May 16, International School of Helsinki, educational innovators presented unique approaches to foster student empathy in a HundrED GLocal Event. HundrED.org is an NGO which seeks to find, scale and share innovation in K-12 education from around the globe. HundrED Ambassador and ISHelsinki Teacher, Ellen Heyting, hosted the evening which brought together members of the HundrED community from around Finland with global and local educators. The event was live streamed to the rest of the world via HundrED’s social media accounts.

Ellen Heyting and Rachael Thrash launched the event with their Building Blocks for Engagement, a brainstorming and reflection tool that inspires teachers to develop units centred around students’ personal experience and service learning. Lydia Hanninen and Kristina Petrova, ISH 11th graders, represented the student voice with their innovation, Youth for Change, bringing youth together to address the intersectionality between issues of climate change and inequality.

A Finnish firm, Seppo, presented its gaming platform Next, an app that allows teachers to gamify field trips and lessons for maximum student engagement. Skyped in from the Philippines, Kids Can! Innovation Camp explained its approach for encouraging empathy through the development of STEAM skills. Lyfta, a virtual reality platform which seeks to share stories from around the world, also considered strategies for expanding student awareness. Culminating the evening, Kathleen Naglee, The Director of ISHelsinki, spoke about Embodied Space and the neuroscience of learning design. 

Breakout discussions encouraged attendees and guests to reflect on the presentations and to network with like minded educators. This conversation will continue at the CEESA Conference 2020 in Helsinki when HundrED showcases the top 10 Innovations in K-12 Education from Finland. Please plan to join!

Written by Ellen Heyting and Rachael Thrash