Happiness, defined by a high level of psychological well-being associated with life skills, has been scientifically proven to have a positive and lasting effect on resilience, life expectancy, ability to learn, lifestyle and life satisfaction. To instil this happiness in school, the Fritz Schubert Institute in Heidelberg, Germany, has set up twelve weekend seminars to train teachers to teach it. The objective is to strengthen the personality of the students, to allow them to better know their own strengths, so that they can finally act more autonomously in their lives.
Training to become personal development coaches
Since 2009, this training to be a “teacher of happiness” has won over nearly 2,000 German teachers. Austria and Switzerland have followed suit and introduced “happiness courses” in their schools. This continuing education is designed with a team of educators, doctors and sports trainers, to bring a different teaching and learning culture to schools. According to the training brochure, to “learn” happiness, it is necessary to engage in conscious self-reflection, followed by ongoing, often difficult, personal development. During the lessons, teachers are led to discover the orientation towards happiness through action and practical life. The aim is to show the way towards the development of stable self-esteem and increased self-efficacy, to improve social and personal skills.
Read also: The funniest children are also the smartest
A transversal teaching method
The German daily “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” (FAZ) investigated the results of teaching such a “subject” in schools. Through exercises like the “Bazaar of Weaknesses”, students learn to fill in their weaknesses and use them as opportunities.
But do students need a specific school subject to learn about happiness, or should it be a cross-curricular methodology? For some teachers who have taken the training, even if an official course is not subsequently offered, this philosophy can also be integrated into the usual courses.
Read also: Well-being of children and parents: the Finnish recipe for happiness
“I connect with children in a completely different way today – because we talk about feelings”, says a primary school mistress. And to add: “The better the relationship between children and teachers, the more comfortable they feel, the better they learn and benefit from the content.” Angela Wanke Luft, interviewed by the FAZ, explains: “For me, happiness at school means seeing children as real people, in all subjects, and being personally present with them myself.”