Comedy in the Classroom:

Creating a More Enjoyable and Inclusive Atmosphere through Humor

Matthew R. Turner, Ph.D.

School of Communication

Radford University

Scott A. Turner, Ph.D.

Math and Computer Science

UNC Pembroke

Overview

•Benefits of humor in the classroom

•The dangers of humor

•How to implement humor in the classroom

Benefits of Humor

• Increases learning, scores, and attendance

• Decreases stress and reduces anxiety

• Builds groups, communities, and common bonds

• Reduces conflict

• Raises student evaluations and peer evaluations

• Makes our job more fun

Research on Humor

• “We concluded that humor not only increases interest but also promotes learning.” (Narula, et al 22)

• “Humorous material tends to be recalled at higher rates than non-humorous material.” (Carlson 21)

• “This is because humor acts as a tonic in reducing anxiety and resolving conflict.” (Lin, Yeh, and Lo 365)

• “Because humor can evoke a positive emotional response, humorous materials could receive not only verbal elaboration but also some appraisal processing, which could boost subsequent memory.” (Takahashi and Inoue 81)

Group Building with Humor

•Smoothes interactions

•Creates shared identity

•Separates the group by defining boundaries

•Classroom corrective and social control

Group Building

• “The joking culture of small groups influences group processes by smoothing group interaction, forming a collective identity, separating the group from others, and securing appropriate behavior.” (Rothwell, et al 338)

• “Every interacting social group develops, over time, a joking culture: a set of humorous references that are known to members of the group to which members can refer and that serve as the basis of further interaction.” (Fine and De Soucey 1)

• “In this way humor becomes a means of attenuated or covert criticism, a flexible device for reconciling criticism with solidarity.” (Archakis and Tsakona 60)

Discussion

In groups of 4-6 people, discuss

• When is humor appropriate in the classroom?

• When is humor inappropriate in the classroom?

• What specific types of humor may be inappropriate?

Appropriate?

I can easily zip and unzip folders and files

1. Yes2. Generally3. Yes, no wait, no4. No, no wait, still no5. Pervert

Appropriate?

Language or material that describes sexual or excretory organs or activities, but that has some first amendment protection is

A. Profanity

B. Indecency

C. Obscenity

D. Strangely exhilarating

Appropriate?

To understand the meaning of Hula Dance, one should look at

A. The dancer’s lips

B. The dancer’s hips

C. The dancer’s hands

D. The dancer’s cultural background

E. Get your mind out of the gutter

Hilarious?

According to lecture, the artist Joseph Beuys lived in a room with what creature for three days to show how America had become detached from its heritage and native culture?

A. A coyote

B. A bobcat

C. An eagle

D. His mother-in-law

Dangers of humor

• Humor is personal, subjective, and contextual so the effects can be unpredictable

• Avoid inappropriate humor

• Avoid hostile humor

• Do not allow humor to stifle communication or exclude groups

• Avoid using a scapegoat

• Watch out for cultural/linguistic misunderstandings

Inappropriate humor

• Ethnicity

• Family background

• Personal appearance

• Sexually suggestive topics

• Sarcasm????

Avoid humor dealing with

Discussion

•Discuss and explain to your group a good joke in your discipline.• (Pick one joke to tell the whole

group.)

•What can you do/What have you done to add humor into the classroom?

Humor in First Day Introduction

• A little bit about me

• Scott Turner

• Computer Scientist• Programmer for 12+ years• Interested in Human-Computer Interactions, CS Education

• Weird sense of humor

• Recognition• Faces • Names• Faces with Names

Introducing a Concept

Munroe, Randall. (October 21, 2011). Prairie. In xkcd. Retrieved February 7, 2012, from http://xkcd.com/967/.

Humor in a test

The darkened room where artists would project an image of the outside on a canvas was called

A. Camera Lucida

B. Camera Obscura

C. Camera Calamari

D. Camera Diaz

Confusing Humor

Choose the antonym: Abhor

A. Ketchup

B. Mustard

C. Mayonnaise

D. Relish

Distracting humor

The architect of the Paris Opera House was

A. Maurice Chevalier

B. Marcel Marceau

C. Charles Garnier

D. Jean Baptiste Poquoin

How to use Humor

• Use humor appropriately

• Use humor that reflects your personality

• Let students know that you use humor

• Make sure it does not interfere with learning objectives

• Use positive and constructive humor

• Use humor just to amuse yourself

Strategies for implementing humor

• Humorous material on syllabi

• Humorous warnings on handouts

• Opening jokes

• Skits/Dramatizations

• Ad-lib humor

• Attention getters

• Humorous examples

• Humorous material on exams

• Video clips

• Audio clips

• Use of cartoons

Summary

• Benefits of humor in the classroom• Improve student performance• Group building

• The dangers of humor• Inappropriate humor• Distracting humor

• How to implement humor in the classroom• Create a safe humorous atmosphere• Find humor that suits you and your classroom

Implementing these strategies may improve the classroom experience but. . . .

Do not expect Miracles