Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said the aim of their school education is to make students good human beings, hardcore patriots, and employable. Addressing an event here to mark four years of the Happiness Curriculum, he said when the AAP came in power the condition of schools was "bad" and the board exam results were also "not up to the mark".
"But now we are doing well. We have introduced various curricula that have reduced academic pressure. Happiness classes help reduce mental stress in students and that's why, thankfully, there is no case of student suicide in Delhi," the chief minister said.
Kejriwal said the aim is to create students who “do not spread hate but disseminate a message of love in the country”. The wife of former US president Donald Trump had attended the Delhi government's Happiness Classes and was impressed, he said.
The Delhi government's Happiness Utsav 2022 came to an end at a grand ceremony on Friday at Thyagaraj stadium which was attended by Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia. The ceremony also witnessed a Rajyoga Meditation session by Sister BK Shivani of the Brahma Kumaris order. According to a statement, the chief minister led the students in an exhilarating participative drum performance.
Addressing the gathering, Kejriwal said students of the Delhi government's schools will become prime ministers and chief ministers of the future and will also become top-class doctors and engineers and lead the nation. Happiness and entrepreneurship classes are alleviating stress and filling students with self-confidence, he said.
"When students attend happiness classes and meditate they can recognise their underlying potential. In the last seven years, we have spent Rs 90,000 crore on the education system. This is not an expense but an investment," Kejriwal said. The Delhi chief minister said after improving school infrastructure, the AAP government motivated and trained teachers and headmasters at schools. With the government's "succinct efforts", the students started getting excellent marks, he said.
"This year, 99.7 per cent of students of government schools have passed the matriculation exams and have set a record in the country," Kejriwal said. The Delhi government has organised Happiness Utsav 2022 to mark four years of the implementation of the Happiness Curriculum in its schools.
On the occasion, Sister BK Shivani said, "This is the first time that a government is running a Happiness Curriculum. We all have to pledge to take the mission forward to the world." Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia held an interactive session with students and teachers at the stadium seeking their feedback on the implementation of the programme.
"We have taken up the onus of making our students happier and better humans and the Happiness Curriculum is the foundation of this process," he said. "Not only did government schools become great but the academic results also improved overtime. Children from poor families studying in our schools started getting selected for IIT and NEET," the deputy chief minister said.
He said in happiness classes children are taught to be happy through discussions, stories, activities and most importantly mindfulness. "I am proud and happy that every day 18 lakh children studying in Delhi government schools start their day with mindfulness.
"This has not only brought a change in the personality of children but also brought a positive change in the school environment. People from all over the world are coming to see it and learn from it," Sisodia said.
According to the statement, the Happiness Curriculum was launched in 2018 with the idea of teaching students to be happier. The Happiness Utsav was celebrated in schools for three weeks where each week followed one key component of the curriculum such as mindfulness, stories and activities.
Special sessions for students on happiness were held by Gaur Gopal Das, Sister BK Shivani and Somdev Tyagi, an educator of Jeevan Vidya since 2000, the statement said.
(With PTI Inputs)
