Abstract
A child’s overall development occurs when equal importance is given to all three domains—cognitive, affective, and psychomotor—in the teaching-learning process, leading to the creation of well-rounded individuals. However, students from underprivileged backgrounds often struggle with interpersonal skills, display aggression, intolerance, and indiscipline in the classroom, both towards peers and teachers. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 emphasizes the holistic development of students, aiming to nurture empathetic and well-rounded individuals. Unfortunately, the implementation of this vision has been largely ineffective, especially for underprivileged students, as the affective domain—responsible for empathy and emotional growth—remains neglected, hindering true holistic development.
Drawing on Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, which emphasizes that behavior is modeled and learned through observation, imitation, and reinforcement, this paper explores the critical role of empathy in student development. The current educational environment often fails to expose these learners to positive role models and empathetic behaviors, thereby limiting their overall growth. This gap between policy and practice in fostering empathy and holistic development calls for a re-evaluation by educators and policymakers. The paper proposes a conceptual framework that integrates Bandura’s principles with empathy to better equip educators in addressing the needs of underprivileged learners, ultimately contributing to their emotional and holistic development.
Keywords: Empathy, bandura’s social cognitive theory, marginalized learners