Cultivating Empathy In Learning

Empathy: the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

As a father and an educator, an important aspect of learning that is difficult to teach is empathy. I taught middle school for my entire classroom career. Pre-teens and teens are often consumed with themselves and their immediate circle of friends. It's just how they are wired. With my own daughters, the lessons of understanding the challenges and struggles of others, especially those different from them or located halfway around the globe are difficult for them to grasp.

When I talk to teachers about social-emotional development I am consistently told that one of the hardest things for students to see and understand is empathy. With the focus on curriculum and content, little time is left for students to explore the world beyond their desk and understand what is happening around them. Yet showing empathy for others is a skill that will take students far in life.

And perhaps, more importantly, students could hold the solutions to many of these problems if schools and classrooms were places where they could explore and ideate.

Kids not only need to understand the challenges of daily life in their local community and other parts of the world, but they also need the chance to see the world through the eyes of others. Learn their stories, their triumphs, and struggles to better understand how they can help even though they might be a world away. They need to see the impact they can have in the lives of others.

Kids are incredible. Just because they are kids doesn't mean they can't change the world.

Teaching empathy and giving students the opportunity to cultivate empathy doesn't have to be something extra or a way to fill empty time at the end of the school year. There are plenty of ways to weave empathy into the everyday curriculum while showing students the impact they can have on their local and global communities.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals-One of the best ways to have students understand empathy is to know what the major issues facing our globe are. That’s where the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals can help. Made up of 30 pressing issues facing every society and culture, the SDGs are a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all."

The SDGs address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, prosperity, and peace and justice. The Goals interconnect and in order to leave no one behind, it is important that each Goal and target is met by 2030. You can learn more about the SDGs through a free course offered by Participate. Microsoft also has a free course and tons more resources to explore like Skype in the Classroom Events, Virtual Field Trips and more.

WE Schools-I learned about WE Schools during a recent trip to Paris where I saw several teachers who were participating in their classrooms. One project had students in the US learning the Spanish language writing books for emerging readers in South America and 3D print toys to go along with them. WE Schools aims to connect classrooms around the world which "challenges young people to identify the local and global issues that spark their passion and empowers them with the tools to take action."

The WE Schools program provides educators and students with curriculum, educational resources and a full calendar of action campaign ideas. Through WE Schools, students gain an understanding of the root causes of pressing issues like hunger, poverty, and access to education, as they explore how they can make positive impacts. They also plan and carry out at least one local and one global action to improve their communities and the world. Joining is free and they offer a free OneNote notebook that has everything you need to get started.

Empatico-Aimed at our youngest learners, Empatico is a free platform that gives "teachers of students ages 6-11 everything needed to build meaningful connections through video exchanges: a partner classroom, activity plans, and built-in video, messaging, and scheduling tools." Empatico empowers teachers and students to explore the world through experiences that spark curiosity, kindness, and empathy. The activities align with standards and can easily fit into the existing curriculum. Topics include weather, energy use, folktales, and festivals.

Little Free Library-A project I have been a supporter of for a very long time, Little Free Library is a local movement to provide more access to books. The idea is simple. You provide a space for books and make them available to the local community. Typically they are housed in a "book nook" that is built but could just be a space set aside anywhere. Anyone can come and take a book or two and leave a book or a few. Ultimately these become self-sustainable.

My daughters built one for our neighborhood that houses just children's and YA books since our neighborhood is populated with young people. Many schools have built them to encourage literacy and accessibility to books, as well as organizations like Girl Scouts. This could be a great project for kids; not only is it hands-on through the building of the library (put that makerspace to use!) but also helps spread the love of reading.

Language Should Never Be A Barrier

I recently returned from a trip to Paris, France where I attended a gathering with over 250 educators from across the world. In their respective countries, these educators were the best of the best; innovative, creative and focused on creating student-centered learning for everyone.

While I have traveled internationally before (Qatar and the UAE most recently) this was my first trip to France where I would be immersed in the French language. Growing up I took multiple years of Spanish in high school, even continuing that learning into college. However, the most contact I've had with the French language has been through hearing my daughters learn how to count to 10 in pre-school.

The anxiety I felt before my trip is similar to the anxiety that many parents feel when they encounter our schools. According to the United States Census Bureau there are over 350 distinctive languages spoken within US states and territories. In many of the districts I work with they have anywhere from a few to over 100 different languages spoken. This can make the most basics of communications tricky to impossible. Some larger, urban districts have special offices that offer translation services but for the vast majority of schools, districts and faculty, translation and language communication are left to just figuring it out.

While there are a number of apps and services (some inexpensive to very costly) available, they all seem to fall short. Many of the most popular text based translation services rely on wonky machine learning to provide translations and they are far from perfect. Even less of them offer real-time translation services or are only available through apps. And even less of those allow for images to be taken of text to be translated on screen.

Not only does Microsoft Translator do all this, there is so much more it can do, and all for free!

Available as a customizable web-based room, app and built into Windows 10, Microsoft Translator offers the most languages and features in one, free package than any other service out there. I decided to try it out on my trip to Paris to see if it was really as robust as advertised.

I was not disappointed.

I loaded the app on my iPhone and as soon as I landed I felt comfortable with the language. The app has 4 features I found myself using all the time.

• Real-Time Translation-Using the built in mic on my phone I could speak a phrase in English and have it translated to any of a number of different languages, along with the text translation in seconds. This allowed me to get a taxi, buy a metro ticket and order meals with wait staff with ease. The Real-Time Translation can listen for any of 22 languages and translate in to over 60 languages, again as text and audio. 
• Type To Translate-Using the same languages as Real-Time translation you can use your keyboard to type words or phrases and see the translation. This was handy for quick words I wanted to know the meaning of or phrases I needed to remember. 
• Image Translation-By far the most useful feature was the picture translation. Simply point your camera at a piece of text and the app will translate the words it sees to your chosen language. This was great for museums, menus or other signs I encountered. Also, when working with the global educators I could take pictures of projects and lesson plans simply and easily to read. Even after you take the picture and translate the text you can re-translate to another language without having to take a new picture. This was extremely helpful for the projects presented as many of them where not in my native language. 
• Conversations-The app also has the ability to create a private room where you can carry out a real-time conversation with others using both text and audio. Create the room, share the code or scan the QR code and you're talking in no time. When I was talking with some educators from Indonesia, Japan and Brazil we quickly fired up a room and talked for a while in our native languages. This made things much smoother and more comfortable for everyone. And users don't have to be in the same place. The virtual rooms work anywhere there is an Internet connection. 

The app has other features as well like a phrasebook giving you quick access to the most common phrases in multiple languages. Directions, Dinning, Time and Numbers, Health and Emergency are just a few of the categories. Mark your favorites for quick access. Via the web the same virtual conversation room can be used to do real-time text and audio translations for presentations or meetings.

I made sure to ask everyone I used the app with how the translations were. All agreed they were very good. With any machine-learned translation service there were some gaps, more so with text based translations but all said the audio or spoken translations were flawless.

But what about for schools? This could be huge for regular interactions, meetings or conferences. There is no reason why everyone in a school couldn't have the Microsoft Translator app on their mobile device and use it whenever someone comes into the school and doesn't speak English. Creating an inclusive environment is key for parental involvement and engagement. From the day-to-day interactions with the front office to parent meetings to conferences the real-time, non-invasive translations can truly bridge the communications gap. It doesn't have to stop there. Students who are new to a language don't have to feel withdrawn or anxious when in a new environment because they don't speak the language and teachers can make them feel welcome from day one by using the app as well.

Want to learn more? Check out the Microsoft Translator website. Also be sure to visit the Translator for Education page to read some amazing stories about how the app is helping schools and districts reach more parents and students and Free Technology For Teachers blogger Richard Byrne has a great video to help you get started.