Student Contributor: C. Rothwell
When used carefully, humor can extinguish negative behaviors and help maintain an enjoyable classroom environment. The teacher must be able to make a joke in the moment that defuses the tension and depersonalizes the situation.
Using humor is a way for the offending student to “save face” while showing that the teacher isn’t threatened by “losing control” or being overwhelmed by correcting off-task behaviors. An important element to keep in mind is that using humor doesn’t mean to be sarcastic. To avoid sarcasm, it is best to make the humor about the teacher or the situation itself, but never directed towards students. If humor is at the expense of the students, it will embarrass and belittle instead of defusing the situation.
This tool is in the corrective phase because it is used to correct student misbehavior. I believe that this tool can also be used in the supportive phase because by defusing the situation with humor, either about the teacher or the situation, the offending student “saves face”. This means that their emotional needs are supported by not humiliating them in front of the whole class. Humor interference is more towards the teacher directed theory of influence because humor is thought of and used by the teacher when a situation arises that would need it. However, we can also say that the offending student has a choice to respond, how to respond, and they would try to alter their behavior. The main thing to remember while using this tool is to never direct humor at a student to belittle or embarrass them. This will worsen the situation, not fix it.
More Information –
Tool Source: Professor Nollmeyer
