Happiness at School: "It’s Just like Being at a Great Party"

First lesson: Math. Second lesson: Science. Third lesson: Happiness. The lesson plan at an advanced secondary school in Heidelberg looks similar to that. During class, students learn to deal respectfully with one another and to take on responsibility.

01/04/2010

In Germany, England, Austria and
the USA some schools teach
Happiness; © SXC

REHACARE.de spoke with Ernst Fritz-Schubert, the creator of the school subject, about physical activity versus chocolate and pleasure versus pain

REHACARE.de: Mr. Fritz-Schubert, since 2007 you teach the school subject of Happiness at the Willy-Hellpach-School in Heidelberg. Are your students now happier than others?

Ernst Fritz-Schubert: Yes, thanks to the lessons my students have an entirely new image of themselves. They feel healthier and also cause less problems. The school community as a whole has become much better and more personal in terms of cooperation. Two scientific evaluations prove those changes.

REHACARE.de: Even the physician and comedian Eckart von Hirschhausen demands that Happiness should be a subject that can be studied at school. In what way do school and Happiness actually fit together?

Fritz-Schubert: My understanding of Happiness above all is a question of life fulfillment. For a person to aspire to this, you have to deliver some good reasons. And those can be taught at school.

REHACARE.de: Exactly what does a Happiness-lesson look like?

Fritz-Schubert: We do breathing exercises, role play and mental health training. We also accentuate our strengths and by changing our perspective, we recognize that even perceived weaknesses have a potential.

REHACARE.de: How do you approach this exactly?

Fritz-Schubert: On filing cards, everybody writes down their supposedly negative characteristics like impatience or shyness. Afterwards, we shuffle the cards and newly redistribute them. Now the participants are trying to describe the unfamiliar characteristics as good as possible. It often happens for example that other students do not perceive the shyness of the concerned person as a negative. They even complement the person and by doing so, strengthen their self-confidence.

REHACARE.de: So it’s mostly about the solidarity?

Fritz-Schubert: Yes, through others, the students learn to get to know themselves better and they realize their strengths. It’s all about creating key experiences together at school and then applying them in your everyday life. It’s important that they experience those happy moments also in a physical way and embed them in their memory.

REHACARE.de: Why is that so important?

Fritz-Schubert: Real and physical experiences can be memorized easier. It’s about alternatives which I experience as positive. Let’s assume I always eat chocolate when I am in a bad mood. During the lesson, I am now learning that in situations like this, physical activity in fresh air will also make me feel better. If I consciously weigh the pros and cons of both alternatives, I may possibly conclude that I might prefer doing some sports instead in the future. Some of my students are even going to participate in the City-Marathon.

Ernst Fritz-Schubert © private

REHACARE.de: Every school subject is being graded. Even yours, but how can you grade Happiness?

Fritz-Schubert: The students have to document their experiences from the school lessons. First, they describe what they experienced. Then they have to ask themselves: What did I notice about myself? What did I notice in the community? And lastly, they need to evaluate whether those experiences are useful for the individual in everyday life. So this means whether in the future, instead of eating chocolate when I am in a bad mood, I will do sports instead. These written reflections about such moments of happiness will then be graded.

REHACARE.de: To talk with each other, sports, but also grades. How do students react to your school subject?

Fritz-Schubert: Student eyes light up when they come into the classroom. Perhaps that is also because bad grades are an exception in this school subject. We often overrun the lesson time limit, because everybody has so much fun. It’s just like being at a great party: You stay until late into the night, even though you need to get up early in the morning. Just because it’s worth it. During the lesson as well as during a party, time just flies.

REHACARE.de: In Austria, England and the USA the school subject “Happiness" is here and there available. Even in Germany some schools are following your approach and introduce alternative school subjects such as “Coming-of-age“ or “Helping Hand“. What does a teacher need to know to be able to teach this subject?

Fritz-Schubert: Happiness cannot be taught by everybody. You have to think in a solution-oriented way, you have to be authentic and you have to like people above all else. Since you cannot study this subject yet as a teacher, since September 2009 I have offered training courses on the subject Happiness together with the Institute for Medical Psychology. School systems do not just need clear structures, they especially need competent teachers.

REHACARE.de: With three years of work experience under your belt, you are a veteran among Happiness-teachers - has this made you happier yourself?

Fritz-Schubert: Of course, that’s a given. At 61 years old, I still feel valuable. Because of the lessons, I have something to stand up for. And if I am occasionally in a bad mood, my spirits lift as soon as I enter the classroom. (laughs)

This interview was conducted by Nadine Lormis and translated by Elena O'Meara.
REHACARE.de