Day 2 from Wandering Through Nothingness
Mary Gordon, a leading researcher in the field and Founder of Roots of Empathy emphatically believes that we cannot teach empathy, but must provide the opportunity for it to be experienced.
So here’s my request to you. What are the necessary conditions for empathy to thrive?
In the following essay, US Ashoka Fellow David Castro explores the causes and consequences our “empathy deficit” and emphasizes the need for adults–not just young people–to be students of empathy.
A charitable organization, our mission is to build caring, peaceful, and civil societies through the development of empathy in children and adults. Our vision is to change the world – child by child
I have been teaching empathy to middle school students over the past year. We have used a some of amazing websites, simulations, and games that make information and data come to life. We have used digital storytelling as well as many other tools and projects for students to communicate understanding and empathy. We have applied empathy to almost every area of the curriculum. We have changed how we discuss cyber-bullying and bullying in general based on empathy. One student said, “If you feel empathy for someone, it is almost impossible to bully them.”
This conversation will explore the discussion educators are having all across the country about empathy and the tools, sites and teaching practices that encourage empathy.
Teaching Empathy to the ‘Me’ Generation
A Midwestern university experiments in teaching empathy not merely through classroom curriculum, but by having students live the lives of the working poor.
The Empathy Experiment included weekly group discussions, progressively challenging experiences called “miles,” and activities coordinated with community partners. The general focus was on the plight of the working poor.