Montgomery 1960: Using Technology to Teach Empathy and Perspective Taking

A primary purpose of higher education in the U.S. is to promote personally and socially responsible graduates that can lead at work and in society (AAC&U, 2005). To successfully do so, students need coaching that intentionally develops empathy, perspective taking, intercultural agility, and the capacity to make ethical decisions (Narveaz, 2006). The holistic approaches historically used to teach these skills died with classical curriculum as the research university emerged and the risk-management culture replaced our in loco parentis relationships with students (Colby & Eichman. 2005). The current legal and political climate limits genuine discussion between college students and faculty/staff mentors about how to face the ethical and intercultural challenges presented by college life and emerge a leader (Bickel & Lake, 1998). Yet colleges still need to facilitate personal and social responsibility education and coach students to use these skills to lead. The use of gamification technology can be used to promote the higher order skill development needed by college students to meet the leadership challenges of tomorrow - empathy, perspective taking, intercultural agility, and ethical decision-making.

This poster presentation introduces Experience 1960 Montgomery, Alabama (an ARIS Online Virtual Reality App) that immerses the participant in the lived historical experiences of the college student leaders as they navigate the events that became the Dixon v. State of Alabama. This technological platform allows participants to engage with the decisions, actions, and perspectives of the governmental officials, college administrators, and student demonstrators during the 1960s student sit-ins for Civil Rights in Montgomery, Alabama. The historical leadership case study allows participants to see themselves in each of the moral leader comparators lived experiences as told by them and see the original documents and newspaper coverage of the events. The events selected for this pilot spawned two landmark legal cases—the Dixon v. Alabama State Board of Education (1961) extending due process rights to students and the Sullivan v. NY Times (1964) requiring malice for journalists to libel public officials. In addition to enhancing the delivery of ELPS 351: Personally and Socially Responsible Leadership, completion of this project will provide valuable classroom and student leader training, as it aids in student understanding of the contextual factors influencing administrator and legislator action.