Examines the proliferation of counseling theories, each with a following, that are confusing not only to counselors but to students, clients, and the public. Presents a list of 105 theories and some humorous suggestions for dealing with them. (JAC)

Six brief articles discuss these aspects of language instruction: contrasting the imperative "let" with other imperative forms; distinguishing between perfect and nonperfect tenses in English; the various functions a question can perform; use of humor to illustrate language quirks; learning appropriate uses of count versus noncount nouns; and…

Examines the origin of "Counselnese", the limited professional language spoken by counselors. The 14 words in the language are defined and rules are outlined for improving communication with both counselors and noncounselors as well as those who don't speak acronyms. (Author/JAC)

Role playing differs from the more static teaching technique of simulation in its incorporation of originality and theatricality. From preparation to presentation, it is important to retain the element of play, avoid techniques of or tendencies toward psychodrama, and hold the pedagogical or evaluative purposes in mind. (MSE)

Manipulated speaker sex and "sick" jokes/no-jokes in printed speeches are evaluated by college students. "Sick" jokes generally resulted in negative evaluations of both speech and speaker; "sick" jokes may be enjoyed in certain social situations but should probably be left out of formal speeches. (PD)

Data indicate that speakers with relatively high ethos (college professors) can raise their ratings on wittiness/funniness and sense of humor--without damaging their credibility--by making fun of their professional fields, provided they do not at the same time humorously disparage the values of the audience. (PD)

Humor in the classroom can be effective in maintaining student attention, providing mnemonic examples, and aiding the relationship between teachers and students. (HOD)

A collection of humorous anecdotes, poems, and essays written by M. Dale Baughman, who is retiring as editor of "Contemporary Education," focuses on a variety of topics including: (1) humor and the child; (2) the school's role in community life; (3) school administration; and (4) educational research. Also included is an editorial about…

A classification of students according to their written explanations as to why they enrolled in an English class on writing research reports. (RL)

Satirizes the teaching of basic skills in isolation and the placing of test results above true learning. (RL)

Describes the development of an index to measure elementary school children's comprehension of humor. (FL)

College teachers were evaluated as to appeal, competence, delivery, and teaching effectiveness and their presentations were analyzed to identify features of humor usage. Correlation coefficients were computed between frequency of use of various types of humor and students' evaluations of their professors. Results indicated differences between male…

Described is a "joke center" where elementary school students not only learned about various kinds of humor and practiced language skills but had a terrific week of laughter as they shared favorite jokes and made up new ones. (Author/KC)

Measures of anxiety and achievement were obtained on a sample of undergraduate students. Highly anxious students had lower achievement on humorous tests. Students with low anxiety had higher achievement on humorous tests. Results indicate that humor is not a positive factor in reducing high anxiety associated with academic evaluations. (Author)