The idea of fun in learning can be a hard one to grasp. Do you remember the last time you sat down to learn something new just for the pleasure of it? Though the idea of self-development is exciting, the process can be dull at times and there’s a lot of boring work to do before you can reap the rewards, right?
Not necessarily! 🙂
Winston Churchill said: “Personally I’m always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught”.
Sadly, this is how most people feel about learning and development, but it doesn’t have to be that way! If the learning is fun, it will be much more effective. That’s not just a sneaky suspicion – it’s a scientific fact.
- A study in the journal, College Teaching, found that students could recall a statistics lecture more easily when the lecturer added jokes about relevant topics.
- In her book, Neurologist, Judy Willis showed how fun experiences increase levels of dopamine, endorphins, and oxygen – all elements that promote learning.
- In this study for Utah State University teachers viewed their use of playing, exploring or playfully changing pace as useful and effective aid for mathematics instruction.
Why do we assume that learning only occurs when kids are serious and quiet?
This highlights a fundamental issue in education today and, in fact, has been with us for centuries. The belief remains strong that learning can only take place when kids are quiet and the work laborious, that any activities where engaged kids seem to be enjoying themselves must be superfluous, and that teachers who make learning fun run the risk of being declared unprofessional.
Optimal brain activation occurs when subjects are in positive emotional states or when the material holds personal meaning, connects to their interests, is presented with elements of novelty, or evokes wonder. This is why attentiveness is so closely linked to positive emotional cueing and personal meaning, when there is connection to prior knowledge or positive emotional experience.
So, let’s forget about old paradigms and let us discover and enjoy how fun learning can be! 😉
Sources: Research-Based Strategies to Ignite Student Learning: Insights from a Neurologist and Classroom Teacher – 2006 Judy Willis MD Med, Humor in Pedagogy: How Ha-Ha can Lead to Aha! R. L. Garner Pages 177-180, Journal of Vocational Behavior Volume 98, February 2017, Michael J. Tews (Associate Professor), John W. Michel (Associate Professor), Raymond A. Noe (Professor).
