Lexington Books Bridging the Humor Barrier: Humor Competency Training in English Language Teaching

The language barrier is a familiar term, but what exactly is the humor barrier? Humor is a universal phenomenon, but the cultural variance in how humor is used can prove to be a major obstacle for English language learners hoping to communicate effectively in cross-cultural contexts. While a growing number of researchers have explored the importance of helping language learners better understand the humor of the target culture, in Bridging the Humor Barrier: Humor Competency Training in English Language Teaching, editors John Rucynski Jr. and Caleb Prichard bring together language teachers and researchers from a range of cultural and teaching contexts to tackle how to actually overcome the humor barrier. This book empirically examines humor competency training and presents related research bearing implications for humor training. Contributors address a wide range of genres of humor, providing fresh insights into helping language learners deepen their understanding and appreciation of the humor of the English-speaking world, including jokes, sarcasm, and satire. This book is an excellent resource for English language teachers looking to help their learners avoid the pitfalls and reap the benefits of humor in the target language. Review In Bridging the Humor Barrier, readers can find a comprehensive introduction into teaching about humor in their classrooms and providing their students the skills they need in order to understand and produce their own humorous conversations. In addition, its articles and plethora of sources used throughout the text serves as a solid jumping point for those who wish to delve into researching further into the topic. It balances this research well with practical guidelines and suggestions, resulting in a well-rounded text that would be a welcome addition in any language educator's collection. This text should be of interest to all language educators, as well as educators at large who wish to incorporate culturally literate, culturally sensitive humor into their teaching practices.--JALT Journal "I found the book to be an original contribution that belongs in the library of all humor scholars interested in the intersection of teaching English in an intercultural setting and humor. It is a very rich collection of articles, with a wide breadth of methodologies and goals, which fills a significant gap in the literature."--Salvatore Attardo, Texas A&M University "As our world is becoming more divided between the conservatives and the progressives, we need a tool to help us all see the common ground. Humor, language play, satire, sarcasm, irony, and parody all require people to see an issue from more than a single perspective. Bridging the Humor Barrior is a perfect tool for allowing advanced English learners around the world not only to develop sophisticated English language skills, but also to better understand cultural and political differences."--Don Nilsen, Arizona State University About the Author John Rucynski Jr. is associate professor in the Center for Liberal Arts and Language Education at Okayama University. Caleb Prichard is associate professor in the Center for Liberal Arts and Language Education at Okayama University.