Discussions

Your Name and Title:

Seth Leighton

Director

School, Library, or Organization Name:

Envoys Education

Country from Which You Will Present:

United States

Language in Which You Will Present:

English

Target Audience

Primary and secondary school teachers and administrators

Short Session Description (one line):

The need for empathy in the global education curriculum

Full Session Description

There's only one rule that I know of, babies-"God damn it, you've got to be kind.”

~Kurt Vonnegut, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater

Empathy can be defined as the capacity to know emotionally what another is experiencing from within the frame of reference of that other person. Calls for the development of this capacity in students have increased in frequency in recent years. Most importantly, empathy is key to enabling the cross-cultural communications at the core of the global education curriculum.

This seminar demonstrates the need for empathy in our students and in our society. We then explore methods by which empathy can be developed in students, drawing upon educational, psychological, and sociological research studies. We offer a curricular model for the integration of in-class studies, volunteer service, and experiential learning towards building empathy. The seminar will conclude with proposals and a discussion about evaluating the development of empathy.