ABOUT
Courtesy of schoolcnxt.com
Most people probably have at least one teacher that they remember fondly for the way they liked to crack jokes during class or give their lessons in a humorous way. Class time with them was likely more entertaining and they likely lessened the traditional dread of going to class, But does this style of teaching actually help or hurt the understanding of the content? There is quite a bit of disagreement regarding the value of humor in the classroom. Some suggest that introducing humorous elements is a good way of engaging the students. That presenting the content in a funny way actually improves the retention of it. On the other hand some worry that including humor can become distracting and actually cause a decline in academic performance. Are there times when humor is appropriate and others where it can be detrimental? These types of questions have sparked the interest of teachers and parents to determine what the optimal method of educating the average student is. Over the past 50 years a great deal of studies have been conducted in hopes of better understanding how students respond to humor in the classroom and there has been a wide range of results. Although there is still ambiguity
surrounding this subject there has been significant improvement in understanding the factors which influence it.
To understand the topic it is important to understand the considerations that are pondered during the study of this subject. The type of humor is a major factor when examining the effectiveness of humor. The two main classifications for humor through the lense of education being Integrated or Contiguous, which essentially distinguishes the humor by whether or not it is related to the coursework. The timing of the humor during the lesson plan has also been evaluated in determining relative effectiveness. In addition to this, psychologists have also considered how a student's age and gender relate to how they respond to a humor-filled lesson. It might also be useful to consider the learning style of the student but since the classroom isn’t divided by this distinction it is not generally considered when conducting these studies. Clearly many things would effect the individuals reception to these types of humor but as the aim to benefit the majority, it is simply a matter of attaining a relatively fitting sample.
We will look into some of the results that this research has yielded and how that has shaped the perspectives of the public, and in doing so hopefully contribute to a more interested and informed society with respect to this topic.