Tuesday
Sep102002
243 - Don't Forget Humor in Learning!
September 10, 2002
#243 - - - Sept 11, 2002 - - - 44,094 Readers
*** Elliott Masie's TechLearn TRENDS ***
Training, e-Learning and Collaboration Updates
Published by The MASIE Center www.masie.com
Host of: TechLearn 2002 - Oct 27-30 - Orlando, FL
Don't Forget Humor in Learning!
A TechLearn Essay
By Elliott Masie
Every great classroom based class that I have attended has contained humor
and laughter. I remember taking a class on Structured Programming, one of
the least funny topics that I have ever encountered as a learner, yet the
laughter was intense in that class:
- The instructor told us some great war stories about failed projects
that made us laugh (and sometimes want to cry).
- When one of us made a mistake, humor helped us get through the confusion
and difficult content.
- During the breaks, laughter filled the hallways, as an indicator of both
our stress release and also of the fellowship that had been created in the
classroom.
- There was great teaching and awesome learning happening, on a tough
topic, and our humanity created the laughter.
When I think about the instructional design for the class, I bet there was
little mention of laughter in the designer's teacher notes. Yet, the
teacher "ALLOWED" learning and it made all the difference in the world.
The trick in the classroom is to make sure that you don't SHUT OFF humor
as a tool.
My colleague and friend, Joel Goodman, who directs The Humor Project,
states that the word HAHA has the latin root of AHA. In other words, when
things are true and we find common truths, we often laugh. A great
speaker doesn't have to tell funny stories, they just have to connect with
common truths that will bring out our humor response. Joel would also
tell you about the wonderful physical effects of humor, including deeper
breathing and stress reduction. So, the targeted use of humor in the
culture of a classroom can be deeply effective.
It can even work at large conferences. At TechLearn, I use humor in the
same vein. We tackle tough issues, wrap our arms around a crazy and
changing field and the halls of the hotel in Orlando are filled with
laughter. In fact, we even program humor into our schedule, from Dave
Barry to the jugglers Raspyni, to leverage humor as a tool for learning
and building community.
Yet, on-line, we often forget to the importance role of humor. I have
been on a few of the driest ever virtual classroom sessions and I have
slugged my way through on-line modules that are totally devoid of smiles,
no less laughter.
One of our challenges is how to keep our e-Learning human and natural and
not blocking the funny aspects of life. This is new stuff. We don't
have a lot of experience about how to make that happen in our world...
Here are a few ways to make sure that you are snuffing out the humor in
your e-Learning offerings:
- Maintain your humanity. Since the learner can't see you, it is even
more important that they feel your acceptance and that you not shut down
humor as it emerges. Being off task for a few minutes will not kill the
content or the process.
- Laugh at yourself as the e-Trainer. People don't want to learn from
experts. They want to learn from real people who have great expertise.
Laugh at yourself along the way.
- Sometimes e-Learning technology does not work the way we planned. Have
a plan B, but also allow yourself to see the humor in the process. I have
a picture that I often post when a video conference goes down that has me
holding an Einstein stuffed animal. It breaks the tension of the moment.
- Storytelling that is authentic will add natural humor the learning
process. Don't overly script your content captures. I would rather do an
interview of some experts, where I can bring the humor to the surface in a
story, rather than rely on a script to recapture the funny bits.
We need to add to this list. So, I would like to reach out to our
TechLearn TRENDS readers and ask for a few suggestions about how you are
(or would like to) use humor in the on-line and e-Learning offerings.
Send them to emasie@masie.com and I will post them for the use of our
Readers.
Upcoming MASIE Center Events:
- TechLearn 2002 - October 27-30 - Orlando, Florida www.techlearn.com
- Skills for e-Trainers - September 25 - 27 - Saratoga Springs, NY
www.masie.com
*** Elliott Masie's TechLearn TRENDS ***
Training, e-Learning and Collaboration Updates
Published by The MASIE Center www.masie.com
Host of: TechLearn 2002 - Oct 27-30 - Orlando, FL
Don't Forget Humor in Learning!
A TechLearn Essay
By Elliott Masie
Every great classroom based class that I have attended has contained humor
and laughter. I remember taking a class on Structured Programming, one of
the least funny topics that I have ever encountered as a learner, yet the
laughter was intense in that class:
- The instructor told us some great war stories about failed projects
that made us laugh (and sometimes want to cry).
- When one of us made a mistake, humor helped us get through the confusion
and difficult content.
- During the breaks, laughter filled the hallways, as an indicator of both
our stress release and also of the fellowship that had been created in the
classroom.
- There was great teaching and awesome learning happening, on a tough
topic, and our humanity created the laughter.
When I think about the instructional design for the class, I bet there was
little mention of laughter in the designer's teacher notes. Yet, the
teacher "ALLOWED" learning and it made all the difference in the world.
The trick in the classroom is to make sure that you don't SHUT OFF humor
as a tool.
My colleague and friend, Joel Goodman, who directs The Humor Project,
states that the word HAHA has the latin root of AHA. In other words, when
things are true and we find common truths, we often laugh. A great
speaker doesn't have to tell funny stories, they just have to connect with
common truths that will bring out our humor response. Joel would also
tell you about the wonderful physical effects of humor, including deeper
breathing and stress reduction. So, the targeted use of humor in the
culture of a classroom can be deeply effective.
It can even work at large conferences. At TechLearn, I use humor in the
same vein. We tackle tough issues, wrap our arms around a crazy and
changing field and the halls of the hotel in Orlando are filled with
laughter. In fact, we even program humor into our schedule, from Dave
Barry to the jugglers Raspyni, to leverage humor as a tool for learning
and building community.
Yet, on-line, we often forget to the importance role of humor. I have
been on a few of the driest ever virtual classroom sessions and I have
slugged my way through on-line modules that are totally devoid of smiles,
no less laughter.
One of our challenges is how to keep our e-Learning human and natural and
not blocking the funny aspects of life. This is new stuff. We don't
have a lot of experience about how to make that happen in our world...
Here are a few ways to make sure that you are snuffing out the humor in
your e-Learning offerings:
- Maintain your humanity. Since the learner can't see you, it is even
more important that they feel your acceptance and that you not shut down
humor as it emerges. Being off task for a few minutes will not kill the
content or the process.
- Laugh at yourself as the e-Trainer. People don't want to learn from
experts. They want to learn from real people who have great expertise.
Laugh at yourself along the way.
- Sometimes e-Learning technology does not work the way we planned. Have
a plan B, but also allow yourself to see the humor in the process. I have
a picture that I often post when a video conference goes down that has me
holding an Einstein stuffed animal. It breaks the tension of the moment.
- Storytelling that is authentic will add natural humor the learning
process. Don't overly script your content captures. I would rather do an
interview of some experts, where I can bring the humor to the surface in a
story, rather than rely on a script to recapture the funny bits.
We need to add to this list. So, I would like to reach out to our
TechLearn TRENDS readers and ask for a few suggestions about how you are
(or would like to) use humor in the on-line and e-Learning offerings.
Send them to emasie@masie.com and I will post them for the use of our
Readers.
Upcoming MASIE Center Events:
- TechLearn 2002 - October 27-30 - Orlando, Florida www.techlearn.com
- Skills for e-Trainers - September 25 - 27 - Saratoga Springs, NY
www.masie.com
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