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August 1999

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On Humor and Being Yourself

Humor should enable you and your students to relax.

Approach humor in a way that is comfortable for you.
Some teachers don't want to be characterized as "that real funny teacher." Humor means many things, and I certainly do not want to give the impression that teachers need to enroll in comedy school to do their job!

Most teachers will readily say they have a sense of humor, and, hopefully, students will be allowed to see that displayed in class. Class may not be a side-splitting laugh a minute --- and probably should not be --- but it can be an enjoyable event for you and your students.

Avoid temptations to clone yourself after someone else's way of being humorous.
We know how perceptive students are when it comes to seeing our real teaching selves. Experiment with different ways of expressing humor.

Explore how other teachers and speakers use humor, and then adapt what you like into your own style. Keep track of times when humor works. When the humor doesn't work, it might help to explain your intent.

Think safety, safety, safety!
Keep reminding yourself how fragile students are. Sometimes it's hard to recognize student vulnerabilities, especially when our own keep us fairly occupied. But students are indeed fragile beings.

A teacher's passing comment, intended as humorous and supportive, might be received in a less positive fashion depending on circumstances. One example: when a student has just learned of a poor test grade in another class. The safest target for humor is usually yourself.

Custom-design humor for each group.
What is funny in one class may be a disaster with another group of students. You may happen to have a group of students who are quite savvy on national politics and another group that is more focused on local activities and entertainment.

Ask students what they find amusing about the material being studied.
Tell them what you find amusing. Students may find it instructive and empowering to devise a "Top Ten" list about the subjects being studied.

Recognize differences.
Culture, age, and gender, along with many other beliefs and preferences, will influence how humor is perceived.

Students carry many identities with them. Some are more readily visible (perhaps age and race), and others may be kept hidden (sexual orientation, values, and associations).

--- Jean Civikly-Powell

References and Resources

Civikly, J. M. (1984). "Classroom humor: Tricky teaching tool." USA Today, August 30, 5-D.

Civikly, J. M. (1986). "Humor and the enjoyment of college teaching." In J. M. Civikly, (Ed.). Communicating in college classrooms. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, no. 26. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 61-70.

Dallinger, J. M. & Prince, N. (1984). "Teasing: Goals and responses." Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Speech Communication Association, Chicago.

Darling, A. L. & Civikly, J. M. (1986/87). "The effect of teacher humor on student perceptions of classroom communicative climate." Journal of Classroom Interaction, 22 (1), 24-30.

Gorham, J. & Christophel, D. M. (1990). "The relationship of teachers' use of humor in the classroom to immediacy and student learning." Communication Education, 39, 46-62.

Korobkin, D. (1988). "Humor in the classroom: Considerations and strategies." College Teaching. 36, 154-158.

Wanzer, M. B. & Frymier, A. B. (1999). "The relationship between student perceptions of instructor humor and students' reports of learning." Communication Education, 48, 48-62.

Ziv, A. (1983). "The influence of humorous atmosphere on divergent thinking." Contemporary Educational Psychology, 8, 68-75.

Additional Resources

You may be interested in knowing there is a virtual humor university that can be located at www.humoru.com.

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