See learners the way God sees them.

Skill: Pause, reflect, and answer questions we ask ourselves that invite a Christlike spirit of discernment, love, and empathy in our interactions.

This training presents the first of three interconnected skills that will help us understand that students may see eternal truths from a different premise than we do. As we better understand our students, we will be more capable of responding to them with love and empathy as we help them build faith in Jesus Christ.

These trainings will include:

Identifying a student’s premise by pausing, reflecting, and answering questions we ask ourselves both during lesson preparation and as we focus on students’ comments or questions in class;
Seeking to clarify and understand the real intent of a student’s questions, feelings, and beliefs; and
Helping students examine or reframe their premise with an eternal perspective.

*The second and third trainings will be provided subsequently.

This training will focus on the following skill:

Identifying a student’s premise by pausing, reflecting, and answering questions that we ask ourselves both during lesson preparation and as we focus on students’ comments or questions in class.

Define

Every student comes to class with different life experiences and relationships that shape the way they think and feel about gospel truths. These views create a starting point, often called a premise, for an individual’s thinking. Identifying an individual’s premise can help us teach truth with empathy and love, as Jesus Christ does. Different premises do not change the doctrine; rather, they allow us to see another person’s perspective in a way that helps increase our understanding of each learner’s needs to, in turn, increase faith in Jesus Christ.

During lesson preparation, teachers can consider eternal truths as they pause, reflect, and answer the following questions:

How might the experiences and relationships of my students shape the way they think about, feel about, and live these truths?
As we study this truth, could any of my students feel excluded, troubled, or hurt because of their circumstances?

While focusing on a student’s comment or question during class or in a conversation, teachers can ask themselves:

“What experiences and relationships might this student have that would cause him or her to think differently than I do?”
“What else do I need to know to fully understand where he or she is coming from?”

These questions can invite the Holy Ghost and invite a Christlike spirit of discernment, love, and empathy in our interactions. They can also help us avoid reacting to students in a dismissive, judgmental, or defensive way. They can help us teach truth in a way that can bless the class and help others build faith in Jesus Christ.

Model (during lesson preparation)

While preparing a lesson on following the promptings of the Holy Ghost, I reflect on the following questions: “How might the experiences and relationships of my students shape the way they think, feel, and live these truths?” and “As we study this truth, could any of my students struggle or feel excluded, troubled, or hurt because their circumstances are not ideal in relation to this doctrine?”

Then I answer: “I may have students that feel they have never received a prompting before, or they don’t feel that the Holy Ghost speaks to them. I may have some students who feel they are not worthy. There may be times when my students are not sure if the prompting came from the Holy Ghost. There may be students who are tired of hearing stories from others about following the Spirit because they always seem too miraculous and those things never happen to them.”

Practice (during lesson preparation)

While preparing a lesson on 1 Nephi 3:7, “I will do and go the things which the Lord hath commanded”:

Reflect and answer: “How might the experiences and relationships of my students shape the way they think, feel, and live these truths?” and “As we study this truth, could any of my students struggle or feel excluded, troubled, or hurt because their circumstances are not ideal in relation to this doctrine?”

While preparing a lesson on gender as an essential characteristic of our eternal identity and purpose in the lesson titled “Gender and Eternal Identity”:

Reflect and answer: “How might the experiences and relationships of my students shape the way they think, feel, and live these truths?” and “As we study this truth, could any of my students struggle or feel excluded, troubled, or hurt because their circumstances are not ideal in relation to this doctrine?”

Model (during class)

When discussing the doctrine of the Sabbath day, a student comments, “My family enjoys watching sporting events on Sunday.” As you focus on your student’s comments, you think, “What experiences and relationships might this student have that would cause her to think differently than I do?” or “What else do I need to know to fully understand where she is coming from?”

Practice (during class)

While discussing missionary work, a student asks, “What is the big deal about every young man serving a mission?”

Silently think, “What experiences and relationships might this student have that would cause him to think differently than I do?” and “What else do I need to know to fully understand where he is coming from?”

In a discussion on prophets and revelation, a student asks, “When is the Church going to catch up to the rest of the world with their policies?”

Silently think, “What experiences and relationships might this student have that would cause her to think differently than I do?” and “What else do I need to know to fully understand where she is coming from?”

Click here to see a video of this model.

Discuss or Ponder

What are you learning about teaching the truth with empathy as you practice identifying students’ premises before and during class?
How can this practice help you teach more like Jesus Christ?

Incorporate

Choose one of the practices above to focus on for the next two weeks. Plan how you will continue to practice these skills. For example:

With each truth you prepare, you can choose to take five minutes to pause, reflect, and answer the questions that help you identify a student’s premise.
Before class, identify a student and think about a comment or question he or she may have with each truth. Then silently think, “What experiences and relationships might this student have that would cause him or her to think differently than I do?” and “What else do I need to know to fully understand where he or she is coming from?” This will prepare you to do this during class as you focus on the student’s comments and questions.

Want More?

Chad H. Webb, “Empathy” (S&I Annual Training Broadcast, Jan. 26, 2021), broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org
Jean B. Bingham, “Teaching Truth in the Language of Love” (S&I Annual Training Broadcast, Jan. 19, 2021), broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org