In this talk, Dr. Wilson will discuss the power of kindness to transform our classrooms, departments, and colleges. By using kindness as a lens to view the world, we can improve our relationships with ourselves, our colleagues, our students, and our communities. Let's work together to make Florida SouthWestern the best community for all!

1. TRANSFORMATIONAL KINDNESS IN AMERICA
DR. HOPE E.WILSON
In this talk, Dr.Wilson will discuss the power of
kindness to transform our classrooms,
departments, and colleges. By using kindness as a
lens to view the world, we can improve our
relationships with ourselves, our colleagues, our
students, and our communities. Let's work
together to make Florida SouthWestern the best
community for all!

2. INTRODUCTION
 Ph.D. Educational Psychology, University of
Connecticut
 Professor,Teaching, Learning, and
Curriculum, University of North Florida
 Vicki Cornett Caring Award, 2021
 BuildingTransformational Kindness in Schools:A
Guide forTeachers and School Leaders
(Rutledge, Coming January 2023)

3. Imagine walking into a building everyday where you felt
loved and accepted for who you are, lifted to be the best
version of yourself, and given grace when you make
mistakes.
Now imagine the opposite, a place where you felt
excluded on unwelcome, punished for your mistakes, and
expected to meet the only the lowest of expectations.

4. WHAT IS KINDNESS?
When someone acts in kindness, they
reveal a true regard for the humanity
of the other person. It is an
acknowledgement of true respect, care,
and esteem for another. In short, kindness
is doing good in the world because you care.

5. KINDVS. NICE
“Nice is Different From Good”
Intention
Authenticity vs. Façade
Relationship vs.Appearance

6. ACCOUNTABILITYVS. KINDNESS
New Lens toView Education
Accountability:“trick” and “catch students;”
looking for deficits
Kindness: looking for strengths, hold high
standards, provide scaffolding as necessary to
achieve goals

7. COVID-19 IN THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, our university (like institutions across
the country) transitioned to remote instruction abruptly, directly after our spring break. I found
myself suddenly isolated from my colleagues—the people who give my inspiration, challenge me to
new heights, and encourage me when I have a difficult day. As the days turned into weeks, and
then into months, I could see the zoom calls and virtual coffee chats weren’t cutting it. I could see
my department fraying at the seams, with the informal conversations in the hallways, the friendly
banter at the coffee machine, the smiles in the parking lot, we were losing our good faith in each
other. In addition, of course, we were facing come of the most challenging teaching situations of
our careers: pivoting to virtual instruction with only a few days to really prepare, teaching students
who were coping with illness, loss, and isolation. And personally, the isolation of the pandemic was
taking a toll on my own mental health, I could feel the depression settling in.
Something had to change. As was I looking around my bedroom-turned-home-office and
remembered my childhood habit of writing letters and crafting gifts. So, I set about making small
gifts for each person in my department—a personalized gift that would make them laugh or
smile—along with a handwritten note telling them what makes them special and why they were
important to our department. As I mailed these gifts, I found my own spirits life. And over the
course of the next several weeks, my colleagues reached out to me with their own stories of how
this simple act of kindness arrived at a time that was particularly hard for them, and how it
made a difference in their lives. So, through the next year and a half, I continued my practice.
Sometimes a postcard, sometimes a trinket, but always a handwritten note about why I think they
are important and valuable. Spreading these acts of kindness helped make this little part of the
world a better place.

8. KINDNESS AMONG COLLEAGUES
Collegiality in Academia:
Communities of Practice
 Unconditional Positive Regard
 Shared Goals
 Giving Grace
 Mediating Conflict
 Building Community

9. WORKING IN ACADEMIA
There is no one I want working with me through the
journey of teaching than my colleagues. They have the
combined knowledge, expertise, enthusiasm,
encouragement, and skills to change the world.

10. BUILDING KINDNESS IN LEADERSHIP
• Unconditional Positive Regard: Remembering and
treating each member of the community as valuable
• Fairness: Treating each person with equity, allocating
resources according to need and without bias
• Trust: Mutual understanding that each party will act
with integrity
• Authenticity: Being your true self in from of faculty
and staff, including admitting mistakes
• Transparency: Providing rationale and reasons for
decisions that are made

11. KINDNESS TOWARDS STUDENTS
Imagine the professor in your career that made the biggest impact on
your life.
What characteristics did they posses?
How many of you have characteristics that describe RELATIONSHIP,
CHARACTER, and CARE?

12. KINDNESS TOWARDS STUDENTS
Building Relationships
 Unconditional Positive
Regard
 MutualTrust
 Shared Interest

13. KINDNESS IN THE CLASSROOM
Good Pedagogy is Kindness in the College
Classroom.

14. SCHOOL AND CLASSROOM POLICIES
1.What is the purpose?
2.Who does it help?
3.Who does it harm?
4.Is it kind?

15. EXAMPLES OF POLICIES
 Late Work
 Absences
 Re-doWork
 Financial Aid/Enrollment
 Counseling/Mental Health Services
 Scaffolding and Support

16. KINDNESS IN ASSESSMENT
 Difficult not “Tricky”
 Celebrations of Learning
 Focus on Learning Objectives

17. ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES (BONUS CONTENT)
1. Avoid using words like “not” or “except” in test items. These words are easy to miss,
especially for English Language Learners or students with reading disabilities, and we don’t
usually need to assess when something isn’t a part of a category, group, etc.
2. Avoid trivia. Sometimes our test items include information that is just not all that important to
the overall unit or lesson. Do students really need to know the exact date of a battle, or is it
more important for them to know which battle came first?
3. True/False items—Just say no. These items tend to be difficult to understand, relying on
very nuanced understandings of the English language, putting English Language Learners at a
disadvantage. Also, gifted and advanced learners tend to overthink them, and also get them
wrong!
4. Keep the Questions Long and the Choices Short. When writing selected choice items
(multiple choice, matching, etc), put as much information in the item stem or question as
possible, leaving the choices short and concise. This will lesson the amount that a student must
read to understand the question. Ideally, a student should be able to read the question and
answer it without reading the answer choices. When testing vocabulary, put the definitions in
the questions and choose the word, or in matching, put the definitions in the left-hand column.
5. Put the Answer Choices in a Logical Order. Alphabetize names, put numbers and dates in
order, etc. This makes it easier for students to find the answer they know is correct.

18. MEETING INDIVIDUAL NEEDS
 Yes, Even in College
 Accommodations
 Respectful and Confidential
 Differentiate based upon Level
 Differentiate based upon Goals
 Options for Assignments/Products
 Open-Ended Products
 Universal Design for Learning

19. KINDNESS TOWARDS SELF
Education is a service profession, and most (if not all) of
us joined the field because we wanted to help others, to
show kindness, and to make a positive difference in the
lives of our students. However, with this generous and
caring spirit, we can forget that we must prioritize self-
care, and true kindness to ourselves, or we risk burn-out,
unhealthy boundaries, and as the least, not being our best
selves. In order for us to be able to give to others, our own
needs must be met.

20. KINDNESS TOWARDS SELF
 Don’t Forget the Basics
 Relationship
 Exercise and Nature
 Mindfulness
 Therapy
 Giving Grace

21. You are an amazing person, and there is no one on
this planet that is you. You contribute to our world
in ways that you will never know. Even when you
can’t be everything, you are something—and that
something means the world to the lives that you touch
every day. You are important, valuable, and special.
Thank you for spreading your light to us each day.

22. THANKYOU
Questions?
Dr. Hope E.Wilson
hope.e.wilson@gmail.com
BuildingTransformational Kindness in Schools:A Guide forTeachers and School Leaders