More traditional, subject-specific classroom pedagogies can be enhanced using Empathy to Impact to spark a deeper purpose, authentic action, and applied learning grounded in any disciplinary standard. Building from these foundational standards into higher-level learning competencies and deeper thinking not only brings learning to relevant application, but sparks teachers and students towards positive civic engagement and interpersonal relationships. Technology integration, 21st century learning, social justice, media literacy, social-emotional learning, leadership development and teamwork are just a few of the human-centered pedagogies and skills critical to future careers, citizenship, and happiness. Empathy to Impact is intentionally designed to align with these and other pedagogical approaches or methodologies such as workshop models, differentiation, bilingual education, effective formative assessment, student-led reflection, demonstration, and self-assessment.
The criteria in this essential pathway of the self-study help schools and educators to embed a deep sense of “why” and “what now” into curricular learning objectives.
The Empathy to Impact approach to curriculum design involves a process that follows four interdependent stages: Care, Aware, Able, Impact
Care: Students connect to a personal, local, or global issue that they care deeply about. This empathetic connection encourages a depth of connection to the learning goals within a unit and provokes deeper inquiry as they dive into learning experiences and project development.
Aware: Students utilize tools and skills to become more aware of how an issue manifests in an identified community or inside oneself. Some of these skills and tools draw from Cathy Berger Kaye’s work on service learning and use media, interviews, surveys, and observations (MISO) to delve into responsible and thoughtful research. Self-awareness is a crucial part of this stage as students form an appreciation and critical understanding of one’s identity and worldview in determining personal perspectives and biases while developing deeper relationships with diverse people and communities.
Able: Students apply and amplify disciplinary knowledge and skills, as well as complementary skills like global and intercultural competencies, 21st century skills, design thinking, and media literacy to continue building awareness through research while beginning to design appropriate, relevant, personal and community action.
Impact: Students work towards creating a sustainable, positive impact on the self and/or external communities as a culminating experience of the learning journey. In the Impact stage, action can be achieved on many levels: participation, advocacy, event hosting, innovative design, compassionate relationship building, creative expression, teaching, social entrepreneurship, and so on.
