any teacher who is dedicated to her

profession and who loves learning. The results of such experiments are not so

precise and quantifiable, but they still yield useful information to the lay-

researcher, and this approach to conducting a classroom may lead to an

intriguing classroom atmosphere, so long as the research being conducted is not

dry and cumbersome for the students involved. Conducting this research has

lead to a greater personal interest in the process of researching and

experimenting in a classroom setting. Therefore I plan to continue to incorporate

a scientific spirit with my students, in the field of laughter research and beyond.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 48


Suggestions for Further Research

R esearch ing la u g h te r a n d its effects in a c lassroom se ttin g as a fu ll tim e

p ro jec t so u n d s like a de ligh tfu l challenge. In o rd e r to m o re effic ien tly resea rch

lau g h te r yoga a n d its effects o n s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t sco res th a t is ab le to be

im p lem en ted in a c lassroom o n an im m ed ia te basis, I w o u ld f irs t n e ed to becom e

m ore a d e p t as a le a d e r o f la u g h te r yoga. C ourses o f v a rio u s le n g th s a n d levels of

in ten sity a re offered , a n d certifica tio n is availab le th ro u g h Dr. K a taria h im self.

Presenting laughter yoga as som ething with which I am very com fortable and

confident would of course have profound effects on the results of this study. So,

before scrapping this theory entirely based on this survey’s contrary-to-

hypothesis results, I would definitely need to delve further into the formal theory

and practice of laughter yoga.

B ut resea rch in g th is q u estio n full tim e w o u ld inev itab ly lead to b ro ad e n in g

th e q u estio n to inc lude o th e r types o f lau g h te r. Yogic la u g h te r h a s th e d is tin c t

advan tage o f n o t req u ir in g h u m o r a n d th e re b y ap p ea lin g to a b ro a d e r scope o f

ind iv iduals (o f d iffe ren t ages, o f d iffe ren t in te res ts , a n d o f d iffe ren t cu ltu ra l

backgrounds) and of being able to be im plem ented “on the spo t” w ithout verbally

o r concep tua lly d is tra c tin g th e involved in d iv id u a ls from th e ta s k a t h an d .

However in order to harness these advantages, a teacher needs to (l) be trained

in lead ing la u g h te r yoga, (2) feel com fortab le a n d c o n fid en t in lead in g su ch

exercises, a n d (3) d ed ica te som e tim e to tra in in g h e r c lasses in th e se activ ities so

th a t w hen th e y a re im p lica ted a t a crucia l tim e (such as b e fo re th e a d m in is tra tio n

of a s ta n d a rd iz e d te s t) th e activ ity d oes n o t d is tra c t o r con fuse h e r s tu d e n ts .

These obstacles are not insurm ountable, bu t the scope o f advantages for students

CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, ORANGE, CA

4/9/2007 Vickers, 49


enro lled in a c lassroom im b u ed w ith lau g h te r is b ro a d en o u g h th a t I w ould w an t

m y research to be very b ro ad ly applicable. Som e teach ers , a n d th e re fo re som e

classes, w ill n o t b e com fortab le w ith th e im p lem en ta tio n o f la u g h te r yoga.

I believe th a t w ith som e creativ ity a n d ex p e rim en ta tio n I cou ld develop

a lterna tive m ean s o f m ak ing lau g h te r read ily availab le in a c lassroom se tting th a t

still m ee t th e re q u ire m e n t o f n o t rely ing on n o n -u n iv ersa l h u m o r. I am rem in d ed

of an ad v ertisem en t I h e a rd on th e rad io several years ago. In th e six ty second

d u ra tio n o f th e com m ercial, a b o u t fifty seconds w ere d ed ica ted p u re ly to th e

so u n d o f ch ild ren laugh ing . I t w as such a de ligh tfu l th in g to h e a r th a t I found

m yself sm iling a n d laugh ing along, a n d even tu rn in g u p th e vo lu m e so I w ould be

su re to h e a r w h a t cam e next. T he la s t te n seconds revealed an a n n o u n c e r’s voice

over th e so u n d o f th e lau g h ter, in fo rm ing th e lis te n e r o f th e n am e o f a toy store .

At the tim e I was particularly im pressed with the brilliance of this marketing

campaign; how often does one tu rn up the radio’s volume during a commercial?

However there is nothing revolutionary about this m arketing approach:

entertainm ent studios have long capitalized on the fact tha t people find their

environm ent more enjoyable when they hear other people laughing; this is why

we often hear laugh tracks accompanying hum orous television and radio

programming.

A sim ila r device cou ld b e u se d fo r th e p u rp o se o f th is resea rch . Playing a

sim ple aud io reco rd in g o f laugh ter, especially if th a t la u g h te r is u n u su a l o r silly,

will a lm ost certa in ly en tice lau g h te r from th e g roup lis ten in g to th e recording .

A no ther ta tic , possib ly even b e tte r , w ou ld be to p lay a v ideo reco rd in g of people

laughing, th u s tak e full advan tage o f th e v isual lau g h ab le qu a litie s o f peop le’s

4/9/2007 Vickers, 50


facial co n to rtio n s a n d bod ily p o stu re s d u rin g lau g h te r. Som e ind iv iduals are

m ore charism atic a n d less in h ib ited th a n o thers; I w ould love to reco rd th e

laugh ter o f s tu d e n t a n d facu lty vo lun teers from th e school w here th e video is

in ten d ed to be show n, a n d th u s be able to ex p erim en t w ith a v ideo th a t show s no t

ju s t laugh ter, b u t th e lau g h te r o f ind iv iduals w ho a re fam ilia r to th e s tu d e n ts

view ing th e record ing .

I believe th a t Dr. K ataria is defin ite ly on to so m eth in g in h is endeavo r to teach

ind iv iduals to consciously a n d actively h a rn ess th e benefits o f lau g h te r ra th e r

th a n passively receiv ing th e benefits o f lau g h te r on ly w hen la u g h te r

unconsciously tak es h o ld o f an ind iv idua l’s body. I fu lly su p p o rt th e idea o f

laughing as m u ch as possib le in all a reas o f life, certa in ly inc lud ing th e classroom .

A nd a lth o u g h I am n o t co m m itted to th e idea th a t lau g h te r im p lem en ted actively

an d consciously su ch as th is sh o u ld strive to be in d e p e n d e n t fro m h u m o r, I can

u n d e rs ta n d th e rea so n s fo r th is app roach . I w ou ld love to co n tin u e to explore

lau g h ter yoga a n d o th e r a lready e stab lish ed fo rm s o f d e lib era te , non -com ed ic

laugh ter, a n d I w ould a lso love to p a rtic ip a te in resea rch in g a n d estab lish ing new

form s o f de libera te , non -com ed ic laugh ter.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 51


Chapter 6:

References

Bracey, G, Ph.D. (2000, December 5). High stakes testing. Retrieved March 17, 2007, from the W orld Wide Web: h ttp ://epsl.asu .edu/epru/docum ents/cerai-oo-32.htm .

DiBattista, D.; Goose, L. (2006, Summer). Test anxiety and imm ediate feedback assessment technique. Journal o f Experimental Education, 7 4 (4 ), P P 3 1 1 - 3 2 7 .

Doskoch, P. (1996, July-August). Happily ever laughter [electronic version]. Psychology Today, 2 9 (4 ), P P 3 2 -3 5 -

Gardner, B. (1997, September). Learning gets the last laugh [electronic version]. NEA Today, 1 6 (2 ), ppi9+.

Griffiths, J. (1992, August). The mirthful brain; health benefits of laughter [electronic version]. Omni, 1 4 (11), p i8 .

Holdcroft, L. (2002, May 3). “Laughing gives the heart and lungs a workout, studies show” [electronic version]. The Seattle Times, pNA.

Johnson, E. ( 2 0 0 2 , May). The laughter circuit. Discover, 2 3 (5 ), P P 2 4 - 2 5 .

Kataria, M. C2006, January). Dr. Kataria’s School of Laughter Yoga. Retrieved May 3, 2006, from the W orld Wide Web: http://www.laughteryoga.org.

Long, P. (1 9 8 7 , October). Laugh and be well? Some researchers think it helps, but hard proof is hard to come by [electronic version]. Psychology Today, 2 1 , PP2 8 -2 9 .

Murphy, S. (1996). The achievement zone: 8 skills fo r winning all the time from the playing fie ld to the boardroom. New York: G.P. Putnam ’s Sons.

Pepose, M. (1981, February). Laughing helps learning. Psychology Today, 1 5 , pp86-87.

Petress, K. (2006, March). Perisl of current test mandates. Journal o f Instructional Psychology 3 3 (1 ), pp8o-92.

Provine, R. R. (2000, December). The laughing species [electronic version]. Natural History, 1 0 9 (1 0 ), pp72+.

Strubble, B. (2003, March). Getting serious about laughter [electronic version]. World and 1, 18(3), P P 1 3 2 +.

Tamblyn, D. (2000, August). Make ‘em laugh [electronic version]. Training, 3 7 (8 ), P P 36+ .

W eintraub, C. (2007). Personal interview.

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http://epsl.asu.edu/epru/documents/cerai-oo-32.htm

http://www.laughteryoga.org

Zillman, D.; W illiams, B.R.; Jennings, B.; Boynton, K.R.; & Wolf, M.A. (1980).Acquisition of inform ation from educational television program s as a function of differently placed hum orous inserts. Journal o f Educational Psychology, 7 2 , pp i.70- 180.

(2005, November). Reduce test anxiety to improve studen t perform ance. Teaching Professor 1 9 (9 ), ps.

(2005, M arch-April). “Laugh and be well” [electronic version]. N atura l Life, p p 8 -9 .

(2004). M aslow’s hierarchy of needs. Retrieved M arch 20, 2007 from the W orld W ide Web: h ttp ://ch iron .valdosta .edu /w hu itt/co l/regsys/m aslow .h tm l.

(2002, May 3). “Laughter’s benefits” [electronic version]. The Seattle Times, pNA.

4/9/2007 Vickers, 53


http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/regsys/maslow.html

Chapter 7:

Appendices

A p p en d ix A: Copy o f c o n tro l te s t

A p p en d ix B: Copy o f v a riab le te s t

A p p en d ix C: In s tru c tio n s fo r lead in g la u g h te r yoga

4/9/2007 Vickers, 54


N am e A p p ^ n J.i V A « C c -f f'.cnUnrP J ^ s L D a te____________________

Kim has written this report for a history course. A s part o f a peer conference, you are asked to read the report and think about what suggestions you would make. When you finish reading the report, answ er the multiple-choice questions that follow.

J u l iu s C a e sa r

1 In 6 0 B.C., J u l iu s C a e sa r jo in e d fo r c e s w ith M a r c u s C r a s s u s a n d P o m p ey . C r a s s u s , th e

2 w e a lth ie s t m a n in R om e, P o m p ey , c o m m a n d e r in c h ie f o f th e arm y , a n d C a e sa r ru led

3 R o m e a s th e F ir st T r iu m v ira te . C a e sa r w a s tr a in e d a s a p o lit ic ia n . C a e s a r d e m o n str a te d

4 h is s k i ll a s a w a rr ior w ith m ilita r y v ic to r ie s in G a u l a n d B r ita in . H is v ic to r ie s n o t o n ly

5 s h o w e d h is m ilita r y sk ill; th e y a lso w o n h im th e lo y a lty o f th e R o m a n a rm y . W h e n h is

6 g r o w in g s tr e n g th a n d p o p u la r ity b e g in to m a k e P o m p e y n e r v o u s , P o m p e y o rd ered C a esa r

7 to g ive u p h is a rm y . C a e sa r ’s r e s p o n s e w a s f a s t a n d fo rce fu l. W ith h is a rm y , h e led h is

8 tr o o p s a g a in s t P o m p ey , fo rc in g P o m p e y a n d th e c o n s e r v a t iv e s to f le e to th e B a lk a n s .

9 W ith in s ix ty d a y s , C a e sa r b e c a m e m a s te r o f R o m e. C a e sa r c o n t in u e d to w a r w ith a n d

10 p u r s u e P o m p ey , fo llo w in g h im to E g y p t, w h e r e C a e sa r d isc o v e r e d P o m p e y h a d b e e n

11 m u r d e r e d . P o m p e y ’s fo rc e s r e o rg a n iz e d a fte r th e d e a th o f h i s lea d er . C a e sa r d e fea te d

12 t h e s e fo r c e s in S p a in , w h e r e h e tr iu m p h e d o v er th e s o n s o f P om p ey .

13 A fter h e r e tu r n e d to R o m e, C a e sa r e n a c te d s e v e r a l m e a s u r e s . H e in s t i tu te d c h a n g e s to

14 im p r o v e h o u s in g a c c o m o d a t io n s a n d liv in g c o n d it io n s . H e re fo rm ed th e R o m a n ca len d ar,

15 c r e a t in g th e s y s t e m from w h ic h th e m o d e r n c a le n d a r ev o lv ed . In 4 4 B.C., h e w a s n a m e d

16 d ic ta to r for life . H is p o w er s a r o u s e d th e r e s e n tm e n t o f h is e n e m ie s . It w a s C a e sa r ’s fr ien d s

17 w h o fo rm ed a c o n s p ir a c y a g a in s t h im . J u l iu s C a e sa r w a s a s s a s s in a t e d b y a g r o u p o f

18 a r is to c r a ts led b y M a r cu s J u n iu s B r u tu s a n d G a iu s C a s s iu s . O n M a rch 1 4 , 4 4 B.C., h e

19 w a s s ta b b e d to d e a th in th e s e n a te h o u s e .

2 0 W illiam S h a k e s p e a r e d r a m a tiz e d m a n y o f t h e s e e v e n ts in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar.

2 1 S h a k e s p e a r e r e a d a b o u t C a e sa r in th e c h r o n ic le s o f P lu ta rc h , a G reek b io g r a p h e r w h o

2 2 d e lv e d in to th e p sy c h o lo g ic a l a s w e ll a s th e fa c tu a l d e ta ils o f h is s u b j e c t s ’ liv e s .

2 3 S h a k e s p e a r e a n d o th e r p e o p le o f h i s t im e w e r e a b le to rea d P lu ta r c h ’s Lives of the Noble

2 4 Greeks and Romans. F rom P lu ta r c h ’s d e s c r ip t io n s , r e a d e r s c o u ld le a r n d e ta ils a b o u t h is

68 S tan d ard ized T e s t P reparation W orkbook © Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Vi' c k s . ^ i


N am e D ate

2 5 c h a r a c te r s , rea l p e o p le w h o m a c te d in th is r e a l- life d r a m a o f th is e p iso d e in R o m a n

2 6 h is to r y . F or e x a m p le , r e a d e r s c o u ld d isc o v e r th a t M a rcu s B r u tu s , w h o lived from

2 7 8 5 to 4 5 B.C., w a s a q u ie t , id e a lis t ic m a n . H e h a d fo u g h t a g a in s t C a e sa r in s u p p o r t o f

2 8 P o m p ey , b u t w h e n P o m p e y w a s d e fe a te d , C a e sa r p a r d o n e d B r u tu s a n d th e tw o r e s u m e d

2 9 th e fr ie n d sh ip th e y h a d b e fo r e th e c o n flic t . B r u tu s ’ fa th e r - in - la w , how ever, k illed h im s e l f

3 0 r a th e r th a n s u b m it to C a e s a r ’s r u le . C a s s iu s , w h o w a s m a rr ied to B r u tu s ’ s is t e r J u n ia ,

3 1 a ls o h a d s u p p o r te d P o m p e y a n d w a s p a r d o n e d w h e n P o m p ey w a s d e fea ted .

3 2 C a e sa r i s r e m e m b e r e d a s a c o n tr o v e r s ia l c h a r a c te r . H e w a s a g ifted w riter, a n d h e w r o te

3 3 m ilita r y h is to r ie s t h a t c o n t in u e to b e r ea d to d a y . H e u n ite d h i s p eo p le , in s t i tu te d p o p u la r

3 4 r e fo r m s, a n d m a d e th e R o m a n e m p ir e p o s s ib le . H ow ever, h e a ls o w a s a n a m b it io u s le a d e r

3 5 w h o fo rced h is w a y to p o w e r a n d d e s tr o y e d th e R o m a n R ep u b lic .

)W h a t th e B E ST w a y to c o m b in e th e tw os e n te n c e s in l in e s 3 - 4 ?(“Caesar was. . . and Britain.")A C a e sa r w a s tr a in e d a s a p o lit ic ia n ,

a n d h e d e m o n s tr a te d h i s sk ill a s a w a rr io r w ith m ilita r y v ic to r ie s in G a u l a n d B r ita in .

B C a e s a r w a s tr a in e d a s a p o lit ic ia n ; h o w ev er , h e d e m o n s tr a te d h i s sk ill a s a w a rrior w ith m ilita r y v ic to r ie s in G a u l a n d B r ita in .

C T r a in e d a s a p o lit ic ia n , C a e s a r d e m o n s tr a te d h is s k i l l a s a w a rr io r w ith m ilita r y v ic to r ie s in G a u l a n d B rita in .

D C a e sa r d e m o n s tr a te d h i s s k i l l a s a w a rr io r w ith m ilita r y v ic to r ie s in G a u l a n d B rita in ; in a d d it io n , h e w a s tra in e d a s a p o lit ic ia n .

© Prentice-H all, Inc.

W h a t is th e B E ST c h a n g e , if a n y , to m a k e in th e s e n te n c e in l in e s 5 - 6 ?(“When his . . . his army. ”)A C h a n g e a r m y to A rm y

B C h a n g e b e g in to b e g a n

C D e le te th e c o m m a a fter n e r v o u s

D M ake n o c h a n g e

W h ic h tr a n s it io n s h o u ld b e a d d e d a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e s e n te n c e in l in e s 1 1 - 1 2 ? (“Caesar defeated . . . o f Pompey. ”)

A A s a r e su lt ,

B I n s te a d ,

C F in a lly ,

D In o th e r w o r d s ,

P ractice T est 1: Sam ple S ta te T est 69

X / l o h i S , 5*iq


Name Date

4 W h at is th e BE ST ch a n g e , if an y . to m a k e in th e s e n te n c e in lin e 11?("Pom pey'sforces . . . his leader.'')

A C h a n g e h is to th e ir

B C h a n g e P o m p e y ’s to P o m p e y s '

C C h a n g e r e o r g a n iz e d to r e o rg a n iz e

D M ake n o ch a n g e

5 W h at is th e BE ST ch a n g e , if an y . to m a k e in th e s e n te n c e in lin e s 1 3 -1 4 ?("He insti tu ted . . . living conditions.")

A C h a n g e in s t i tu t e d to in s t i tu te

B In sert a co m m a after c h a n g e s

C C h a n g e a c c o m o d a t io n s to a c c o m m o d a t io n s

D M ake n o c h a n g e

6 W h ich is th e BE ST co n ju n c tio n to in se r t a t th e b eg in n in g o f th e s e n te n c e in l in e s 1 6 -1 7 ? ("It w a s . . . a g a in s t him.'')

A F u rth erm o re ,

B H ow ever,

C E ven th o u g h ,

D W h en

7 W h ich is th e BEST c h a n g e , if an y , to m a k e in th e s e n te n c e in l in e s 2 1 - 2 2 ? ("Shakespeare read . . . s u b je c t s ’ l iv e s .”)

A C h a n g e s u b je c t s ' to s u b je c t ’s

B C h a n g e c h r o n ic le s to c h r o n ic a ls

C D ele te th e co m m a after P lu ta r c h


8 W h ich o f th e s e s e n te n c e s w ou ld B E S T fita fter th e s e n te n c e in l in e s 2 3 -2 4 ?("Shakespeare a n d . . . a n d R o m a n s .”)

A S h a k e s p e a r e ’s d ra m a tiza tio n o f Julius C a e s a r w a s w ell rece iv ed by h is a u d ien ce .

B P lu ta rch 's tex t w a s tr a n sla ted from L atin in to E n g lish b y S ir T h o m a s North.

C S h a k e sp e a r e a lso read h is to r ie s o f S c o tt is h k in g s.

D M an y R om an h is to r ie s o f th a t tim e a re in co m p lete .

9 W h ich is th e B E S T ch a n g e , if an y . to m a k e in th e s e n te n c e in lin e s 2 4 -2 6 ? (“From Plutarch's . . . R om an history.")

A D e le te th e co m m a after d e s c r ip t io n s

B C h a n g e th e co m m a after c h a r a c te r s to a se m ic o lo n

C C h a n g e w h o m to w h o


1 0 W h a t is th e B E S T ch a n g e , if an y , to m ak e in th e s e n te n c e in lin e s 3 3 -3 4 ?(“H e united, . . . empire p o s s ib le .")

A D e le te th e co m m a after p e o p le

B C h a n g e e m p ir e to E m pire

C C h a n g e u n i te d to u n ite


70 Standardized T est P reparation W orkbook © Prentice-Hall. Inc.

Y f cM-Z'kS* > s i


Name i Date

^ Section 2: Reading

)

DIRECTIONS

T he fo llo w in g s e c t io n is an a s se ssm e n t o f you r read ing ab ility . R ead th e s e le c t io n . T hen read ea ch q u estio n and all i t s o p tio n s . D ec id e w h ich op tion BEST c o m p le te s or answ ers th e q u estio n . Mark th e le t te r for th a t an sw er on your answ er d o cu m en t.

fro m From the Pecos to the Powder: A Cowboy's Autobiography

by Bob Kennon

D on Luis T errazas, the cattle k ing o f C h ih u ah u a , w as My notes about whatth e largest landholder and cattle breeder in the world 1 am readln6-

a t th e tim e. H e ow ned ab ou t 1,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 h ead o f cattle ■, and bran d ed a s h igh a s 2 0 0 ,0 0 0 ca lves in on e year at one-' tim e. B efore th e M exican R evolution later broke h im , he|>! h ad over 3 ,0 0 0 h ead o f h o rses in u s e on h is m ore th anb 1 1 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 acres o f ran ch es.

2 B ill Nort, one o f th e forem en, gave m e a job w rangling h o rses. He w a s a k ind ly sort o f m an w h o u n d erstood and cou ld ta lk w ith a kid like m e. T aking th is job w a s th e tu rn in g p oin t o f m y life. I h ad on ly b een w orking there a few m on th s

- 1 w h en Mr. B road u s an d Mr. H ysham , tw o cow m en fromM ontana, together w ith their forem an, Mr. Baker, cam e dow n to b u y s teers .

t"> 3 T h ey b ou gh t two th o u sa n d M exican ste e r s from Terrazas,' | an d B ak er w a s to trail north to M ontana. B aker ask ed Bill

Nort an d T om Cottrell, a Terrazas cow han d , m yself, and a few o th ers to com e a long u p th e trail. I w a s w illing and an x iou s to

1 go u p th e ca ttle trail a t an y tim e. T h is h ad b een m y hope anddream for m o n th s. If a fellow had never b e e n u p to M ontana on a ca ttle drive, h e w a sn ’t con sid ered m u c h o f a cow m an. I

1 h eld b ack , th o u g h , u n til Mr. B roadu s agreed to pay m e am o n th ly w age o f forty dollars for th e trip. C om pared w ith th e e ig h teen d ollars I w a s getting, th is seem ed like a fortune to

' m e an d I to ld h im I’d go all the way.

4 At la s t everyth ing w a s in read in ess , th e cattle gathered,1 ta llied , a n d tu rn ed over to B roadu s w ith H ysham . W ith the

tra n sa ctio n c lo sed , th e w agon s loaded w ith su p p lies , b ed s,' e tc ., a n d th e cook fixed o u t w ith all h is cu linary n eed s,

everyth ing w a s com p lete for th e long trip north . . . .

5 Early th e n ex t m orn ing w e crossed th e Rio G rande under

J T errazas’ superv ision . After crossin g into T exas, B roadus andH ysh am gave th e orders. We d idn’t travel fast nor v e iy far in a

© Prentice-Hall, Inc. Practice T est 1: Sam ple State Test 71


Name Date

w eek’s tim e, and cam ped at regular intervals, holding the steers on good feed all a long the w ay. Cattle get footsore and leg w eary if crowded too hard or hand led roughly, and they w anted the steers to reach M ontana in good condition. . . .

6 T he trail itself, a s I’ve sa id , w a s w ell p lan n ed for u s . It lay across the tab lelands, or m esa s , o f W est T exas and into K ansas, crossed part of the Old S a n ta Fe Trail n ear Dodge City, th en led onw ard to th e North Platte, keep ing clear of O gallala, th a t big cow tow n full o f fun and trouble for a b u n ch of cow boys on a trail drive. We sk irted the B lack H ills and w en t on into M ontana. We varied som ew h at in later drives a s herd m en found it w a s far b etter to avoid all tow ns u n le ss there were stockyards there. A t an y rate, th ese stop p in g p laces were nearly all a t a d istan ce ou tsid e the tow ns them selves.

7 We un loaded the steers for th e la st tim e a t W ichita, K ansas, an d took them on a cro ss K an sas by trail, th en across th e North Platte River and th e san d h ills o f N ebraska. On n orthw est o f D eadw ood, S o u th D akota, w e traveled for ab ou t forty or fifty m iles, going b y D evil’s Tow er and the Belle Fourche country. Belle F ourche w a s a cow m an’s country in the brakes o f the Little M issouri w here there w as an ab u n d an ce o f fine feed.

8 We w ere getting excited b y th is tim e. No one seem ed tired any m ore. In our m ind s w e w ere a lready sp en d in g our pay in M iles City, and noth ing cou ld dam p en our sp irits. We w ere getting m ighty tired o f looking a t th o se steers, and yet w e had com e so far together they seem ed like old friends.

9 We cam e on dow n Little C ottonw ood and at la st crossed th e Powder River. We w ere su re happ y at th e sigh t o f it, and if w e h ad n ’t b een trailing th o se tw o th o u sa n d steers and afraid o f stam ped ing them , w e’d have sh o t in to th e air to celebrate our arrival, for every cow m an ’s s logan w a s “Powder River or bust." T hough w e’d b een in M ontana for several days, no one could really believe it u n til w e had crossed the Powder.

10 After crossing , w e w ent over to th e B roadu s hold ings,w h ich w ere in c lose on the other s id e . The tow n of B roadus w as estab lish ed here on the old s ite o f th is ranch . We crossed th e Little Powder a t the H alf Circle C ross R anch, th en w en t dow n the M itzpah an d on to M iles City. We w ere now nearin g the end of our long trail and com ing to the b eau tifu l Y ellow stone River. . . .We sw am the herd and [saddle horses] across the Y ellow stone w hile th e w agon s w ere ferried across, and our job w a s done.

72 Standardized Test Preparation Workbook

My notes about what I am reading.

© Prentice-Hall, Inc.


N am e_ Date

11sSi

lI'

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i■ * ■s i \> i

11 Before th e M exican R evolution, D on Luis Terrazas w as—

A financially broken

B th e largest cattle breeder in the world

C the ow ner o f a ranch in M ontana

D experienced in driving cattle to M exico

12 The turn ing point sh ow n in Paragraph 2 is that Bob K ennon—

A is given an opportunity by a kindly forem an

B h an d les 3 ,0 0 0 h orses for D on Luis Terrazas

C takes over the job of Bill Nort

D contracts to work for B roadus and H yshamj

3/i 1 ^ K en non -b

13 Before jo in in g the cattle drive, Bob

A b u ys 2 ,0 0 0 M exican steers

B w rangles h orses on a M exican ranch

C h a s crossed the Powder

D is an experienced cow m an

14 Bob K ennon h es ita tes to jo in the cattleI1 drive until—y *■t'‘ A he h a s gathered and tallied the cattle

B he is considered an experiencedI' I

i cow m an

C he gets the salary h e a sk s for

D he h a s com pleted h is Job in C hihuahua, M exico


15 The final goal of a cowboy on the cattle trail to M ontana is—

A the Belle Fourche country

B the B lack Hills

C the Powder River

D the North Platte River

16 From Paragraph 3 , the reader can tell that a s a you n g m an. Bob K ennon is eager to—

A move to another country

B gain experience

C own h is ow n ranch

D finish the cattle drive

17 W hich of th ese sta tem en ts b est exp resses the m ain idea o f the essay?

A Cow tow ns along the trail m ade the trip from M exico to M ontana worthwhile.

B M exican cattle were the m ost desirable cattle in the W est.

C The cattle trail to M ontana w as h arsh and unforgiving.

D The cattle trail to M ontana w as an exciting adventure for a young cowboy.

18 The author w ould probably agree th at—

A the cattle drive to M ontana shou ld alw ays follow the sam e route

B it is difficult to find enough food for cattle in the B elle Fourche country

C Ogallala w as a center ofsoph istication and culture on the cattle trail

D cattle arrive a t their destination in better condition if th ey are not p u sh ed too hard

Practice Test 1: Sample State Test 73

\/ickers,kc


Name Date

19 W hat is Bob K ennon’s tone in Paragraph 8?

A N ervous

B Eager

C D isdainfu l

D E xh au sted

2 0 The au th or sa y s that the cattle drive p a sse s n ear eve iy location EXCEPT—

A W ichita

B O gallala

C th e B elle Fourche country

D D odge City

2 1 In Paragraph 6 , Bob K ennon in d ica tes th a t th e cattle trail route—

A ch a n g es depending u p on th e w eather

B varies w idely from on e trip to another

C is carefu lly organized and m odified by herd m en

D is sp o n ta n eo u s and can n ot be p lan n ed

2 2 B ob K ennon tracks th e h erd ’s progress by n otic in g—

A th e n u m b er of m iles th a t have b een traveled

B th e n u m b er of m o n th s th a t have p a sse d

C th e n u m b er o f letters h e h a s w ritten

D th e rivers h e h a s crossed

74 Standardized T est Preparation Workbook

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further

2 3 The cow m en’s s logan in Paragraph 9 in d ica tes their—

A determ ination

B exh au stion

C boredom

D an im osity

2 4 The cow boys’ reaction a t reach ing the Powder River illu stra tes—

A su rp rise at their location

B pride in their accom p lish m en t

C h o m e sick n ess after a long trail ride

D im patien ce w ith the cattle herd

2 5 From th e descrip tion o f th e Yellowstone River in Paragraph 1 0 , th e reader can infer th at—

A th e river is treach erou s

B the river is pollu ted

C th e river is sm a ll and shallow

D th e river is deep and su b stan tia l

2 6 W hat observation m igh t Bob K ennon m ake to som eon e w h o is nervous about u nd ertak ing a n ew project?

A A n ew experience is difficult and stressfu l.

B P ersisten ce an d hard work will be rewarded.

C E m ployers p lace too m u ch em p h asis on experience.

D Young people sh o u ld n ot be given too m u ch responsib ility .


Vi c

prohibited without permission.

N a m e A p p / . ^ i t Y f i : 0 d^iA o f V l l r i z h l f , T ? J ^ D a t e .

Maria has written this report for a history course. As part of a peer conference, you are asked to read the report and think about what suggestions you would make. When you finish reading the report, answer the multiple-choice questions that follow.

T h e S h a k e s p e a r e a n T h e a te r

1 The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet like m ost o f Shakespeare’s plays, w as produced in a public

2 theater. The public theaters where Shakespeare’s plays were produced had no artificial light.

3 Perform ances were given only during daylight hours. Surrounding the roofless courtyard were

4 three levels of galleries w ith ben ch es where wealthier playgoers sat. Poorer spectators, called

5 groundlings stood and w atched a play from the courtyard, which w as called a pit.

6 M ost o f Shakespeares plays were perform ed in the Globe theater. No one is certain exactly

7 w hat the Globe looked like, though Shakespeare tells u s it w as round or octagonal. We know th at

8 it w as open to the sky and that it held betw een 2 5 0 0 and 3 0 0 0 people. (This knowledge w as th e

9 basis for the reconstruction of the Globe theater that began in 1988 .) It's foundation w as

10 discovered in 1990; its excavation h a s revealed c lu es about the plays, the actors, and the

11 audience. The tiny part o f the foundation initially uncovered yielded a great num ber of hazelnut

12 shells. H azelnuts were Elizabethan “popcorn," people m unched on them all during a

13 performance.

14 The Globe’s stage w a s a platform th at extended into the pit. Actors entered and left the stage

15 from doors located behind the platform. T he portion of the galleries behind and above the stage

16 w as u sed for the m ost part m ainly a s dressing and storage room s. The second-level gallery right

17 above the stage; however, w as u sed a s an upper stage.

18 There w as no scenery in the theaters of Shakespeare’s day. Settings being indicated by

19 references in the dialogue. As a result, one scen e could follow another rapid. The actors wore

2 0 elaborate clothing—typical Elizabethan clothing, not costum ing. Thus, the plays produced in

2 1 Shakespeare’s day were fast-paced, colorful productions that usually lasted two hours.

2 2 An im portant difference betw een Shakespeare’s theater and theater o f today is that acting

2 3 com panies of the sixteenth century were m ade u p only of m en and boys. Boys aged eleven,

twelve, or thirteen—before their voices changed—performed the fem ale roles.

© Prentice-Hall, Inc. D iagnostic Test 1: Sam ple S tate T est 3

V i i o ' L .


Name Date

<i

W hat is th e BEST w ay to com b in e th e tw ose n te n c e s in lin es 1 -2?(“The Tragedy . . . artificial light.")

A The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, like m o st o f S h ak esp eare’s p lays, w a s produced in a pub lic theater th a t h ad no artificial light.

B The Tragedy o f Romeo and Juliet, like m o st o f S h ak esp eare’s p lays, w a s produced in a pub lic theater. T he pub lic th eater had n o artificial light.

C The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, like m o st o f S h ak esp eare’s p lays, w a s produced . It w as in a p u b lic th ea ter th a t h ad no artificial light.

D The Tragedy o f Romeo and Juliet, like m o st o f Sh ak esp eare’s p lays, w a s produced in a pub lic theater, an d th a t p u b lic th eater had no artificial light.

W hich tran sition sh ou ld be added at th e b eg in n in g o f th e sen ten ce in line 3 ?(“Performances were . . . daylight hours.")

A N on eth eless,

B Finally,

C In other w ords,

D Therefore,

3 W hat is the BEST ch an ge, i f any, to m ak e in th e sen te n c e in lin es 4 -5 ?(“Poorer spectators, . . . a p it.")

A D elete the com m a after c o u r ty a r d

B Insert a com m a after g r o u n d lin g s

C C hange w a tc h e d to w a tch in g

D M ake no change

4 W hat is the BEST ch an ge to m ake in the sen te n c e in line 6?(“Most o f. . . Globe theater.”)

A C hange S h a k e s p e a r e s to S h a k esp ea res’

B C hange S h a k e s p e a r e s to S h ak esp eare's

C C hange p e r jo r m e d to perform ing

D M ake no change

5 W hat is the B E ST ch an ge to m ake in th e sen ten ce in lin es 9- 10?(“It's foundation . . . the audience. ”)

A C hange th e first com m a to a sem ico lon

B D elete th e com m a after p la y s

C C hange I t ’s to I ts

D M ake no ch an ge

4 Standardized Test Preparation: D iagnostic Tests

W hich is the BE ST con ju n ction to in sert at th e beg inn ing o f th e sen ten ce in line 1 2 ? (“Hazelnuts were . . . a performance.”)

A U n less

B B eca u se

C E ven though

D W hen

Prentice-Hall, Inc.

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Nam e___________________________________________________ Date.

I

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W hich is the BEST change, if any, to m ake in th e sen ten ce in lin es 15- 16? (“The second-leuel. . . upper stage.”)

A C hange g a lle r y to gallary

B C hange the sem icolon to a com m a

C D elete the com m a after h o w ever

D M ake no change

8 W hich is th e BEST change, if any, to m ake in th e sen ten ce in lin es 1 7 -1 8 ? (“Settings . . . dialogue. ”)A C hange be in g to were

B C hange b e in g to had b een

C Insert a com m a after in d ic a te d

D M ake n o change


9 W hich is th e BEST change, if any, to m ake in th e sen ten ce in lines 19 -20? (“Thus, the . . . two hours.")A D elete th e com m a after T hus

B Insert a com m a after co lo rfu l

C C hange u su a lly to usual

D M ake no change

1 0 W hich of th ese sen ten ces w ould BE ST fitafter the sen ten ce in lin es 2 1 -2 2 ?(“An important, . . . and boys. ’’)

A Players faced fierce com petition for roles in acting com panies.

B B oys trained for years to learn their parts well.

C W om en did not perform on the stage, a s it w a s n ot considered proper for them to be there.

D Shakespeare's com pany w as called The King’s Men.

Diagnostic Test 1: Sample State Test 5


Name Date

Section 2: ReadingDIRECTIONS

T he fo llow ing se c tio n is an a s se ssm e n t o f your read ing ab ility . R ead th e se lec tio n . T hen read ea ch q u estio n and all i t s o p tio n s. D ecid e w h ich o p tio n BEST co m p le te s or answ ers th e .q u estion . Mark th e le tte r for th a t answ er on your an sw er d ocu m en t.

How to React to Familiar Faces

by Umberto Eco

A few m onth s ago. a s I w as strolling in N ew York, I saw , at a d istance, a m an I knew very w ell head ing in m y direction. The trouble w as th a t I cou ldn’t rem em ber h is

n a m e or w here I had m et him . T h is is on e o f th o se se n sa tio n s you en cou n ter esp ecia lly w h en , in a foreign city, you ru n into som eon e you m et b ack hom e, or v ice versa. A face o u t o f con tex t creates confusion . Still, th a t face w as so fam iliar th at, I felt, I sh ou ld certain ly stop , greet h im , converse; p erh ap s he w ould im m ediately resp ond , “My dear Um berto, h ow are y o u ? ” or “Were y ou ab le to do th a t th in g you w ere telling m e ab ou t?” And I w ould b e a t a total lo ss . It w as too late to flee. H e w as still looking a t th e opposite s id e o f the street, b u t n ow h e w a s b eginn ing to turn h is eyes tow ards m e. I m ight a s w ell m ake th e first move; I w ou ld w ave and th en , from h is voice, h is first rem arks, I w ould t iy to g u e ss h is identify.

2 We w ere now only a few feet from each other, I w as ju s t about to break into a broad, radiant sm ile, w h en sudden ly I recognized him . It w as A nthony Q uinn. Naturally, I had never m et h im in m y life, nor h e m e. In a th ou san d th of a secon d I w as ab le to ch eck m yself, and I w alked p ast him , m y eyes staring into space.

3 A fterw ards, reflecting on th is incident, I realized h ow totally norm al it w as. O nce before, in a restaurant, I had g lim psed C harlton H eston and h ad felt an im p u lse to sa y hello . T h ese faces in h ab it our mem ory; w atch ing th e screen , w e sp en d so m a n y h ou rs w ith them th a t they are a s fam iliar to u s a s our rela tives’, even m ore so. You can b e a s tu d en t o f m a ss com m unication , debate the effects o f reality, or the con fu sion b etw een the real and th e im agined, and expound the w a y som e people fall perm an en tly into th is confusion; b u t still you are n o t im m une to the syndrom e. And there is w orse.

4 I have received confidences from people w ho, appearing fairly frequently on TV, have b een sub jected to the m a ss m ed ia overa certain period of tim e. I’m n o t ta lk ing ab ou t J o h n n y C arson or O prah Winfrey, b u t public figures, experts w ho have participated in panel d isc u ss io n s often enough to b ecom e

6 Standardized Test Preparation: D iagnostic Tests

My notes about what I am reading.


Vickj2r&, bS'


Name Date

8recognizable. All o f them com p la in o f th e sam e d isagreeable experience. Now, a s a ru le, w h en w e se e som eon e w e don’t know personally, w e d on ’t stare in to h is or her face a t length, w e don’t point o u t th e p erson to th e friend a t our side, w e d on ’t sp ea k of th is p erson in a lou d voice w h en he or sh e can overhear. S u ch behavior w ou ld be rude, even—if carried too far—aggressive. B u t the sa m e people w ho w ould never point to a custom er at a cou n ter and rem ark to a friend th a t the m an is w earing a sm art tie beh ave qu ite differently w ith fam ou s faces.

5 My gu inea p igs in s is t th at, a t a n ew ssta n d , in the tob accon ist’s , a s they are board ing a train or entering a restaurant toilet, they en co u n ter o th ers w ho, am ong th em selves, say aloud, “Look there’s X .” “Are you sure?" “O f cou rse I’m su re . It’s X, I tell y o u .” And th ey continu e their conversation am iably, w h ile X h ears th em , and they don’t care if h e h ears them : It’s a s if h e d id n ’t exist.

6 S u ch people are con fu sed b y th e fact th a t a protagonist o f the m a ss m ed ia’s im aginary w orld sh o u ld abruptly enter real life, b u t a t the sam e tim e th ey beh ave in th e p resen ce o f the real person a s if h e still belonged to th e world o f im ages, a s if h e w ere on a screen , or in a w eek ly p icture m agazine. A s if they w ere speak ing in h is a b sen ce .

7 I m ight a s w ell have grabbed A nthony Q uinn by th e lapel, dragged him to a phon e b ooth , and called a friend to say, “Talk ab ou t coincidence! I've ru n in to A n thon y Q uinn. And you know som eth ing? He seem s real!” (After w h ich I w ou ld throw Q uinn asid e and go on about m y b u s in e ss .)

8 The m a ss m ed ia first convinced u s th a t the im aginary w as real, and n ow th ey are con vin cin g u s th a t th e real is imaginary; and th e m ore reality th e TV screen sh o w s u s , the m ore cinem atic our everyday w orld b ecom es.

My notes about w hat I am reading.

11 According to th e author, w h en you se e som eon e w ho se em s fam iliar b u t w hom y ou don’t k n ow personally , you sh ou ld do ea ch of the follow ing EXCEPT—

A n ot stare into h is or h er face for a long stretch o f tim e

B n ot point h im or her ou t to friends w ho are nearby

C n ot sp eak o f h im or h er loudly en ou gh for h im or h er to overhear

D not let h im or h er p a ss w ith ou t first greeting h im or h er

© Prentice-Hall, Inc

1 2 W hich one o f the following is th e m o st likely reason the author com pares celebrities’ faces to relatives’ faces in Paragraph 3 ?

A To illustrate that m ajor celebrities deserve th e sam e resp ect a s fam ily m em bers

B To reveal the resem blance b etw een Charlton H eston and m em bers of th e writer’s fam ily

C To indicate that people spend a s m u ch tim e w ith celebrities a s w ith relatives

D To adm it that people prefer the com pany of celebrities over that of relatives


Vt'cLf^rs, (pb


Name Date

1 3 According to the essay, w hich one of the following celebrities has the author seen in a restaurant?

A Anthony Q uinn

B Johnn y Carson

C Oprah Winfrey

D Charlton H eston

14 B ased on inform ation in the essay , w hen the author says in Paragraph 2 that he w as able to “check” him self, he m ost likely m ean s that he w as able to—

A stop h im self from greeting Q uinn as he had intended

B check h is appearance before facing Q uinn

C prevent h im self from bum ping into Q uinn

D practice averting h is eyes quickly

15 B ased on the inform ation in the essay , the reader can tell that the author is probably—

A irritated that celebrities are not more receptive to greeting people in public

B respectful of celebrities’ desire to m aintain their privacy in public

C surprised that m ost celebrities are so easily recognized on the street

D sym pathetic toward people who collect celebrity autographs

16 The author’s primary reason for writingthe essay is m ost likely to—

A com pare differences in people’s reactions to celebrities and other public figures

B argue that celebrities prefer not to be recognized or greeted by people in public

C criticize people’s reactions tocelebrities they recognize in public a s inappropriate

D explain that TV ca u ses people to confuse celebrities w ith the characters they portray

17 W hich one of the following statem ents m ost com pletely and accurately expresses the m ain point o f the essay?

A The m ass m edia m ake fewercelebrities willing to greet people in public.

B The m ass m edia blur the distinction betw een the real and the imaginary.

C Celebrities have certain rules on how people should react to them in public.

D Celebrities know that their biggest fans m ay stare at them in public.

18 The author would probably agree that—

A reactions to celebrities are influenced by the characters they play

B celebrities react uncivilly toward other celebrities they see in public

C people who w atch television are the m ost respectful of celebrities’ privacy

D it is less rude to stare at celebrities than to talk about them in their presence

8 Standardized Test Preparation: Diagnostic Tests © Prentice-Hall, Inc.


Name Date

I

m

19 W hich of the following statem ents can beinferred from the essay?

A Celebrities are rarely unaccom panied in public.

B Rude behavior in one context is not considered rude in another.

C Disregard is the highest com plim ent people can pay to celebrities.

D Characters on TV can appear to be real.

2 0 The exam ple in the last sentence ofParagraph 4 illustrates that—

A it is rude to point, even if your intention is to com plim ent som eone

B celebrities w ant to m aintain their privacy while they shop

C people can forget their m anners w hen they recognize celebrities

D salespeople usually treat custom ers politely

21 W hich of the following m ost accuratelydescribes the organization of the essay?

A An incident is avoided and advice is presented to avoid sim ilar incidents.

B A hypothetical situation is introduced and compared with a real situation.

C An exam ple is given and its m eaning is explained.

D A controversial issu e is presented and one side is d iscussed.

2 2 W hen people react rudely to celebrities in public, the author is—

A shocked

B angry

C am used

D understanding

2 3 If the author had spoken to AnthonyQuinn, based on the information in theessay, which statem ent could be true?

A Anthony Q uinn is a very popular celebrity.

B Anthony Q uinn and the author are both celebrities.

C The author im m ediately recognized Anthony Quinn.

D The author know s Anthony Quinn personally.

2 4 Based on the essay, which relationship m ost closely resem bles that of people reacting to celebrities?

A An assignm ent on a historical figure prom pts you to conduct even more research.

B A person m im ics a character so well, you call the person by the character’s name.

C

D

A play is so funny, you watch it again.

A restaurant m eal is so delicious, you take an extra order home.

2 5 Which of the following illustrates a “face out of context,” as characterized in Paragraph 1?

A A tree in the woods

B A m oon in the sky

C A dog in the rain

D A fish on the sidewalk

2 6 The author im agines dragging Anthony Quinn—

A into a phone booth

B into a restaurant

C into the street

Prentice-Hall, Inc.

D onto a talk show


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15 - Slep New Model of a Laughter Therapy Session

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CN5 “a

- 3

STEP1

STEP 2

STEP 3

STEP 4

DURATION: 20 - 30 minutes (maximum) Each bout ol laughter should last for 30-40 seconds, followed by clapping and ho ho ha ha ha exercise. Take two deep breaths after every laughter.

Clapping in a rhythm 1-2...... 1-2-3along with chanting of Ho-Ho ...Ha-Ha-Ha

Deep Breathing will i inhalation through the noseand prolonged exhalation. (Along with healing words * Forgive, Forget; Live and Let Live) ( 5 times)

Shoulder, neck and stretching exercises(5 times each)

Hearty lau g h te r - Laughter by raising both the arm s in the sky w ith th e head tilted a tittle, backwards. Feel as if laughter is coming right from your heart.

Greeting Laughter - Joining both the hands and greeting in Indian style (Mamaste) or shaking hands (Western Style) with at least 4-5 people in the group.

Appreciation Laughter - Join your pointing finger with the thumb to make a small circle while making gestures as If you are appreciating your group m em bers and laughing simultaneously.

One M eter Lauohter: Move one hand over the stretched arm ot the other side and extend th e shoulder (like stretching to shoot a bow and arrow). The hand Is moved inthree jerks by chanting Ae...„ Ae Aeee and thenparticipants burst into laughter by stretching both the arms and throwing their heads a little backwards and laughing from the belly. (Repeat 4 times).

Milk Shake Lauohter (a variation): Hold two imaginary glasses of milk or coffee and at the instruction ol the anchor person pour the milk from one glass into the other by 'chanting Aeee and then pour it back info the firstglass by chanting Aeee..., After lhat everyone laughs, while making a gesture as if they are drinking milk. (Repeat 4 times).

STEP 5:

STEP B:

STEP 7:

40

STEP B:

STEP 1 0 ;

STEP 12:

(gELyA

SISE-lii:

3IJEE14;

Silent lauohter w ithout sound - Open you r mouth wide and laugh without making any sound and look into each o thers’ eyes and make som e funny gestures.Humming lauohter w ith mouth closed - Laughter with closed mouth and a humming so u n d . While humming keep on moving in the group and shaking hands with different people,Swlnnlno Lannhtor - Stand In a circle and move towards the center by chanting Aeo....Ooo....Eee...Uuu...Lion L auoh ter- Extrude the tongue fully with eyes wide open and hands stretched ou t like the claw s of a lion and laugh from the tummyCell Phone laugh ter: Hold an imaginary mobile phone and try to laugh, making different gestures and moving around in the group to meet different people.Aroument Laughter: Laugh by pointing fingers a t different group m em bers a s if arguing.ForgivenessfApolonv Laughter: Immediately after argum ent

• laughter catch both your ear lobes and laugh while shaking i y o u r head (Indian style) o r raise bath y o u r palm s and laugh as ; If saying sorry.

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c JG radient Laughter: Gradient laughter s ta rts with bringing a smile on the face, slowly gentle giggles are added and the r~' intensity of laughter is increased further. Then the £m em bers gradually burst into hearty laughter and slowly and gradually bring th e laughter down and stop.

STEP 15: H eart to H safU gtiflfiter flittfmacy L aughter): Come closer £XT-

CLOSINGTECHNIQUE:

MostIm p o r la n l:

and hold each others hands and laugh. One can shake hands o r hug each other, whateverfeels comfortable.Sliputlwiailimns:"I am Ihe happiest person in this World” Y........ E..... S.'I am the healthiest person in this World" Y. E S,1 am a Laughter Club m em ber" Y E...... SIn tho end ail the members should stand with theireyes closed for ona minute wllh their arm s sp read upw ards, hoping for world peace.

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a serious look at laughter -...

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