Empathy is an ability to put yourself in the shoes of others to understand their motives and feelings behind how they act. Building empathy is important in the classroom because it then helps transform students into empathetic individuals with the ability to take up leadership positions in society. It also has a positive impact on their future careers. A study conducted by the Center for Creative Leadership found that empathy is positively related to job performance. Since classrooms are essential in shaping personalities, here is why building empathy in the classroom is important:

To Learn Tolerance And Active Listening

Building empathy in the classroom can help students learn tolerance and active listening. To be able to understand others, you must hear what they are saying without letting your own biases cloud your judgement. To be tolerant, it is crucial that you recognize and accept differences and listen to your peers.

Opportunity to Practice Empathy

Empathy can be learned through practice. It helps to create situations where you have the opportunity to practice empathy by thinking about someone else’s perspective. Practicing empathy in the classroom can help students reject stereotypes and create a positive classroom culture. Classrooms can serve as an experiment to practice empathy and the lessons learned can be carried forward into the real world.

Develop Social Awareness

It helps develop social awareness in students as they learn more about issues affecting their peers and community. This helps strengthen community bonds and makes students more proactive members of society. They can then contribute to solving problems in society.

Introducing empathy in the classroom can be a valuable exercise in making students well-functioning and concerned members of society. These values can then be passed onto future generations for a more cohesive society.