ERIC Number: EJ1380288
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1350-4622
EISSN: EISSN-1469-5871
Available Date: N/A
When Students Write Comedy Scripts: Humor as an Experiential Learning Method in Environmental Education
Spörk, Angelo; Martinuzzi, André; Findler, Florian; Vogel-Pöschl, Heike
Environmental Education Research, v29 n4 p552-568 2023
Humor has received increasing attention in environmental educational research in recent years as it can have a variety of positive effects on learning atmosphere, outcomes, and student-educator relationships. In most cases, humor is used by educators while students act as consumers. However, this does not exploit the full potential of humor for environmental education. This article shows how humor can be applied as a distinct learning method and what outcomes and effects can be achieved. Our method draws on approaches from comedy-writing schools, thus bridging this community of practice to environmental education. It provides students with an understanding of the basics of humor, empowers them with practices to develop their own humorous texts, and guides them towards high-quality comedy scripts. We implemented several master courses at the Vienna University of Economics and Business based on this method. In 2021, we assessed the effects on students' sustainability knowingness, attitudes, and behavior and analyzed qualitative outcomes. It was revealed that humor can play a pivotal role in environmental education as it fosters critical thinking and creativity, helps students cope with emotionally difficult topics, and supports them in becoming agents of change.
Descriptors: Humor, Comedy, Scripts, Environmental Education, Sustainable Development, Teaching Methods, Writing (Composition), Graduate Students, Masters Programs, Knowledge Level, Student Attitudes, Student Behavior, Foreign Countries, Business Administration Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Austria (Vienna)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A