The CRI, lifelong learning and me — Part 1
Introduction, Empathy, Design Thinking and Mirror Neurons
This essay is a humble tentative for expressing ideas encountered during the first 4 months of my experience at the innovative and burgeoning student Center of Interdisciplinarity Research, part of Sorbonne Cite University in Paris.
My initial interest in this experimental and unique place of learning was directed at the use of video games for educational purposes towards k-12 kids. Gamification indeed, but looming close was also the curiosity about the various alternative way of learning, even if not related exclusively to online learning.
On this journey towards mastering EdTech, I found alternatively scaring and exciting the fact that we (the Master students) were both experimenting new pedagogical techniques and both being the experiment in itself.
I do realize that writing today is the first step to formalize and recognize the work already done and try to connect the dots of a complex and new paradigm at the core of our lives and essential to our culture and human society.
So let’s start here, I am a Connected woman following a continuing Education journey with a large experience of the Connected workforce. Also part of a connected Family with connected kids, I became aware of all the extraordinary digital transformation already impacting young generations and their future.
What I chose to do about it ? Jump on it and try to make something valuable of it, acting by connecting both past and future experiences.
From ESSEC to CRI : from Customer orientation to Empathy
Having completed an executive Master at ESSEC a few years before, I was quite nicely surprised by the similar importance of some concepts at the CRI (Center of Interdisciplinary Research). For instance, during the first month of September, the CRI hosted a special local event during the “Paris White Night”. It was called “Une nuit dans la peau d’un autre” where empathy towards others was put to the test through an Oculus Rift experience of other people’s movements and sensations. I had been curious about empathy as I remembered the special emphasis on customer thoughts, perceptions and sensations made by our marketing professors.
What’s the definition of Empathy and its role ?
An ability to “put yourself in someone else’s skin” or to feel another person’s affective states or their sensations (including pain).
As defined by Emmanuelle Glon (1), Empathy represents a strong interpersonal vector for cooperation and coordination, with the aim to share emotions with another human being. We can map 2 main directions in its litterature : On one hand, a cognitive focus to someone else psychological state of mind (feelings, perceptions, intentions, thoughts). On the other hand, it describes the direct affective feedback to someone else attitude. These two states link to cognitive empathy and to the Emotional cognitive contagion.
With this light, we can easily understand why Empathy is at the heart of the Human experience. As it is an obvious and formidable means to relate to one another and strengthen the ties of a society, Empathy is also an essential engine for its growth.
The “Customer empathy map” is an excellent example of the numerous Marketing tools aiming to gather the required information. If you are interested, here are a few others, CPE (Customer Perceived Experience), CPR (Customer Perceived Risk), the Personas Profiling as well as the Blue Print and Service Gap Analysis.
(1) Emmanuelle Glon (Centre Marc Bloch, Berlin) in “Émotion empathique et cognition sociale” Chapter p. 215–238 of RECONNAISSANCE, IDENTITÉ ET INTÉGRATION SOCIALE | Christian Lazzeri, Soraya Nour © Presses universitaires de Paris Ouest, 2009
A precious business SKILL to cultivate…
Empathy is recognized to be a critical leadership skill, one that helps you influence others in your organization or anticipate stakeholders’ concerns.
An interesting skill, undoubtedly. In the business world in fact, you are often graded on your ability to be “customer orientated”.
Not surprisingly, I recalled that Henry Ford’s famous motto for success, was to “get the other person’s point of view”. For example, in a very concrete manner, the Ford Motor Company started asking its male engineers to wear an “Empathy Belly”. This simulator allowed them to experience symptoms of pregnancy : the back pain, the bladder pressure, the extra weight. They could even feel “movements” mimicking fetal kicking. This would help them to understand the pregnant women ergonomic challenges while driving. Today, they’re also testing an “age suit” simulating the foggy vision and stiff joints of elderly drivers.
At the end, whatever the methodology is, the goal is to capitalize from the findings in order to design innovative solutions for the future client, product, services or society.
Taught at school through DESIGN THINKING by “Bâtisseurs des Possibles” Synlab
Of course good habits must start early and I was thrilled when I discovered through the CRI, that the Non-Profit Synlab promoted empathy in its innovative methodology of Design Thinking for Kids.
Nurture a natural empathy, develop the ideation phase, infuse the makers mindset, live the co-creation process and take steps in the worldwide sharing movement…, all these are, I firmly believe, the 21rst Century necessary skills for our kids.
Behind Synlab there is Bâtisseurs de possibles, an organisation formed of young people who want to act, take responsibility for their learnings and shape their own world. It is part of the international program « Design for change » founded in India in 2009 by Kiran Bir Sethi, a world renowned educator. She wished to position the children in a new relationship to the world, by offering them a possibility not only to capitalize on their feelings but to act upon their environment. Today, about 300,000 schools in 34 countries have implemented this design thinking process.
In France, SynLab is both promoting this pedagogical concept but also helping the teachers to put in place this protocol, through a content rich platform designed to provide direct support for implementing the 4 simple steps methodology :
- FEEL any problem that bothers you. Observe, question and engage your empathy
- IMAGINE a way to make it better. Using others ideas and help.
- DO an act of change. Make a concrete solution draft.
- SHARE your story of change with the world.
Wishing to share concrete examples, I found a particularly inspiring experiment focused on an intergenerational initiative. “Read and Write versus iPad discovery” was all about an exchange between a 6-year-old class and a group of Senior citizens. The aim was to trigger an intrinsic motivation through a desire of transmission. Designers were tasked to assist children and provide with the process used by Batisseurs des Possibles in order to make the exchange (ipad literacy vs read/write literacy) happen.
At one point, when children went out to train the seniors with the tablets, there was some difficulty as a few grandpa and grandma were reluctant to use them. Debriefing with the kids and educators allowed to mark a milestone in regard with the initial objectives. They took into account the way the seniors were touching, seeing, talking about the new tools and realized they weren’t prepared to tweet alone. Appropriation should last a bit longer.
It helped to redefine the objectives depending on the various observations. This empathy inclination was essential to progress in the project…
Other ways to teach Empathy at school : the Emotions scale
Unfortunately, there can’t be a professional designers behind every teacher so the former experiments are very limited in number. However, some innovative projects come to life, allowing the kids to work on Empathy-related workshops such as Emotional management, whose aim is enhancing self-control and self-confidence by identification, acceptation, and expression of one’s feelings.
In the Henri Wallon elementary school classroom in Trappes, in the Paris Suburbs (Prioritary Education Zone), an interesting experience was conducted by Omar Zanna, Researcher/teacher at Maine University, in order to gather from the schoolkids their feelings using an emotions scale. By identifying and expressing their feelings, the children learned how to name their emotions and to use specific vocabulary. Doing this collectively, they happened to observe and listen to others, to respect their status, to initiate dialog using words and non violent-communication. The outcome of this was a quieter class and a better cohesion of the group, which is a key for good learning.
All classes are not that lucky to be part of such a positive environment and therefore extracurricular initiatives such as EMOTED, a cooperative association run by @lamacacelume aimed at developing Emotional Intelligence among children using drama and theatre workshops, are also a solution.
Empathy, a biological trait… it all comes down to the BRAIN !
According to this INSERM video, we as human beings, hold neurons that are designed to imitate other’s actions.
These neurons, called Mirrors are preparing us for automatic action by strengthening our neuronal pathways in the motor cortex. The more we activate these pathways, even by imagination, the more it is becoming stronger and easier to work through. Generally aimed at quick learning for survival, this imitation skill comes with the ability to increase the understanding of other’s feelings, which is close to what we call empathy.
Finally, Mirror neurons show us the exemplarity that role models such as educators or parents or mentors must demonstrate for the younger generations and their learnings.
But being a role model in our modern society comes at a difficult time ! National Education Crisis, Modern family fragmentation, Economic pressure… many barriers are paving the way to a fulfilling educational system. The good news is that it should force us towards alternative ways of thinking and acting the Learning Activity.
