What we can learn from

students.
The role of empathy in
language teaching
Csilla Jray-Benn
IATEFL Hungary Conference 2015
Budapest

Content
1. Questions: personalising the
content and motivating the
student
2. What is empathy and why
should we be concerned about
it?
3. How can we build on it and
build it?
4. Why is it important in the 21st
Century language classroom?

http://mrg.bz/vFGyyT

https://www.flickr.com collection of Australian

Maritime Museum
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The big question n1:

Personalising
Lesson content,
method & follow-up
PLANS

Students needs
interests & goals
REALITY

Questionnaires?
Needs analysis?
Syllabus?
Lesson plans?
free zone
dark matter of teaching

Adrian Underhill

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The big question n2:

Motivation
1. Set a personal example.
2. Create a pleasant, relaxed atmosphere in the
classroom.
3. Present the tasks properly.
4. Develop a good relationship with the learners.
5. Increase the learners linguistic self-confidence.
Csizr & Drnyei 1998
Csilla Jaray-Benn

Motivating Vision

Drnyei & Kubanyiova 2014

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Students needs
interests & goals
REALITY

Lesson content,
method & follow-up
PLANS

MOTIVATION

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Collaborative Creative
Approach

Empathy

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Traditional Cycle
Teacher

World

Student

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathic Cycle
Teacher

World

Student

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Collaborative Creative
Approach
Learn from
your students

Help students
learn from
the world

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathy History
Greek empathicus: understanding others by entering their world.
1903: Theodor Lipps einfhlung (feeling into)
primary basis for recognising each other as minded creatures;
inner imitation as basis of all mental activities.
1909: Edward Titchener empathy
1980s: Alvin Goldman simulation theory & mirror neutrons using oneself as a model for other persons mental life.
(http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/empathy/)
1983: Howard Gardner multiple intelligences (Frames of Mind)
1995: Daniel Goleman emotional intelligence (Emotional
Intelligence)
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Empathy &
Emotional Intelligence
1. Self-awareness: knowing your emotions
2. Self-regulation: managing your emotions
3. Motivation: motivating yourself
4. Empathy (social awareness): recognising &
understanding other peoples emotions
5. Social Skills: managing relationships

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathy is

The process of reaching beyond the self to

understand what another person is feeling.

Brown 2000

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Empathy is
The capacity to imagine oneself in the other
persons situation, and to experience, to some
degree, the emotions that the other is
experiencing.
Nickerson, Butler & Carlin 2009

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathy is
the art of stepping imaginatively
into the shoes of another person,
understanding their feelings and perspectives,
and using that understanding to guide your
actions.
Baron-Cohen 2011

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Empathy is
motivating through vision
Empathy is the art of stepping imaginatively
into the shoes of another person,
understanding their feelings and perspectives,
and using that understanding to guide your actions
Baron-Cohen 2011

motivating () is to help students to see themselves as

potentially competent L2 users, to become excited about
the value of knowing a foreign language in their own lives
and, subsequently, to take action.
Drnyei & Kubanyiova 2014
Csilla Jaray-Benn

Types of Empathy
as defined by Daniel Goleman

I understand
how you think
about things.

1. Cognitive empathy

Skills:
Communication
Feedback
Leadership

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Types of Empathy
as defined by Daniel Goleman

I feel with you.

2. Emotional empathy

Skills:
Sense of harmony
Teamwork
Collaboration

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Types of Empathy
as defined by Daniel Goleman

When I see you are in

trouble, I spontaneously
want to help you out.

3. Empathic concern
Skills:
Outstanding leaders
Take time to give feedback
Help people to develop through their strengths
Help people to get better
Csilla Jaray-Benn

The Empathic Teacher

I understand
how you think
about things.

1. Cognitive empathy
I feel with you.

2. Emotional empathy
When I see you are in
trouble, I spontaneously
want to help you out.

3. Empathic concern
Csilla Jaray-Benn

What did you learn from

your students?

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Learning from Students

Spirulina farm

Tools and
know-how

Content
Oya Karabetca @eltpics

Feelings
Skills
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From Drawing
Skills to

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 Presentation
Skills

Graphics by Baptiste Vernier

Photo by Marie Duthu
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Learning about Students

seeing in the minds eye (Hamlet)
Vision narratives: Me in 10 years
Guided imagery
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Series of scripted questions

Students write their answers
Record their voice
Edit a magazine
Share and compare
Drnyei, Z & Hadfield, J. 2013

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Learning with Students

Collaborative content curation
Collaborative vocabulary sets

Pearltrees

Quizlet
www.teachertrainingvideos.com

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The Empathic Teacher

I understand
how you think
about things.

I feel with you.

When I see you are in

trouble, I spontaneously
want to help you out.

1. Cognitive empathy

2. Emotional empathy

3. Empathic concern

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathic
Skills Development
I understand
how you think
about things.

I feel with you.

When I see you are in

trouble, I spontaneously
want to help you out.

Communication
Feedback
Leadership
Sense of harmony
Teamwork
Collaboration
Outstanding leaders
Take time to give feedback
Help people develop through
their strengths
Help people get better
Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathy &
Language Learning
Language is one of the primary means of empathising"
Communication requires a sophisticated degree of
empathy. In order to communicate effectively, a
learner needs to be able to understand the other
persons affective and cognitive states
Brown 2000

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Empathy &
Language Skills
Seeing through the other persons eyes.
Listening skills
Reading skills
Communication skills
Giving and receiving feedback
Intercultural skills
Global Issues awareness

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Empathy &
Business Skills
Seeing through the other persons eyes.
Presentation skills
Meeting skills
Negotiating skills
Email communication
Conference calls
Intercultural skills
Management skills

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Deepen Empathy &

Improve Language Skills
Listen and tell the story from his perspective
Read a story and retell it from the heros
perspective
Role-play activities
Vision building activities
Give feedback to yourself
Be someone with a different nationality
Be the Untouchable.
Seeing through the other persons eyes.
Csilla Jaray-Benn

I would like to be like him

http://film-english.com
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Stories We Become

http://empathylibrary.com

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Through the
other persons eyes

You

We
Csilla Jaray-Benn

Through the
other persons eyes

We
I
You

Csilla Jaray-Benn

I You We
Activities with a Twist
Introduce yourself

Introduce your partner

Correcting exercises

Pair work activity

Do you know how
to?
Did you get this right?
What was your answer
to this question?

Presenting a shared view

We think
We suggest
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Empathy-Friendly
Space

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Why?
Empathy is the psychological means by
which we become part of other peoples
lives and share meaningful experiences.

Empathy becomes the thread that weaves an

increasingly differentiated and individualised society
into an integrated social tapestry, allowing the social
organism to function as a whole.
Rifkin 2009

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The empathic century: 21st

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Preparing for
an empathic society

Teacher

World

Student

Csilla Jaray-Benn

Csilla Jray-Benn
Business English Services, Grenoble
IUT1, Universit Joseph Fourier
csilla.benn@bes-grenoble.com
@csillabenn
www.bes-grenoble.com

Thank you!

Thank you!
Photo credit Csilla Jaray-Benn

Member of The Creativity Group

http://thecreativitygroup.weebly.com

Csilla Jaray-Benn

References
Baron-Cohen, S. (2011). Zero Degrees of Empathy: A new theory of human cruelty. Penguin Books.
Brown, D. (2000, 5th edition). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. San Francisco:
Pearson & Longman
Csizr, K & Drnyei, Z. 1998. Ten commandments for motivating language learners: results of an
empirical study. Language Teaching Research 2,3. pp. 203-229.
Drnyei, Z. & Hadfield, J. (2013). Motivating Learning. Harlow: Pearson
Drnyei, Z. & Kubanyiova, M. 2014. Motivating Learners, Motivating Teachers. Cambridge: CUP.
Jaray-Benn, C. (2014). Vision, Role-Playing and Identity in Language Learning. IATEFL Harrogate
Conference Selections.
Jaray-Benn, C. (2012). Teaching English in France. Why is it so difficult? Teaching Times. Issue 64.
Printemps 2012.
Nickerson, R., Butler S. F. & Carlin, M. 2009. Empathy and Knowledge Projection. The Social
Neuroscience of Empathy. Detect and W. Ickes, Mass: MIT Press. pp. 43-56.
Rifkin, J. (2009). The Empathic Civilisation. The race of global consciousness in a world in crisis.
Cambridge: Polity Press
Interview with Adrian Underhill. IATEFL Moments: Demand High. http://besenglish.com/?s=underhill
Csilla Jaray-Benn