Make wonder a part of the curriculum
Make wonder a part of the curriculum
Aruna Sankaranarayanan
In The Demon-haunted World, famed astronomer Carl Sagan observes that kindergartners and first-graders are eager and enthused about learning. “Provocative and insightful questions bubble out of them,” he notes. But much to his dismay, 12th graders don’t display the same curiosity or zest for learning. “They’ve lost much of the wonder,” he laments. Though children are born with a proclivity to wonder, why does it diminish for many children after years of formal schooling? How can educators harness the science of awe to help children sustain and nourish this inherent capacity?
What is awe and where to find it
Psychologist Dacher Keltner exhorts us to inject awe into our lives and into those of our children. He likens awe or wonder to a “mental state of openness, questioning, curiosity.” In his book, Awe, Keltner defines awe as “The feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your current understanding of the world.” Through his painstaking research, he has unpacked the mysteries behind this powerful emotion and distilled a science of “everyday wonder.”
Vastness may be exemplified physically, temporally, or semantically. A panoramic view from a mountain top, the fossil of a dinosaur, and the inherent complexity of cellular life evoke a sense of vastness in different ways. Keltner has identified eight domains in which awe may manifest. These are nature, collective movement or effervescence, music, art and visual design, mystical experiences, encounters with life and death, human virtue, and epiphanies. So, awe may be experienced in diverse contexts and ways. Be it a spectacular sunset, a mesmerizing dance ballet, a bone-tingling symphony, a sublime painting, the gurgle of a baby, or the kindness of a stranger.
In her book, The Awakened Brain, psychologist, Lisa Miller, argues that every person is endowed with an awakened brain or “a natural capacity to perceive a greater reality.” Whether we identify as religious or not, we all have the “neural circuitry” to experience spirituality, and a “feeling of awe” is one manifestation.
Impact and benefits of awe
When we experience awe, our default self or the ego diminishes and we are more open to noticing and appreciating connections, thereby making us more cooperative and creative. Additionally, awe enhances our happiness and health, and provides a “pathway to healing” when we are struck by tragedy or trauma, making us more resilient.
Keltner describes another study in which some backpackers were asked to perform the Remote Associates Test before hiking up a trail, whereas others were given the test after being on the trail for four days. The latter group performed 50% better on the test that tapped different “kinds of reasoning.” An example of an item on this test involves finding a word that relates to three given words (e.g., ‘age’, ‘mile’ and ‘sand’ are connected by the word ‘stone’).
When people experience awe, they tend to feel a dissolution of the individual ego while merging with “something much larger.” The default self, that typically operates in our daily activities, assumes that each person is “distinct from others,” likes to be in charge or control of our lives, and is achievement-oriented. When the default self “reigns too strongly” or when we are too preoccupied with our own lives, we may fall prey to self-doubt, anxiety and rumination. In fact, Miller finds that the brains of people who practice spirituality are “thicker and stronger in exactly the same regions that weaken and wither in depressed brains.”
In one study, Keltner and his colleagues asked participants to draw themselves on graph paper. In the control condition, the participants were in Fisherman’s Wharf, a fun place in San Francisco. For the experimental or awe condition, participants had just gazed at the “expansive view of Yosemite Valley.” Participants in the awe condition drew themselves much smaller compared to those in the control condition, leading Keltner to conclude that awe results in a “small self.”
In another study, participants were exposed to an awe-inducing stimulus, which was the skeleton of a T. rex. In the control condition, participants simply looked down a hallway. Subsequently, all participants were asked to complete a set of 20 sentences that began with “I AM ______.” While people in the control group expressed individual identities and traits, those in the awe group provided answers that reflected collective identities such as being human, a living being, or belonging to a particular group. Other studies have found that awe also promotes more altruistic behaviour in people.
Keltner also cites a study conducted in Japan where participants were shown awe-inducing videos while their brains were being scanned. The experience of awe led to diminished activation of the default mode network (DMN), a region of the brain associated with “self-criticism, anxiety and even depression.” Interestingly, awe experiences provide an ironic perspective to life. On the one hand, Keltner avers that awe experiences “can make us feel that our life’s work” is not as significant as our default selves typically believe. On the other hand, awe experiences also imbue us with “purpose and possibility.”
What teachers can do
“Childhoods rich with awe are good for the child,” argues Kelter. In one study, five-year-olds who watched a nature video interacted more imaginatively with a new toy compared to children in the control group. Keltner also finds that when children experience awe on a regular basis, it arouses “their curiosity in school” and may even result in “better academic performance,” especially for children from underprivileged backgrounds.
So, what can teachers do to inject more awe into children’s lives? Contrary to what people think, the experience of awe does not require travel to exotic locales or the purchase of expensive concert tickets. Awe can be felt in quotidian activities, once we start seeking it. Keltner recommends awakening children’s senses by helping them to slow down and to look, to listen, and to feel the world around them with intention but without necessarily labelling, classifying, or judging, which fall under the purview of the “default self.”
Taking children on nature walks is one way to help them discover wonders in the wild. Help them cultivate an appreciation of vastness by examining the complexities hidden within the whorls of a flower. Emphasize the interrelatedness of things as the Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, has famously remarked that “there is a cloud floating” in every “sheet of paper.”
Even something as mundane as playing in a school band where all the performers are in sync can be awe-inspiring. Ensure that activities like art, dance, and theatre are integral to the curriculum. Expose children to a gamut of art and sport forms as different children are likely to find awe in different experiences. When you plan excursions for students, introduce them to artefacts, monuments, or natural forms that may elicit awe.
Schedule a time when the class shares their awe experiences with each other. You may even coax them to journal about their awe adventures. By infusing their lives with more awe, you may help children retain their sense of wonder.
References
- Keltner, D. (2023). Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder & How It can Transform Your Life. New York: Penguin Press.
- Miller, L. (2021) The Awakened Brain: The Psychology of Spirituality. Dublin: Penguin Books.
- Hanh, T.N. https://www.awakin.org/v2/read/view.php?tid=222 Accessed on 4 Jan 2024.
- Sagan, C. (1995) The Demon-haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. New York: Random House.
The writer is the author of Zero Limits: Things Every 20-Something Should Know. She blogs at https://arunasankaranarayanan.com.
