Empathy

Over a third of children in the UK have witnessed hate speech online. How can we create a more tolerant world with more open-minded and accepting learning?

I've found open-conversations are great at getting to the root of our biases and stereotypes. I keep, in my back-pocket, questions like: "I wonder how that character could have solved that differently?" and, through passionate curiosity, "I wonder why that makes you feel that way?"

Books are brilliant for this too. They shine a light on whole worlds of differences and allow the reader to see through the eyes of other people.

Some of my learners have really connected with Malorie Blackman's 'Pig Heart Boy' - a still timely book about a boy who is offered a ground-breaking heart transplant with a pig's heart. It sensitively deals with important ideas of death, discrimination and animal rights. In fact, a BBC adaptation, broadcast when I was a child, made a big impression on me too.

"Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery." JK Rowling.

How would you like to see more empathy in learning?