Day 0
Compassionate Classrooms
Starts Mar 14, 2021!
"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire," William Yeats once wrote.
What does it mean to ignite that intrinsic motivation in our students, particularly with the increased adoption of online courses? If we ultimately teach who are, who do we have to be to transform our classrooms from a broadcast model to a co-creative "many to many" model? What is the appropriate role of technology in learning? What practices can help foster values beyond the curriculum? Moreover, what would it take to cultivate "Compassion Quotient" (CQ) in addition to emotional and intellectual quotients, in our classrooms?
Many innovators are now suggesting a shift from content to relationships, and help craft a new narrative around personal and collective well-being. A preschool is teaching kindness as a subject, primary schools in California added gratitude on their report cards, one high school in Berlin disregards grades while another in California removed bells after class and textbooks; a top tier medical school even canceled lectures altogether.
Altogether, it invites many further inquiries. Can classrooms bring in mindfulness practices to reduce bullying? How can we build empathy and greater tolerance? What is the scientific basis of compassion -- and can it be taught or does it bloom naturally? Does exposure to modern technology make these values more accessible or does it fragment our experience of life? At a more systemic level, how do we build the foundation for a secular ethic that foster social cohesion?
If these questions interest you, and you'd like to explore practical ways to amplify "Compassion Quotient" in your classrooms, we invite you to join our Pod!
14-Day Timeline
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Sun, Mar 14th: Orientation Call We'll start with a virtual orientation call to connect all Pod participants and volunteers and to take you through the process of daily prompts and other pod details. Time: 90 minutes (Mar 14, 2020, 8:00AM PST) |
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Everyday: Building the Field! Every alternate "inhale" day, you'll get a daily prompt with a "head" reading, a "hands" practice, and a "heart" reflection. On the other "exhale" days, you'll be reading the live curriculum -- of reflections from podmates! -- and adding your responses to it. Time: 1-3 flexible hours per day. It's self-regulated, depending on how deep you want to dive. :) |
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Sun, Mar 21st: Group Call In between, we will have a group call to see each other's smiles, explore edges, and engage with various guest speakers. Time: 90 minutes (Mar 21, 2020, 8:00AM PST) |
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Everyday: Digging Deeper Similar to inhale/exhale process of the previous week, but our themes of the week will be rooted in case studies of real-life experiences. Time: 1-3 hours per day. |
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Sun, Mar 28th: Closing Call Our closing call, to summarize some of our learnings and explorations, with guest speakers and some fun surprises. :) Time: 90 minutes (Mar 28th, 2022, 8:00AM PST) |
To join, simply fill out the form below. As the circle host approves your application, you will receive a welcome email with your login information and next steps.
In keeping with ServiceSpace values of gift, all our Pods are run by volunteers and offered as a labor of love.