Course supported by Cillian Murphy to teach young people empathy

Cillian Murphy is a patron of the Unesco Child and Family Research Centre at University of Galway and a supporter of the empathy education initiatives. Picture: Robert Viglasky/Neflix

Transition Year students are to be offered empathy education classes as part of a programme backed by Oscar-winning actor Cillian Murphy.

The Transition Year module, developed at University of Galway, is intended to be a practical classroom resource, featuring interactive lessons and real-world scenarios intended to strengthen students’ empathy skills and social understanding.

Developed by researchers at the Unesco Child and Family Research Centre, the course is also intended to complement the existing Junior Cycle Activating Social Empathy resource.

Working together with the university’s School of Education and a youth advisory panel from Foróige, the course includes age-appropriate lessons and activities aimed at challenging TY students to explore empathy in more complex social contexts.

Cillian Murphy is a patron of the Unesco Child and Family Research Centre at University of Galway and a supporter of the empathy education initiatives.

The ‘Activating Social Empathy’ schools programme is supported by the Irish American Partnership and Lifes2good Foundation, and partners of the Unesco Child and Family Research Centre, Foróige and Penn State.

Dr Charlotte Silke, lead researcher with Unesco Child and Family Research Centre, said: “The core aim is to support young people in becoming more attuned to the feelings and perspectives of others, and more confident in expressing empathy across a variety of real-world contexts.” 

The TY course has been designed to strengthen students’ empathy skills through 10 interactive lessons, using scenarios and video and other learning methodologies.

It features three interconnected components, including cognitive empathy, the awareness or understanding of others’ perspectives, and emotional empathy. This includes feeling with, or for, another person, and empathic action, which involve translating understanding and feelings into supportive, helpful actions.

Students will also learn about strategies to address empathy barriers and engage in empathic actions across diverse contexts.

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Professor John Canavan, Unesco Chair, Children, Youth and Civic Engagement and Director of the Unesco Child and Family Research Centre, said: “For young people growing up in a world marked by rising social polarisation, environmental crises and mental health issues, socio-emotional and behavioural skills are increasingly valued as part of education policies designed to address broad dimensions of learning.

"Empathy is a process of understanding others' perspectives, feeling for others and taking supportive action."