Integrating the Fruit of Joy in the Classroom

The integration of faith in the classroom extends beyond lesson plans and syllabi. True integration begins not with course materials, but with the posture of your heart. As Christians, we are called to live according to the Fruit of the Spirit outlined in Galatians 5. “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” are all important characteristics for us to demonstrate not only throughout the course of our lives, but also in the courses we teach. While this post is far too short to delve into the richness of all of these fruits, let us examine the role of joy in the classroom. Ultimately, we express joy for theological reasons, but research also shows that this exuberance corresponds to better learning outcomes for students. 

We are wired to respond to joy. While scientific or social markers of emotion and enthusiasm do not fully encompass the richness of true Biblical joy, they are certainly a relevant metric for how one aspect of that joy may be perceived. A 2017 study¹ looked at two competing views of the effects of instructor emotion on students. On the one hand, some postulated that an emotive instructor would increase cognitive load on students, decreasing performance. This is certainly plausible, as humans do have limited cognitive bandwidth, and processing emotions certainly requires some processing space. On the other hand, a positively emoting instructor engenders feelings of joy and happiness in the student, which may supersede the detrimental effect of increased cognitive load. The study showed that even with a computer-generated face, an enthusiastic expression improved scores over a neutral expression. If even a fake face can have an impact, imagine what we can do for our students by bringing our joy to bear in the classroom! 

While this is great in theory, the question remains: how do I show joy in my class this afternoon? A 2014 study²asked students to rank different facets of their instructors’ attitude and enthusiasm on a scale from 1-5. They also tracked student GPA in order to determine both what the students observed and what was helpful for their success. They found a strong correlation between both verbal and nonverbal aspects of enthusiasm and increased student performance, specifically in the context of intrinsic motivation. They found that a good mix of both verbal and non-verbal expressions of passion and mastery were strongly tied to improved performance.

So, in the overflowing joy of your salvation, smile! Tell a few relevant, helpful jokes; speak up and move. Show your students that you are excited about the content and the opportunity to pour into their lives. While individual circumstances differ, and there is no such thing as a universal one-size-fits-all solution, this study shows that students thrive in an environment where passion is visibly and audibly shown in the classroom. That being said, the study also found that excessive or aggressive volume and movement were distracting to students, so wisdom is needed in the extent to which you introduce these behaviors into your classroom.

As Christians, our lives should drip joy wherever we go. In fact, the mere news that Jesus was coming in Luke 2 would “bring great joy to all people.” (And in Luke 1:44, John the Baptist even leaps for joy!) As instructors, we have the unique opportunity to use our passion for our disciplines to inspire our students to learn well and excel in their studies. How wonderful it is that our healthy heart posture is beneficial for our students as well! Think back to your own time in school; was it the drab, monotone professor who motivated you, or was it the enthusiastic, passionate scholar? As humans, we are clearly designed to flourish in a joyful environment, so if we are indeed interested in our students’ flourishing, let us create a joyful environment for them to learn in. Take a moment to reflect on how you can use your God-given gift of joy to intentionally push your students towards Him while also encouraging academic excellence.

1. Tze Wei Liew, Nor Azan Mat Zin, Noraidah Sahari, “Exploring the Affective, Motivational and Cognitive Effects of Pedagogical Agent Enthusiasm in a Multimedia Learning Environment,” Human-Centric Computing and Information Sciences 7, no. 9 (2017), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13673-017-0089-2.
2. Naser Z. Alsharif and Yongyue Qi, “A Three-Year Study of the Impact of Instructor Attitude, Enthusiasm, and Teaching Style on Student Learning in a Medicinal Chemistry Course.” American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 78 no. 7 (2014): 1-13. https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/three-year-study-impact-instructor-attitude/docview/1634222028/se-2