Cosmology, Anomaly, and Paradigm Shift in the Classroom
Anthropology of Consciousness March 1, 1996 DOI: 10.1525/ac.1996.7.1.28 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that undergraduate courses should introduce students to consciousness studies gradually and with care, that human-subjects protections extend to classroom students, and that the most interesting study of consciousness may occur through the teaching process itself. |
Abstract
Most students step into our classrooms completely innocent of the notion of consciousness, consciousness studies, or the possibility of altering states of consciousness. Our task is to build our courses to meet these students needs at the undergraduate level, and to bring them slowly—and with care—into the realm of consciousness studies. Protection of human subjects surely extends to our students in the classroom and not just to natives of some distant or proverbial "bush.” There are, however, innumerable ways of doing just this—consciousness studies with attention to the wide range of student experience—in any of our courses and at any level of instruction, and with awareness that perhaps the most interesting study of consciousness takes place through the alchemy of teaching—right there in the midst of our own classroom.