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Sex, Religion, Racism, Oh My! Appropriately Watching ‘The Office’ Inappropriate Humor in the Classroom

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Inappropriate topics like sex, race, and religion may create a hostile learning environment in the classroom by reinforcing stereotypes, and deteriorating the student-teacher (S-T) relationship. In this interactive session, participants view a full episode of “The Office”, a sitcom that thrives on exploiting inappropriate humor, and participate in an experiential activity. I demonstrate the quality of the S-T relationship can increase if inappropriate humor is used strategically. In a study I recently conducted, students watched 9 full episodes of “The Office” during the semester. Using Leader-Member Exchange theory, the quality of the S-T relationship significantly increased, contradictory to research.

Author(s):

Terry Nelson    
University of Alaska Anchorage
United States