ABSTRACT
In Chapter 6 I begin the project of working out the practical implications of the conception of aspiration formulated in Part II. Chapter 6 focuses on the first, and in a sense most important, feature of aspirational psychology: the intimation of value. In order to jumpstart students’ aspirations, the teacher must somehow find a way to forge meaningful contact between students and sources of value embedded in her discipline. For insight into how teachers might do so, I engage with empirical research on the role of “transformative experiences” in science education by Kevin Pugh. Pugh offers invaluable methodological insight for how teachers can demonstrate the vital connection between course ideas and students’ everyday experiences, especially with respect to the way these ideas enrich and expand their experience. While these methods are certainly part of the story, I argue in the chapter that students’ contact with value can be made even more comprehensive if teachers make space for “epiphanies” in the classroom. According to the theory of epiphany, students can experience moments of insight not only into the extrinsic value of course content, but also into the intrinsic value of disciplinary learning. In essence, students can come to recognize disciplines as forms of community life that are intrinsically valuable and that can be an important vehicle for their flourishing. In the final section of the chapter, I point to several ways teachers can create such epiphanies of value in the classroom.
