Roots of Empathy (ROE) is an

evidence-based Evidence-based practice (EBP) is the idea that occupational practices ought to be based on scientific evidence. While seemingly obviously desirable, the proposal has been controversial, with some arguing that results may not specialize to indivi ...

classroom program that started in

Toronto, Canada Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor ...

. The program consists of guided observations of an infant's development and emotions by

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

children. The project began in 1996, and was established by Mary Gordon, a Canadian social entrepreneur and educator. The project has since expanded to 11 different countries.

Method

The program consists of weekly classes with a Roots of Empathy instructor throughout the school year. The program consists of a classroom visit from a neighbourhood baby and parent every three weeks. The curriculum is divided into nine themes, with three classroom visits supporting each theme (a pre-family visit, family visit and post-family visit) for a total of 27 classes. Each of the nine themes is further broken down into four age ranges in primary schools. Babies are between two and four months old at the beginning of the program. The children are sat around the

parent A parent is a caregiver of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is the caretaker of a child (where "child" refers to offspring, not necessarily age). A ''biological parent'' is a person whose gamete resulted in a child, a male t ...

, baby and instructor. The baby's development and growth, along with the verbal and non-verbal interactions between the parent and the baby, are observed. Students are asked to complete both classroom curriculum tasks, such as measuring the height and weight of the baby and reading with the baby, and tasks designed to improve

emotional intelligence Emotional intelligence (EI) is most often defined as the ability to perceive, use, understand, manage, and handle emotions. People with high emotional intelligence can recognize their own emotions and those of others, use emotional information ...

, such as reflecting on their feelings about the interactions and on their classmates' displays of emotions.

Research and evaluation

cluster may refer to: Science and technology Astronomy * Cluster (spacecraft), constellation of four European Space Agency spacecraft * Asteroid cluster, a small asteroid family * Cluster II (spacecraft), a European Space Agency mission to study t ...

, randomized controlled field trial on the ROE program in 2011 in Manitoba demonstrated that children in program classrooms in contrast to the control classrooms exhibited that children in program classrooms in contrast to the control classrooms had reduced physical and indirect

aggressive behavior Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...

(including

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an imba ...

) and increased

prosocial behavior Prosocial behavior, or intent to benefit others, is a social behavior that "benefit other people or society as a whole", "such as helping, sharing, donating, co-operating, and volunteering". Obeying the rules and conforming to socially accepted ...

, such as sharing. A follow-up study showed the decrease in aggression lasted up to three years. A study using a

quasi-experimental A quasi-experiment is an empirical interventional study used to estimate the causal impact of an intervention on target population without random assignment. Quasi-experimental research shares similarities with the traditional experimental design ...

control-group conducted in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

and Toronto in 2012 found similar results, and that children had an improved understanding of infant crying.

Availability and growth

The program is currently available in every province of Canada. In 2007, the program expanded internationally to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, WA). It expanded to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

in 2011, and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 2012. Roots of Empathy has since been introduced to 11 countries including

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in the fall of 2018. The curriculum has been translated into

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

and

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

Cost and funding

In 2020, the average cost, without accounting for training costs, for the year-long Roots of Empathy program is $440 (CAD) per child – an average cost per class of $1000 (CAD). Roots of Empathy is funded by government grants, foundation funding, and corporate and individual donations.

Recognition

In July 2008, the

Assembly of First Nations The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is an assembly of Canadian First Nations (Indian bands) represented by their chiefs. Established in 1982 and modelled on the United Nations General Assembly, it emerged from the National Indian Brotherhood, wh ...

, at their Annual General Assembly, passed Resolution 31 endorsing and supporting ROE and SOE as programs compatible with traditional First Nations teachings. In 2017, Roots of Empathy was recognized as one of the most inspiring global innovations in K–12 education by the Finnish organization HundrED.org. UpSocial selected Roots of Empathy as the winner of its social innovation competition Accelerating Change for Social Inclusion (ASCI) to address the risk to children of social exclusion.

References

*John Wishart City Views (2008-10-25). "timestranscript.com - Roots of Empathy planting valuable seeds , John Wishart - Breaking News, New Brunswick, Canada". Timestranscript.canadaeast.com. Retrieved 2011-01-06. * Marilynn Vanderstaay. "The Senior Times Monthly - Montreal". Theseniortimes.com. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
Hamilton Breaking News - Hamilton's Online Newspaper , TheSpec.com
* "Anti-bullying program aims to teach students empathy". Seattlepi.com. 2007-12-29. Retrieved 2011-01-06. * "Babies go to school to teach". CNN.com. 2010-12-10. Retrieved 2011-01-06

External links

* {{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in Toronto Educational organizations based in Ontario