Humor means understanding not only the language and words but their use, meaning, subtle nuances, the underlying culture, implications and unwritten messages. Humor does not often travel well from one culture to another, as each society has a somewhat different concept of what is funny (Dobson, 1987). In Foreign Language Learning (FLL), the…

While interaction inside the classroom--frontstage discourse--has been a subject of study and has been considered the most significant type of discourse that teachers engage in, I propose that interaction outside the classroom--backstage discourse--is equally significant and has not thus far received as much attention as it merits. This paper is…

Article emphasized the need for using humor in the classroom and how it can serve the teacher by helping with his instruction of subjects sometimes difficult to teach. (RK)

Discusses the way in which sexual humor, as an innovative teaching technique, can add a most positive dimension to a course in human sexuality. (Author)

To perceive the incongruous in fiction, children must have internalized the events of the everyday world. Then they can appreciate the kind of joke "frame" (or pattern) that exists in literature. Elements of humor were tested in a study of eight and nine year old children in England and the United States--22 in each country. Selections from eight…

This article explicates the techniques of famous comic playwrights in an attempt to establish prominent parallelisms between the literary and therapeutic use of humor. Using literary devices as a model, the essay elaborates on ways in which the counselor can employ similar strategies with clients. (Author/BW)

When tournament judges view a particular speaking event they are inevitably going to have different perceptions of that event. For example, typical descriptions for after dinner speaking events deal with time limits, originality, wit and creativity, and tasteful humor. Definitions of these terms vary, but efforts have been made to establish some…

A study examined the attention getting value of nonsensical and sexual humor used in liquor advertisements to determine if one was more effective than the other in attracting male magazine readers. Thirty-two Starch-scored liquor ads taken from 1976 and 1977 issues of "Time,""Newsweek," and "Sports Illustrated" were analyzed by three male readers.…

Experience is a necessary component and complement for the intellectual and academic study of drama, and consciousness-expanding alternatives to the classroom are viable alternatives, representing conceptual organizations positive in value. Festivity and celebration can serve a dual prupose: to expand consciousness of the literary period outside…

A humorous account of the effects of recent court decisions regarding student rights. (MLF)

The influence of listening to humor on creativity tests of adolescents is investigated. It was found that those adolescents who listened to the record performed significantly better on a creativity test than control groups. (Author/DEP)

This study examined the role of conceptual tempo in 4th graders' comprehension and appreciation of verbal jokes containing various types of linguistic ambiguity. (JMB)

Suggests that humor rates a place in the curriculum. Presents a bibliography of humorous books, categorized according to age and the developmental stage of humor. (JM)

Provides a light-hearted checklist to be used by assistant principals to evaluate when they have settled into the job. (MD)