Happiness: The Key To Student Success In Schools

📅 31 Mar 2025 • 📖 5 min read

Many adults think that happiness equals success. And say success means having a high-paying job or a high-ranking position, which translates into happiness.

Students, similarly, tie their success to getting degrees and skills in school or college to be able to enter the job market, and be happy thereby.

However, happiness may be the real key to student success, not the other way around. A career is important, but true success often comes from finding happiness and meaning in life, not just employment.

In 2025, with growing awareness of mental health in education, students can do better, stay motivated, and make better decisions if teachers help them achieve more joy and success in class.

Keys To Student Happiness

Students need to be taught that happiness and emotional well-being are key to living fulfilling lives beyond school.

Two techniques to improve students’ emotional health and help them think, feel, and act in ways that lead to positive school and life outcomes are:

• Social-emotional learning
• Mindfulness practices

Both techniques can be taught independently or together. The main goal would be to make them a part of their daily life.

Here are some methods teachers can use:

• When reading a book, teach students how to empathize with the characters, their motivations, and ideas. Have them think about the author and the message they’re trying to get across.
• Teach students how to handle boredom or frustration, especially when handling a complex concept or task. Students who know how to regain their focus are less likely to mind-wander.
• Help students understand that asking for help is not a sign of weakness or shame, especially those having academic difficulties. Invite them to ask questions about lessons after class or over email.
• Teachers could practice various breathing and meditation techniques with the class to increase their mindfulness and self-awareness. Mindfulness helps them observe and interact without judgment.

Teachers should also make it a point to ask struggling students if they find the assignments unmanageable.

Education And Happiness

How students feel and think affects how well they do in school.

When students find joy and meaning in their work, they’re more likely to put in extra effort. Positive emotions are linked to better student well-being and performance in school.

Conversely, feelings like sadness, unresolved emotional issues, and depression can drain students’ energy and make them less efficient and less hard-working.

However, we can’t expect students to feel positive all the time. Negative emotions exist for a reason, and it’s not healthy to deny or avoid them. Students should learn that everyone feels sad or annoyed at times and that they are normal. They should learn how to handle a range of emotions and find a balance.

A bit of stress can push kids to work harder. Teachers may create an atmosphere of friendly competition in the classroom to help students feel emotions beyond the positive ones. It’s one way they are helping students succeed.

As the Netflix series Adolescence warned us, we should be careful about what our adolescents are exposed to online and at school. Handed-down emotions often influence how adolescents behave around others, how they motivate themselves, and what choices they make.

The Bane of The Comfort Zone

A happy student isn’t one who always stays in their comfort zone.

One key to wholesome well-being and psychological safety is learning to deal with those who challenge the students not just academically, but more importantly, socially.

Students must be taught that they’ll encounter people who are of harmful intent, and who may not be ones to get along with, and how to avoid, handle, or report these people.

When students choose to stick around in groups made up of their comfort-zone friends, they may never learn to be kind to diverse people. So, they should be encouraged to interact with people different from them, so they can learn new social skills and safety boundaries.

Finally, students should be taught that mistakes are not problems, but opportunities to learn new things. Reflecting on their failures and mistakes will help expand their minds and lead to a happier future.

A Sense of Meaning In A Student’s Life

All of us must have pondered at some point in our lives: What is the meaning of my life?

But what does it mean in a student’s life?

For students, finding meaning often involves connecting their daily efforts to larger goals and aspirations. It’s about seeing how their studies and activities contribute to personal growth, future opportunities, and the well-being of others.

When students see the purpose behind their learning, they are more motivated and engaged. This sense of meaning can come from setting personal goals, pursuing passions, or contributing to their community.

Ultimately, a sense of meaning in a student’s life is about finding fulfillment while dealing with the challenges of school, and developing a clearer sense of direction and purpose in life.

Final Words

Students need to know what makes them happy before they figure out what they want to accomplish in school and life.

Job skills should not limit a student’s life. What matters is the way we understand how we can live our lives beyond these materialistic goals and pursuits.

So, once again: happiness is the key to success in a student’s life, so let’s not make it the other way around.

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Author Bio: Sandra Larson, an avid yoga practitioner, wrote an early version of this post. Extensively rewritten and edited by Dr. Sandip Roy.

√ Also Read: 5 Incredible Ways To Increase Classroom Productivity

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