The Empathy Map: A Teacher’s Tool to Design Learning

Introduction

Teachers are beginning to plan the learning spaces to welcome students for the upcoming academic school year of 2022-2023. Before we rush to buy materials or print posters to display in the classroom, it might be beneficial to pause and consider what makes an environment conducive and safe for learning. Can you recall any of your own lessons that were more memorable than others? Maybe it was because the content resonated with your students. There might have been something about the activities that made them more engaging or fun and the students enjoyed their friendships. Regardless of what caused the difference, all memorable lessons share one thing in common: they were designed with empathy by considering the needs of the students. An empathy map can be used by teachers in their classrooms to increase student engagement, develop positive relationships, and promote wellbeing.

Focus on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

When we design learning spaces, we need to be aware of the different needs of our students. According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, five basic needs must be met for a person to reach their full potential. These needs are physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. Before learners can perform at their full potential, a series of basic needs must be satisfied. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs provides teachers with a framework to structure the classroom lesson and the learning environment. If we can keep these needs in mind when we design learning spaces, we can create environments that are more conducive and safe to learning.

Physical needs (physiological level): if the basic level relating to a person’s survival is not satisfied, students won’t be able to focus entirely on learning. We need to ensure the learning environment is clean and not crowded. There is adequate lighting, and the room temperature is comfortable. In Thailand, I observe that some teachers often turn the air conditioner so low that students have to wear sweaters because they are so cold. Too cold or too hot temperatures can make it difficult for students to concentrate on learning. In workshops and conferences, I can imagine that many teachers have had similar experiences. The furniture should be organized that invite learning and collaboration. Do students sit in groups or in rows by themselves? The room should be equipped with sufficient learning materials.

Emotional needs (safety level): Students feel comfortable asking and answering questions in this learning environment, and their ideas and opinions are respected. It helps reduce fear, frustration, and anxiety when teachers communicate learning expectations clearly, and the teacher establishes a routine for learning. Teachers benefit from knowing about their students’ strengths.

Social needs (Belonging & self-esteem levels): Students need to feel a sense of belonging and love. Belonging is fostered when students collaborate to create caring communities through circles of friends (Falvey, Forest, Pearpoint, & Rosenberg, 2002). Teachers should intentionally and purposefully group students for collaboration. There should be opportunities for students to interact with and relate to others. Students are invited to set up the norms of collaboration and discuss what good collaboration looks, sounds, and feels like. Constant and ongoing teacher support and feedback are provided to help students grow in all aspects. Through social interaction and group collaboration, students are guided to explore their identity and develop self-confidence. Teachers should use various strategies to amplify student voice and increase student autonomy. Students develop their ownership of learning and take pride in their work.

Intellectual needs (self-actualization level): Once the needs mentioned above are met, students then can achieve and perform at their full potential. In this stage, students are motivated to learn and seek fulfillment. Teachers should set high expectations for every student. Students set their own learning goals with the teacher’s facilitation and engage in learning tasks. 

Before teachers design student learning, we must focus on Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs in teaching in order to motivate students to learn.

Why teachers need empathy?

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. When we are empathetic, we can see the world from another person’s perspective and feel what they are feeling. This ability is essential for teachers because it allows us to create learning spaces that meet the needs of all our students. By understanding and empathizing with our students’ needs, we can create learning spaces that are more conducive to student success. Additionally, empathy allows teachers to build trust and rapport with students, which is essential for effective teaching.

“Empathy is the experience of understanding another person’s thoughts, feelings, and condition from their point of view, rather than from your own. You try to imagine yourself in their place in order to understand what they are feeling or experiencing.”

(psychologytoday.com) 

Empathy map

More and more companies and organizations are using empathy maps to empathize with their customers’ experiences before they start designing their products. An empathy map usually considers what the users might think and feel, say, do and hear. If we believe teachers are designers, it will make sense for teachers to use an empathy map before designing the learning space and their lessons. I searched several templates of empathy maps on the internet and finally created one that is suitable for me. I can use the empathy map to anticipate the student experience, identify areas of need, and determine the best way to meet those needs.

This teacher empathy map that I created applied knowledge of Maslow’s Hierarchy Needs and adopted current searchable empathy map templates on the internet.

How to use the empathy map to design a learning space?

Step 1: Synthesize needs 

In order to create an effective learning space, we first consider the needs of our students. In this empathy map, teachers use Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as a model to identify which underlying needs are not being addressed. We consider the different needs of students and meet their physical, emotional, social, and intellectual needs. You can use the questions below, but they are not limited, to identify students’ needs.

Physical needs

• How is the seating arranged?
• How is furniture arranged?
• Is the temperature comfortable?
• Is the lighting appropriate?
• Is the classroom clean?
• Is there a space to display students’ ideas and working documents?

Emotional needs

• Do students feel welcomed and respected?
• What are students’ fear, frustration, and anxiety?
• Are students aware of the learning expectations and routine?
• Do students feel comfortable asking and answering questions?

Social needs

• Are students deliberately grouped for collaboration?
• Are students encouraged to interact with and relate to others?
• Are students treated fairly and guided to explore their identity?
• Are students provided with support and feedback?

Intellectual needs

• Is high expectation set for students? 
• Is self-assessment and peer feedback promoted? 
• Is curiosity fostered and scaffolded?
• How is student voice supported? How is student diversity utilized?
• Are students’ thinking provoked?
• Are students invited to reflect? 

Step 2: Fill out the empathy map 

We can begin designing a lesson after checking Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has been met. Throughout this empathy map, I focused on two questions that guided the design of the learning spaces.

• How is my relationship with my students? 
• How will students feel when doing, seeing, thinking, hearing, and saying things in the classroom?

We imagine what students might do, see, think, hear, and say in our classroom. Teachers could use some possible questions to complete the empathy map. Using the information we gather about what students do, see, hear, and think in our classrooms, we can design lessons in an optimal learning environment that meets their needs. By designing with empathy, we aim to create a space where students feel comfortable, enabling them to engage in more learning.

Teacher empathy map | English

Teacher empathy map | Chinese

Empathy map download

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Reference

• Psychology Today. “Empathy | Psychology Today.” Psychology Today, 2019, www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/empathy. Accessed 22 July 2022.
• Villa, Richard A., et al. “Successful Inclusive Practices in Middle and Secondary Schools.” American Secondary Education, vol. 33, no. 3, 2005, pp. 33–50, www.jstor.org/stable/41064553. Accessed 3 May 2021.