1. Humor in the philosophy classroom:When is it pedagogically useful and when is it destructive? 2010 AAPT Workshop-Conference Coastal Carolina University July 31, 2010 Dennis Earl (dearl@coastal.edu) Nils Rauhut (nrauhut@coastal.edu)

2. Our plan here Presentation (15-20 min.) • Why are we interested in humor and teaching? • The use of humor in Plato (Rauhut) • Review of empirical studies of the use of humor in the classroom (Earl) Group work (30-35 min.) • What types or examples of humor have “worked” for you in philosophy classes? Why was that? • What hasn’t? Why was that? Debriefing/conclusions (5-10 min.) • What maxims can we take away from this, if any?

3. The function of humor in Plato In Plato there seems to be a strong connection between philosophy and humor • Helping the interlocutor: the example of Hippias Major: “Beauty is a beautiful girl” Socrates response: “That’s a brilliant answer!” • Showing multiple levels of complexity: the example of the Myth of Er in  Republic X • Humanizing Philosophy: The example of Alcibiades in the Symposium.

4. Review of empirical studies of the use of humor in the classroom • What kind of experiments and research are we talking about here? • Is humor connected with student learning? • Possible benefits of using humor • Kinds of humor to consider • Appropriate vs. inappropriate uses of humor

5. Possible benefits of using humor in the classroom1 • reduced anxiety, tension, and stress • reduced boredom • increased comprehension • increased interest • increased motivation • increased/better communication • increased satisfaction with learning • promotion of cognitive activity • better performance on tests/exams 1. Berk 1996; 71, 73; also Garner 2006; Wanzer et al. 2006

6. How can humor undermine student learning? One answer: By being perceived as inappropriate What is perceived as appropriate and what’s not? (Wanzer et al. 2006; categories generated from student responses): Categories of appropriate humor: • humor related to course material • humor unrelated to course material • self-disparaging humor • unintentional humor Categories of inappropriate humor: • disparaging humor: targeting students (as a group or individually) • disparaging humor: targeting others • offensive humor • self-disparaging humor

9. Discussion • What counts as success in using humor in (philosophy) teaching? • What types or examples of humor have been successful for you in philosophy classes? Why was that? • What hasn’t? Why was that? • What maxims about using humor can we take away from all of this?

10. Discussion • What counts as success in using humor in (philosophy) teaching? • What types or examples of humor have been successful for you in philosophy classes? Why was that? • What hasn’t? Why was that? • What maxims about using humor can we take away from all of this?

11. Two principles for using humor effectively • If a humorous device is likely to improve student learning, consider using it. • If a humorous device is likely to undermine student learning, don’t use it. Question: How does (or might) humor improve student learning?

12. “Debriefing”--What maxims can we take away from all of this? Two suggestions (which are sort of obvious by now) • If a humorous device is likely to improve student learning, consider using it. • If a humorous device is likely to undermine student learning, don’t use it.