Happiness classes for parents

UK – A college in Wellington, Berkshire, has recently started running “happiness classes” for parents of its pupils. 

Since 2006, the tutorials involving wellbeing and positive psychology have been privy to the students who attend the $18,900NZD-a-term-school.

Back then, the introduction of the classes caused an outcry for some schools. Many thought it was a waste of time for a school that prided itself on its intellectual prowess. 

However, the school principal fought back saying that the course would help children struggling with the pressures of exam-orientated schooling and league tables. 

“The purpose of education is to develop all the faculties existing within each child. Education is preparing children for life in the fullest sense. If these faculties are not nurtured at school they are unlikely to be developed later, especially in those from poorer backgrounds.”

Now, many schools offer similar courses. Four years on, the principal hopes that the new happiness lessons for parents will be equally successful as the courses of their troubled teens.

The teacher of the happiness class says, “I see them more as wellbeing classes. We look at many areas – altruism, resilience, taking joy in the natural world – and hope the lessons are thought-provoking and useful.”