The Use of Humour in EFL Classes at SMAN 1 Ngawi

This study aims to find the types of humour from the teacher, gain their consideration in using humour, and get the students’ perception towards humour. This study used qualitative design by implementing phenomenology research, observing the class, and interviewing the teacher and students. The findings showed that the teacher uses all four types of appropriate humour in the classroom: related humour, unrelated humour, self-disparaging humour, and unintentional humour. The most used humour was related humour followed by unrelated humour. Meanwhile, self-disparaging and unintentional humour appeared less. In using humour, the teacher considers the balance between humour and productive learning, the relevance of humour with the current topic, age and maturity level, and cultural sensitivity and appropriateness. The students mostly responded positively and felt the benefit of humour in the classroom. However, the students also felt the drawbacks and challenges of humour. The students suggest that the teacher should be mindful of using humour in the classroom to use it purposefully and follow up on social media, read more memes, and current trends to bridge the ‘gap’ between teacher and students.