Delivering Happiness in Classrooms across government schools: Insights from the Brookings Report

NEW DELHI, Dec. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Dream a Dream has been working for the last 20 years with young people from vulnerable backgrounds to help them thrive and there can be no greater joy than seeing systemic interventions creating impact. The Brookings Institution recently concluded its evaluation of the 'Happiness Curriculum', which was designed to strengthen the foundations of happiness and well-being for 800,000 students from kindergarten to grade 8 and implemented across 1030 schools by the Delhi Government since July 2018, in Delhi. In its report titled 'Development of student and teacher measures of Happiness Curriculum factors', Brookings has shared evidence of increased levels of self-awareness, reflection and communication amongst students in the Happiness Curriculum. The report also states that the daily 35-minute class which mainly focuses on aspects involving mindfulness, critical thinking, reflection and a cluster of social-emotional skills, has demonstrated positive improvements in relationships among students both in and outside classrooms.

Lauding the impact of the Happiness Curriculum, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Shri Manish Sisodia said, "Modelled towards improving happiness and well-being, the Happiness Curriculum has been so designed so as to help children thrive and now with the report insights, we are thrilled that the impact is for all to see. Happiness Curriculum was envisaged to be a model to improve happiness and well-being through the school education system, which then could be emulated by different education systems, nationally and internationally." Suchetha Bhat, CEO of Dream a Dream that worked with the Delhi Government on the curriculum, said, "The fact that the happiness curriculum is already making a positive impact amongst children within 2 years of its implementation is a huge win towards creating happier experience for learners." Speaking of the positive impact of the Happiness Curriculum, Geeta Goel, Country Director Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, said, "The Brookings report is a validation that the Happiness Curriculum is a great endeavour to help students develop life skills. Social and Emotional Learning skills have the potential to equip over 250 million children in India's school system who will be entering the workforce over the next 20 years to be prepared with critical thinking and problem solving skills to adapt to changing circumstances. Data shows a positive correlation between students' life skills and academic outcomes."

Result of the study highlights that the intended Happiness Curriculum learning outcomes mainly target mindfulness, critical thinking, and reflection, and a cluster of social-emotional skills. Some of the highlights from the study are shared below:- 

• The intended happiness curriculum learning outcome mainly target mindfulness, critical thinking, reflection, and social and emotional skills 
• Happiness curriculum evaluation and observation show better relationships with teachers, increased participation in classes and increased focus and mindfulness among students. 
• The survey among teachers highlights that teachers started prioritizing values over academic success, change in teaching orientation and increased collaboration among teachers. 
• The survey scales represent the happiness factors and the intended learning outcomes. The final scales map three main competencies of critical thinking and reflection, being mindful and attentive, and social-emotional skills.

The executive summary of the report can be accessed here

Dream a Dream is an NGO based in Bangalore, India that supports young people from vulnerable backgrounds to overcome adversity and flourish in the 21st century through a creative life skills approach. More details can be found here: www.dreamadream.org and for more information on the press note please email: [email protected]

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation is a charitable, non-profit private foundation established by the Dell family. The foundation is not affiliated with Dell Technologies.