Based on the instructional humour processing theory, this multilevel study explored the relationship between teacher humour and class-related boredom. Teacher humour is measured from the perspectives of both the students and teachers. A total of 1365 middle school students (53.6% female, M = 13.81, SD = 1.07) and 40 matched teachers (47.5% female,…

Humor can provide a multitude of benefits for language learners, including improvement of classroom atmosphere (Dewaele et al. 2018) and a reduction of anxiety (Tarone 2000). Moreover, the integration of humor into language lessons has been strongly endorsed by both students and instructors (Askildson 2005; Azizinezhad and Hashemi 2011). What is…

The rise of memes has transformed the way people communicate and share information online, presenting a unique opportunity to leverage technology in the service of education. We explore the potential of memes as an educational tool for supporting STEM education and increasing student engagement. We aim to provide a theoretical framework for using…

Memes are a popular form of digitally mediated discourse that allow users to express thoughts and emotions, often leaving identity traces of their creators or sharers. This study uses the classroom activity Story by Memes as both a narrative tool for self-presentation in language teacher education and a method for exploring identity representation…

The word humor can be defined as something which is perceived to be funny, comical, or amusing. However, in the case of humor perception plays a key role. This is mainly because what is regarded as humorous by one person may not be funny to another person. Hence, humor like beauty lies in the eyes (ears) of the beholder. The potential of humor as…

Effective teaching behaviours of instructors significantly facilitate students' learning and development. This study surveyed 3493 college students in advanced mathematics classrooms across three Chinese universities. A multilevel mediation model examined the relevance of instructional clarity and teacher humour to academic engagement. The results…

Because of their mostly upbeat everyday presence in most people's lives globally, Internet memes have gained attention as tools in spreading information and enacting attitudinal change in the face of environmental troubles. The reappropriation of memes for classroom purposes is not straightforward, however. We focus our exploration of Internet…

In this article I examine the perceptions of third grade minoritized emergent bilinguals (Spanish/English) in a US classroom as they articulate how family members serve as a source of jocularity. By taking a sociocultural perspective on humor as a resource, I seek to render visible the relational and linguistic connections between these students…

Research on creative dance education has indicated that students can take risks and improvise when the teacher relinquishes control through an open and explorative approach. I add to the discussion by exploring the unexpected and spontaneous episodes when teaching dance improvisation in settings outside dance education. Based on empirical material…

Previous research on the motivation types located along a self-determination continuum revealed that the autonomy in students' motivation has a positive impact on getting favourable results and underlined the importance of autonomy-supportive environments. Given that teacher behaviour is addressed as one of the forms of autonomy-supportive…

Opportunities for pupils to discuss with their teachers matters affecting their education are considered a positive step towards delivering a rights-based pedagogy. The suitability of this initiative may be questioned if pupils whose voice has been compromised are unwilling or unable to have their say. The substance of pupil-teacher dialogues will…

Social media artifacts, such as memes, offer a rich opportunity to amplify and explore mathematical discourse in a new way that is responsive to this generation of students. This article summarizes a list of activities developed by the Math Meme Team, a group of interdisciplinary educators and researchers that aims to not only analyze and…

Recently there has been an increase in scientists, educators, and activists moving into comedy to tell the climate story. Could using humour as an educational method encourage a greater response to the climate crisis? The present research addresses this question by exploring the impact that an environmental-based comedy show had on various…

The research aimed to determine the opinions of the students and the course teacher with regard to using the comic book prepared in accordance with a context-based scenario as teaching material for the science course. Phenomenology, one of the qualitative research approaches, was used for research purposes. A context-based comic book was used as…

Existing literature on using humor in teaching identifies several social and pedagogical benefits, ranging from making students feel more comfortable and interested in the subject matter to facilitating a critical pedagogy approach. However, there are several risks associated with humor attempts that are detrimental to learning and to student…