Virtual School Australia - Nourishes Every Mind
Empathy in Action: Understanding, Learning, and Evolving Together
Welcome to the 7th Global Empathy Conference—where science meets humanity, and understanding becomes transformation. This year’s theme, Empathy, takes center stage as we explore how it shapes learning, healing, and the future of our global communities.
🎥 Meet the Speakers — Watch the Preview Videos
Short, powerful introductions from our presenters are now available!
Conference Speaker: Callie Turk, Co-Founder, REEL (Resilience and Engagement for Every Learner)
REEL, is a Silicon Valley nonprofit dedicated to building bridges between families and educators of neurodivergent and twice-exceptional (2e) learners. Drawing from over 15 years of experience in educational technology and professional learning, Callie brings both personal insight and professional expertise to her work in inclusive education. She holds an MBA from Stanford University, a BS from Miami University (Ohio), and is currently pursuing a doctorate in Cognitive Diversity in Education at the Bridges Graduate School. A published writer in Parenting for High Potential and 2eNews, Callie has presented nationally at conferences such as CEC and CUNY’s Neurodiversity Conference. She is also the proud parent of three college-aged young adults, one of whom is neurodivergent.
🧠Session Title: Walking in Their Shoes – Building Empathy Through Simulation
“There’s nothing like walking a mile in someone else’s shoes.” Through REEL’s Neurodiversity Simulation Experience, educators are given the opportunity to do just that. In this interactive session, Callie shares the powerful impact of REEL’s hands-on workshops, held in K–12 schools and teacher education programs across the San Francisco Bay Area. These simulations allow participants to briefly step into the world of students with learning differences such as dyslexia, ADHD, autism, dysgraphia, sensory, and auditory processing challenges.
Educators frequently report transformative "aha" moments—gaining a deeper understanding of the daily realities and hidden strengths of neurodivergent learners. The workshop also includes a guided discussion to reflect on the experience and encourage creative strategies for inclusive teaching. Participants will leave with both inspiration and practical tools for bringing empathy-driven simulations to their own communities—fostering a culture of understanding, curiosity, and support for all learners.
Meet 2025 GEC Speakers — Dr. Nicole Ofiesh & Kara Matejka
🔷 Featured Presentation: Dr. Nicole Ofiesh & Kara Matejka
Session Title: The Empathy Effect: Shaping Lifelong Learning Through Neuroscience and Design
Join
Dr. Nicole Ofiesh, cognitive behavioral scientist and co-founder of Brain Explained, and
Kara Matejka, educational therapist and DEI researcher, as they share powerful stories from their private practice and research. Together, they explore how empathy and perspective-shifting can unlock individualized, brain-based learning—especially for those often overlooked by traditional education systems.
🎥 Edwin Rutsch & Janna Weiss – Short Teaser for Empathy Circle at the 7th Global Empathy Conference 2025
All attendees registered via Eventbrite will receive access to the conference recordings after the event.
To Register visit: https://7thGEC.eventbrite.com.au
Virtual School Australia (VSA) is an online school delivering STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) courses based on the Australian national curriculum. We aim to empower students to become technologically proficient and empathic global citizens. We cater to individual learning styles, and our approach is based on Problem-and Project-based learning (PBL).
VIRTUAL SCHOOL AUSTRALIA WAS THE WINNER OF 2021 BLACKBOARD AWARD FOR TEACHING & LEARNING
Our team acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we meet and work. We wish to pay respect to
Elders - past, present and emerging - and acknowledge the important role all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to play within Australia.
UPCOMING HIGHLIGHTS:
2025 ELAINE HOBSON MEMORIAL LITERARY FESTIVAL
Welcome to the 2025 Elaine Hobson Memorial Literary Festival! Join us online for an inspiring celebration of Essay Writing and Storytelling. This writing challenge encourages you to broaden your perspective and step into someone else’s shoes, deepening your understanding of empathy and connection. Connect with fellow literature enthusiasts and immerse yourself in a vibrant community of words and ideas.
Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in the 2025 Global Empathy Conference, where you can share your insights on EMPATHY IN ACTION, in person or online. Submit your creative piece by Sunday, April 13th. Once registered on Eventbrite, you’ll receive submission details and rubrics for essays and short stories directly via email. Save the date and stay tuned for exciting updates! To Register visit: https://2025EHMLF.eventbrite.com.au
About VSA:
VSA Vision: To create the next generation of leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs who will further develop and improve our world.
VSA Mission: As an online school, we blend science, technology, engineering, arts and maths (STEAM) with values such as compassion and empathy to prepare students for an ever-evolving world.
Empathy-driven Problem-Solving is a tailor-made course and is primarily built around the literacy and numeracy strands of the Australian National Curriculum. This course will balance and integrate both strands and focus on developing students’ knowledge, understanding and skills in listening, reading, viewing, speaking, writing, creating and problem-solving. VSA educators assess students and create content to revisit and strengthen these as needed.
THE PROCESS: Students learn through the experience of solving an open-ended problem that are included in their trigger material / Content ... The PBL process involves working in small groups of learners.
Step 1: Explore the issue. Gather necessary information; learn new concepts, principles, and skills about the proposed topic.
Step 2: State what is known. Individual students and groups list what they already know about the scenario and what areas they lack information.
Step 3: Define the issues. Frame the problem in the context of what is already known and information the students expect to learn.
Step 4: Research the knowledge. Find resources and information that will help create a compelling argument.
Step 5: Investigate solutions. List possible actions and solutions to the problem, and formulate and test potential hypotheses.
Step 6: Present and support the chosen solution. State and support conclusion with relevant information and evidence.
Step 7: Review performance. Often forgotten, this is a crucial step in improving problem-solving skills. Students must evaluate their performance with their guide and plan improvements for the following problem.
All students who meet the Assessment criteria receive a Certificate after the course.
If interested in this program, please send an email to the following address, admin@virtualschoolaustralia.com.au
Steam & More
We blend science, technology, engineering, arts, and maths (STEAM) with values such as compassion and empathy to prepare students for an ever-evolving world.
Empowering Generations
Our vision is to create the next generation of leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs who will make our world a better place.
Professional Development
We offer professional development training and workshops for primary and secondary teachers and make networking available through our yearly conferences.
Yearly Conferences
VSA sponsors conferences that allow attendees to obtain information about Empathy in Action through informative education, networking & discussions.
About VSA Academics
At VSA, we have a passionate team of educators aiming to encourage younger people by learning from contemporary and informed experts. We teach our students to engage in Pro-Social behaviours, learn the value and power of empathy in global communities for a positive reflection on our planet's future. Our highly experienced Australian and global educators run Global Conferences and STEAM Challenges.
Our Academics include:
- Qualified, highly skilled, registered Australian Teachers
- Educators with teaching experience in private and public schools in Australia and many years of International Baccalaureate (IB) teaching experience.
- Teacher Educators
- Highly qualified, award-winning professionals and published authors.
7th Global Empathy Conference on 24 May 2025 will be a Hybrid event
Thank you to all Speakers and Delegates for making the 2024 GEC in Prague a success. See you all in California in 24th May, 2025!
Students who love writing
2025 Elaine Hobson Literary Festival will be held at the University of California (Silicon Valley).
Presenters will deliver research articles, stories and experiences on Empathy in Action. More information will be shared soon.
VSA Empathy Conferences
VSA sponsors conferences each year; the Annual Empathy Conference, the Students' Summit and Elaine Hobson Memorial Literary Festival.
Our yearly conferences provide opportunities for collaboration between students, educators, academics and professionals.