Chapter 1 Laughing and Learning: Not Laughing OR Learning Chapter 2 Humor Builds Culture in Schools and Classrooms Chapter 3 Humor Improves Classroom Instruction Chapter 4 Humor Builds Relationships and Teamwork Chapter 5 Humor Improves Communication Chapter 6 Humor Reduces Tension and Stress Chapter 7 Humor Promotes Creativity and Divergent Thinking Chapter 8 Humor Can Help Adjust Student Behavior Chapter 9 Humor Helps teachers Maintain Interest at Work Chapter 10 Conclusion
Peter M. Jonas is chair of the Doctoral Leadership Studies Department and professor at Cardinal Stritch University, teaching graduate level courses in research, history, and leadership. He has served as a college professor, educational consultant, speaker, and author for more than thirty years, becoming well known for his sense of humor and lectures on humor.
If you want your ideas to 'stick,' if you want to institutionalize
values, beliefs, and outcomes, then Laughing and Learning will
revitalize the way you lead and learn.
*Lance D. Northey Principal Riverview Middle School Founder-D,
principal, Riverview Middle School, and founder,
DifferentiatedLeadership.com*
Peter Jonas, author of Secrets of Connecting Leadership and
Learning with Humor, has done it again with Laughing and Learning.
Using research, theory, and a practical step-by-step guide, he
demonstrates how learning can be maximized with a light heart, good
humor, and carefully selected strategies. While this book is a
scholarly pursuit of learning excellence, it is written with,
wouldn't you know it, humor! His engaging style and creative
examples will have you head-nodding, belly-laughing and most
importantly thinking critically about your application as a school
leader or teacher. In this era of oh-so-serious school reform,
Jonas is shouting, 'Lighten up, people! Learning should be, can be,
and must be fun again!'
*Nancy Blair, professor and coauthor of Mindful Leadership
and Leading with the Brain in Mind*
Laughing and Learning is in touch with how the brain naturally
learns. In referencing relevant research to practical examples of
how humor promotes learning, the author describes educational
practices that support physiological wellness, productive
social-emotional relationships, and the disposition to be creative
and curious.
*Michael Dickmann, coauthor of Mindful Leadership and
Leading with the Brain in Mind*
Jonas (Cardinal Stritch Univ.) investigates the numerous ways humor
can be used to make learning and presentations more exciting. To
craft ideas into a cohesive and practical model Jonas uses existing
empirical research and anecdotal data. Supporting data concerns a
myriad of topics like when and how to use humor, what people think
of those who teach using it, how different genders perceive humor,
and what kind of humor is appropriate for which educational
settings. Jonas offers a number of "action steps," each of which is
then supported by research and followed by practical examples and
suggestions for application. This book is well researched, and
Jonas has scoured numerous studies in order to weave them into an
easy to read "how to" book. He also incorporates some of the latest
research on brain-based learning....Educators at all levels will
leave this work with a better understanding of how using humor has
the potential to change a school's learning and working
environment, as well as the interpersonal relationships therein.
Recommended. General readers, upper-division undergraduate
students, and above.
*CHOICE, September 2010*
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