«Compassionate children are happier»

Mrs Jüsy, you teach the concept of social-emotional-ethical learning (SEE Learning) in the Bümpliz school district near Bern. Why is this subject called «happiness» at your school?

I needed a name that the pupils could relate to. I teach seven to ten-year-olds. Social-emotional-ethical learning sounds incomprehensible to children, and the concept is also abstract for some adults. We train self-compassion and self-awareness, work on interpersonal awareness and relationship skills. I have simplified this. What is it ultimately about? We find out together what makes each individual and us as a community satisfied and happy.

How do you proceed in a typical «happiness lesson»?

I start by training the children's self-awareness. For example, we sit in a circle and ask ourselves: How am I feeling right now? To illustrate this, there are different zones to which the children can assign themselves. For example, if I am in the «okay zone», then I feel good. Maybe I'm a little tired, but overall I'm at peace with myself.

What is good for me may also help others - this realisation makes children feel more secure inside.

Sometimes, however, I notice that I am less energised, less motivated or more listless than on other days. Then I'm in the so-called «windless zone». I ask the children to describe how their bodies are signalling this. They then say things like «I feel kind of heavy» or «My head feels dull». In this exercise, the children learn to interpret and name the repertoire of their body language.

Where do the terms for these «emotional zones» come from?

SEE Learning originated from an idea of the Dalai Lama, was developed at Emory University in Atlanta, USA, and works with English terms. I have chosen child-friendly expressions for the different emotional states: The English «high zone», for example, means «storm zone». When you are in this zone, you have a lot of negative energy in your body, which happens when you are angry, stressed or anxious. The children feel tingly and tense, many have a tremendous urge to move. The body often tells us what to do.

When you are angry, you also feel the need to shout or want to lash out. You certainly don't want that.

This is precisely why we look at what can help us get back into the «okay zone». Together, we develop strategies to get us out of the low without harming others. For example, if a child is feeling tired and sad, talking to a friend can do them good. Sometimes it simply helps to massage the neck a little and loosen the shoulders. For the «storm zone», we have developed a few immediate relief strategies such as rubbing hands together or taking a sip of water.

And what if, despite all this, the small flame turns into a forest fire?

Then the children can ask someone to help them with the conflict. They also learn that in these lessons. I sometimes stand in front of the class and say something like: «Ah, look, now I'm in the storm zone. I'm really angry because that just didn't work out. Can you help me?» My students know that we all feel like this sometimes. This experience is very helpful in understanding the other person and reacting accordingly.

Studies have shown that teenagers value performance far more than social commitment. How do your pupils perceive this subject?

I was very touched by the way they reflected on these lessons and the skills they acquired there. One child said: «I feel like I'm getting to know myself better.» Another pupil summarised: «What we learn in Glück is very real.» I am very pleased that the new Curriculum 21 takes these interdisciplinary skills into account. Social and emotional skills are given greater weighting. Compassionate children are happier. The realisation that «aha, what's good for me might also help others» makes us feel more secure inside. If we support each other, it is easier for each individual and then also for the community.

Another aim of SEE Learning is to improve the atmosphere in the classroom. Why is it not enough to simply establish rules for social interaction and insist that they are adhered to?

Teaching experience shows that the threat of consequences has little influence on how pupils treat each other. The children are much more likely to stick to agreements that we have made together and that they are convinced of. If I know that my counterpart is struggling with insecurities, fears and stress just as much as I am, if I know that I can help them and how to do so, then that creates a different basis. If I know that my counterpart shares the need to feel comfortable in the classroom, this realisation helps me to stick to our classroom agreements.

In most school classes today, children from different cultures and with different experiences come together. Is it really that easy to create common ground?

I have never recognised this as a problem. Children are very similar in their needs and in what they want to play and how they interact with each other. What sometimes causes difficulties is the religious background of the parents. I had parents in one class who were in a Christian free church and were worried about the Dalai Lama, that SEE Learning was a Buddhist religious lesson. I was glad they raised their concerns so I could invite them into the class and they quickly put their fears to rest. It's about secular ethics. About compassion, respect, kindness. These are universal values.

You teach «happiness» once a week. Is that enough?

This single lesson would not be enough. But I don't just come for «happiness», I also come for maths and remedial lessons. The heart of the curriculum is that it is an integral part of all subjects. Colleagues also apply the agreements and strategies in their lessons. These skills need to be practised again and again so that they become a natural part of everyday interaction.