Humor as an Approach Used by Teacher to Evoke Students’ Motivation in EFL Online Learning

Abstract

Covid-19 pandemic condition demands the learning activities to be conducted online. The current study aims to investigate the types of humor inserted by the teacher in the EFL online teaching-learning activities, and students� responses toward the teacher�s humor. The participants of this descriptive qualitative research are an EFL teacher and 29 students of the 2nd grade at SMA Muhammadiyah Barru. To collect data about the types of humor used by the teacher, the researchers directly observe the online learning activities conducted by the teacher and his students. For gaining the deepest data about students� responses toward the teacher�s humor, the researchers randomly interview 10 from those 29 students. The researchers found that in the online teaching-learning activities, the teacher inserted humorous words that based on the theory were classified into pun fan, joke, innuendo, malapropism, and absurdity. Besides that, the researchers also found new types of humor used by the teacher, which were then named as local humor and plesetan humor. From the interview result, it is found students� responses towards the teacher�s humor indicate that humor maintains students� focus in learning activities, stimulates students to solve problems quickly, and keeps students� self-confidence in online learning.

The Use of Linguistic jokes in EFL Classroom

“…Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) can add linguistic jokes into their courses to motivate students and improve language learning outcomes. The usage of linguistic jokes in the EFL classroom can have a favorable effect on the motivation of language learners to learn in this is in line with the study conducted by the other researcher regarding the use of humor in classroom (Nashruddin & Alam, 2021). Many advantages of employing humor in language learning include providing a relaxed and enjoyable learning environment, increasing attention and engagement, working as a memory device, and boosting language learners' confidence.…”

“…Since it is thought to favor language acquisition and student engagement, the use of humor in the classroom has been a subject of interest in language learning research for many years (Hismanoglu et al, 2018;McGhee, 2019;Nashruddin & Alam, 2021;Neff & Rucynski, 2017;Petraki & Nguyen, 2016). The usage of linguistic jokes in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes has gained popularity in recent years.…”

Influence of Community of Inquiry on Knowledge Building in Online Learning During COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Since it is crucial to grab students' attention during an online class, an interesting induction, an overview of the course outline, and, most importantly, some humorous personality from the lecturer can help accomplish this objective. As found by Nashruddin and Alam (2021) in their study, humorous personalities by lecturers can result in students focusing on learning, stimulating their problem-solving skills, and increasing their self-confidence in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”