Abstract

We reflect on the impact, value, and challenges of embedding Nonviolent Communication (NVC) within teaching and learning spaces at UAL. Framed through an ecosystem approach, we show how local, course-level initiatives are part of a wider institutional shift toward more compassionate educational environments. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative data—including NSS results and interviews with staff and students—we highlight how NVC supports collaborative learning, personal growth, and professional readiness. We also acknowledge the structural and cultural challenges to embedding this practice more widely, including uneven uptake, vulnerability, and barriers to open expression across diverse learning communities.

Session and activities

As part of a wider effort to cultivate compassion in education, this presentation explores how Nonviolent Communication (NVC) has been embedded at UAL to support transformation in teaching and learning practices. 

NVC is a practice grounded in empathy and respect, aiming to transform communication patterns and address harmful or unequal power dynamics. NVC was developed by psychologist Marshall Rosenberg in the 1960s, drawing from humanistic psychology and the nonviolence principles of Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Rooted in the belief that all human beings share the same needs, NVC offers a framework for communication that fosters empathy, mutual respect, and conflict resolution. Its principles are widely applicable, especially in educational and creative contexts where navigating complexity, bias, and interpersonal dynamics is essential. While NVC has been widely used in restorative justice (Hopkins 2012) and school education (Hooper 2015; Nosek 2014; Lee 2016; Jančič 2019), its application in higher education remains unexplored.

This paper presents case studies demonstrating the diverse applications of NVC and their measurable impact on the teaching and learning environment—including, but not limited to, improvements in student experience, classroom conflict resolution, graduate outcomes, and effectiveness in co-designing solutions.

At UAL, this work began with a pilot at the Creative Computing Institute involving BSc Creative Computing and related UG/PG course leaders. Early results suggested a measurable impact on student outcomes, continuation, attainment, and satisfaction with feedback—consistently exceeding institutional and sector averages reaching 100% of satisfaction.

Over time, this broader strategy has informed more localised, course-level implementations in different colleges, each responding to the needs of different disciplines and communities. For example, BA Design for Art Direction at LCC and Change Makers at CSM have embedded NVC through staff and student development, student-led training, and co-design of curriculum and assessment.

Working with students from MA Service Design, we evaluated how students have responded to NVC on BA Design for Art Direction over the past three years. Through thematic analysis of student submissions and staff/student interviews, we show how NVC supports inclusion, clarity, empathy, and professionalism. We also reflect on challenges, including cultural and linguistic barriers, vulnerability, and uneven uptake across the staff community.

Finally, we present an evolving toolkit—developed collaboratively with students—including playful NVC scenario cards to support discussion and reflection across learning environments. We offer this as a product and provocation: a prompt for others across the educational ecosystem to imagine how empathy and relational care might support sustainable institutional transformation.