The asynchronous course will introduce empathy and explore mindfulness and meditation as tools to develop empathy. Learners will explore the relevance and importance of empathy for educators, practice perspective-taking, identify one’s positionality, explore barriers and obstacles to empathy and perspective-taking, and be introduced to mindfulness and meditation as a tool to foster and develop empathy. Over six weeks, learners will develop a personal mindfulness practice, read and reflect on empathy and perspective-taking with a community of learners, and make connections between empathy and working in education through discussion boards and written reflections.
Course Texts:
Radical Compassion by Tara Brach
Real Happiness at Work: Meditations for Accomplishment, Achievement, and Peace by Sharon Salzberg
Learning Objectives
By the conclusion of the course, students will be able to:
- define empathy and mindfulness;
- understand the relationship between empathy and mindfulness;
- identify barriers and obstacles to empathy and perspective-taking;
- practice perspective-taking;
- develop mindfulness strategies to overcome barriers to empathy; and,
- develop or foster a meditation and mindfulness practice.
Topical Outline:
The course will be delivered asynchronously via LearnDash (online).
Organized by learning objectives, the course will cover the following topics:
Week 1: Defining empathy and mindfulness (3 hours)
Week 2: Understanding the relationship between mindfulness and empathy (5 hours)
Week 3: Identifying barriers and obstacles to empathy and perspective-taking and their impact(s) on education practitioners (5 hours)
Week 4: Developing strategies to overcome barriers to empathy by practicing perspective-taking (5 hours)
Week 5: Developing a regular mindfulness practice (5 hours)
Week 6: Final reflection (3 hours)
Course Requirements:
- Weekly Discussion Board Posts & Peer Responses (6)
- Weekly Meditation Reflections (Written or Recorded) (6)
Participation in the Fall 2023 Cohort is completely free. We ask that you reserve 4-5 hours weekly for coursework and provide feedback on your experience via weekly surveys.
Course launch: September 25, 2023
To sign up, complete the following form:
The Empathy Classroom 