Last Updated Date: 20 Nov 2023

Launch Date: July 2018 by His Holiness Dalai Lama

Stories & Experiences, as part of curriculum, taught to 8 Lakh students in 20,000 classrooms in 1000+ Delhi Govt Schools^[1][2]

-- Daily 40 min Happiness Classes for students of nursery to grade eight

¶ Happiness Curriculum: Intro

The Happiness Curriculum is designed based on The Traid of Happiness or pillars of happiness

• The overall purpose is to support students in their journey to sustainable happiness through engagement in meaningful and reflective stories and activities
• Happiness classes will enable students to reflect on the relationship between their feelings, thoughts, behaviour and their impact on themselves, family, society around them and the natural environment

• Focuses on Teachers' Well-being also: The Happiness Curriculum also extended to teachers, encouraging their well-being and emotional health to create a positive learning environment

¶ Salient Features

The key features of the Happiness Curriculum were as follows:

• Mindfulness Practices: such as meditation, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques to help students manage stress and improve their focus
• Value Education: instilling positive values, ethics, and empathy among students, promoting a sense of social responsibility and moral consciousness
• Storytelling and Activities: incorporates interactive and engaging storytelling sessions, activities, and games to make learning enjoyable and foster creativity
• Moral Values and Life Skills: Focused on teaching important life skills, decision-making, and conflict resolution to help students navigate real-life situations effectively

¶ Impact on Students^[3][2:1]

Brookings Institution conducted a pilot study in the year 2019 in partnership with Dream a Dream

¶ International & National Recognition

• The curriculum has been praised by several national & international media outlets like Le Monde, NPR^[4], CNN^[5], Washington Post^[6], Straits Times^[7], DW^[8], daijiworld^[9] etc
• Featured in Harvard International Education Week and World Economic Forum^[10][11]

¶ First Lady of the United States Melania Trump^[12]

The Former First Lady of the United States Melania Trump participated in a “happiness class” at a Delhi government school

"It is very inspiring that the students begin each day by practising mindfulness, by reading stories, listening to stories shared by other classmates and connecting with nature, I cannot think of a better way for all of us to start our day,” Ms. Trump said

¶ WISE Awards 2021 in Qatar^[11:1]

In 2021, Happiness Curriculum was recognized in partnership with Dream a Dream for Educational Innovative Project in Qatar

¶ Others Adopting Delhi’s Happiness classes

Afghanistan To Adopt Delhi's "Happiness Class" For School Kids^[13]

Four states to replicate Delhi’s Happiness classes^[14]

30 Jul 2019: Education ministers and officials from Manipur, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry and Nagaland unanimously agreed to replicate Delhi’s Happiness Curriculum

¶ Coach Gaur Gopal Das - Attending 4th Anniversary^[15]

¶ Didi Shivani^[16]

¶ Publication of Material

Happiness classes teacher textbooks are available online in pdf format on SCERT Website

References:

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1. https://twitter.com/HappinessDelhi ↩︎

2. https://scert.delhi.gov.in/scert/happiness-curriculum-chvtl ↩︎ ↩︎

3. https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Development-of-student-and-teacher-measures-of-HC-factors-FINAL-081920.pdf ↩︎

4. https://www.npr.org/2018/07/28/632761402/to-focus-on-students-emotional-well-being-india-tries-happiness-classes ↩︎

5. https://edition.cnn.com/2018/07/18/health/india-delhi-happiness-classes-intl/index.html ↩︎

6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/india-which-has-long-focused-on-student-success-now-offers-happiness-classes/2018/07/21/203f2f10-8466-11e8-9e06-4db52ac42e05_story.html ↩︎

7. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/south-asia/delhi-students-cheer-new-happiness-class-in-schools ↩︎

8. https://www.dw.com/en/delhi-schools-roll-out-happiness-classes-to-beat-stress/a-45060731 ↩︎

9. https://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay.aspx?newsID=696077 ↩︎

10. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/07/india-school-lessons-in-happiness-dalai-lama/ ↩︎

11. https://scert.delhi.gov.in/scert/awards-recognitions-chvtl ↩︎ ↩︎

12. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/melania-trump-attends-happiness-class-in-govt-school-says-curriculum-inspiring/article30912161.ece ↩︎

13. https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/afghanistan-to-adopt-delhis-happiness-curriculum-for-school-kids-1932235 ↩︎

14. https://www.hindustantimes.com/education/four-states-to-replicate-delhi-s-happiness-classes/story-0kfmrV60MPYtoXIZR7q7xO.html ↩︎

15. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/delhi-news/delhi-govt-marks-four-years-of-happiness-curriculum-101657824252356.html ↩︎

16. https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/happiness-curriculum-helped-children-deal-with-peer-parental-pressure-8059713/ ↩︎