Having said that, a happy environment plays a major role in the wellbeing, success and achievements of children in school as well as life beyond. Happiness can be undermined by various internal and external factors. External factors such as inequality, discrimination and violence can create an unhappy society. On the other hand, internal factors such as poor learning experiences, insensitive educators or overemphasis on results and test scores can create unhappy schools.
“Children want the same things we want. To laugh, to be challenged, to be entertained, and delighted.” – Dr Suess
However, out of all the factors that influence happiness, school experience has the highest impact in shaping the lives of children to who they become in future. Considering the important link between happiness and education, UNESCO Bangkok came up with the Happy Schools Framework devised based on the survey conducted under the Happy Schools Project.
The criteria which make a happy school were broadly placed under three main categories: people, process and place.
People
The relationships and interactions in the school community, positive attitude, skills and wellbeing of the teacher, the collaborative values and working conditions are some of the criteria that determine how happy a school environment is.
At Maple Leaf Kingsley International School, we produce well-rounded individuals who are curious about the world, thirsty for knowledge, happy and content, kind, resilient and have a good reflection of self. The school ensures that it stimulates these characteristics in the students through firm yet kind actions, building strong trust and giving genuine care.
Kingsley believes that by building these authentic connections, they not only make the students feel valued but empower them from within and encourage them to go further. This stems from their belief in empowering the teachers in a way that they serve as compassionate, creative, inspiring, fair and happy role models of the students. By being attentive to those who are in constant communication with the students, they are able to truly empower the students.
The mindful and positive interactions between teachers and peers ensure that students feel comfortable to confide in and share their problems; an initiative for building better mental health.