Building Empathy in Your Classroom

What:

Building empathy in your classroom is crucial. “Empathy is a key part of being a responsible and helpful community member at school and elsewhere. For example, young people who show empathy are less likely to bully” (source). It does not take a lot of effort to build empathy but it does take attention and commitment to consistency (source). The following five suggestions can help build empathy in your classroom and have been culminated from various sources.

Model Empathy:

“When frustrated with students, pause and take a deep breath and try to see the situation from their perspective before responding.
When a student is upset, reflect back his feelings or the rationale for his behavior before redirecting the behavior.
Be aware of students’ non-verbal cues and follow up on them. For example, if a student is slumping in her chair and appearing withdrawn or angry, say something like “I noticed that you are quieter than usual today. Is something bothering you?” rather than immediately reprimanding her.
Ask for students’ input when appropriate and feasible (for example, when establishing classroom rules or generating ideas for group projects) – and really listen. Find opportunities to incorporate their feedback and respond to their needs” (source).

Set Clear Expectations:

“Be clear that you expect students to care about one another and the entire school community. Don’t just put it in the mission statement or on a poster – talk about it, model it, praise it, and hold students to it.
Do an exercise with students to help them reflect on who is inside and outside their circle. Discuss why and how they can expand the circle of who they care about.
Establish specific guidelines for unacceptable language and behaviors. Ban slurs or hurtful language like “that’s retarded” or “he’s so gay,” even when said ironically or in jest — and step in if you hear them. Encourage students to think about why these words can be hurtful.
Enlist students in establishing rules and holding each other accountable.
Use restorative justice practices and peer mediation when conflicts arise” (source).

Lean Into Discomfort:

Conversations about our own role in history or currently in society can be difficult. “Encourage students to embrace difficult and courageous conversations to build understanding and empathy” (source).

Design a Curriculum that Promotes Active Listening:

Creating projects that allow students to practice listening actively to others and their perspectives. For example, you can utilize skills in projects that partner students together in an effort to promote the skills of active listening by “following specific prompts such as eye contact when your partner is speaking, not interrupting and making insightful comments that acknowledge a student has been applying his or her whole self to what the partner is saying” (source).

Create Global Literate Students:

Create a classroom environment that regularly looks at other cultures in order to broaden their own perspectives. Listening to someone else’s story is a powerful way to increase empathy in your classroom. You can read books by international authors, create video chat connections with students in other countries, and you can volunteer locally (source).

Next Steps

Interested in learning more? Check out the websites below for great information.

References:

All sourced information is hyperlinked as applicable above.

TLDR (too long didn’t read):

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