EFFECTS OF THE POWER OF HUMOUR IN TRANSFORMING STUDENTS' ATTITUDE AT THE JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN LAGOS STATE

Abstract

Humour is a powerful instructional tool that can foster
a positive learning environment, enhance student
engagement, and reduce classroom anxiety. Although,
humour has been explored in various educational
contexts, very few studies have examined its effect on
students' attitudes towards Social Studies at the junior
secondary school level. Hence, this study aims to fill
that gap by investigating how the use of humour as a
teaching method influences students' attitudes towards
Social Studies.A quasi-experimental research design
was adopted, involving 183 junior secondary school
students studying Social Studies. The experimental
group was taught using a humour-based instructional
method, while the control group received instruction
through the conventional lecture method. Data were
collected using the Attitudinal Scale Questionnaire for
Social Studies Students (ASQSSS), which was validated
by experts in educational research and Social Studies
teaching. The instrument yielded a reliability
coefficient of 0.75.Data were analysed using mean,
standard deviation, and ANCOVA. The results revealed
a significant difference in the attitudes of students taught using the humour method compared to those
taught with the lecture method, in favour of the
humour group [F(1, 284) = 43.5; p < 0.05]. However,
there was no significant difference in the attitudes of
male and female students within the humour group
[F(1, 281) = 0.84; p > 0.05].The study concludes that
humour can be effectively employed to enhance
students' attitudes towards Social Studies.