Dr Shantha P Yahanpath and Shan P Yahanpath

We have seen relationship between happiness and work performance

Online learning has dehumanised some aspects of learning

Back-to-classroom is important in re-humanising learning

Example- students preferring face-to-face sessions over Skype

Transforming the campus to make it more student-friendly is essential in re-humanising learning

The relationship between Happiness and Work Performance is emphasised by- Wright and Cropanzano 2000, Lyubormirsky et al 2005 and Kerns and Ko 2010

Bakshande and Daghi 2015 found teachers’ happiness affects students’ happiness

Akiri’s 2014 work focusses on the importance of Teacher Happiness

Happiness and academic performance are correlated, this is explored by Salehi et al 2013

This argument is strengthened by Umbach and Wawrzynski 2005

More recently Neuroscientist Spitzer 2015 focusses on the importance of the learning experience

We will discuss effects on student happiness in Australia

There has been a move from small classes to online learning and large lecture theatres- this has caused an element of dehumanisation

Educating rather than teaching is needed in the re-humanisation process

The difference between teaching and educating is care.

Lecturers are of significant importance in delivering care and thereby happiness for the students

How does a teacher become an educator- must first be a good human being, then a good customer care representative

The advent of MOOCs has had clear benefits but was not meant to replace face-to-face learning (Thrun, cited in Rivard 2013)

MOOCs have their disadvantage- students lose engagement after 1-2 weeks

Face-to-face learning and student involvement is vital for student happiness

Who and what makes students happy (or unhappy)? Parental expectations and demands. Financial problems or learning difficulties and the list goes on…

Teachers have an important role in bringing students to happiness

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a method that can be used to change the patterns of thought, behaviour and emotions

Teachers can be positive influencers of happiness

There are positive and negative influences of happiness. Important to not let others steer one’s happiness

“Come to office” strategy of Yahoo is similar to “sticky campus” strategy of bringing students back to campus

We should not underestimate the power of face-to-face interaction

Student engagement can be increased through collaborative and active learning

Students should not be unhappy due to other people’s unhappiness

Students need to preserve their happiness by understanding time is scarce, do de-coupling (letting go) from others and finally set the boundaries of their happiness

Hope is very important for students, and teachers have a role in providing hope for students

“Sustainable Happiness” (O’Brien, 2010) is important for a mutually beneficial student-teacher relationship; teachers should not exploit students’ happiness and vice versa

Students are not just good or bad, they develop in the right or wrong direction

Emotional resilience is often low in students, teachers can focus on training students in increasing their emotional intelligence

Humans can shift from a negative to a positive mindset

Teachers have a role in helping students to recognise ANTS (Automatic Negative Thoughts) which make students unhappy and also in helping students to be positive and motivated

Mind, like any other information processing tool needs refreshing and rebooting

How to refresh your mind-Mind must firstly idle for ten minutes to clear out clutter, then new information has to register in the mind

This new information should be focussed on happiness, hope and positive thoughts

By refreshing the mind, students are likely to have superior cognition and improve their academic performance

Teachers need to be successful educators, rather than just teachers

1.Value-add to encourage students to come to university

2. Learning activities increasing involvement of students

3. Engage students positively by identifying “stress points” that promote negativity within the students

4. Challenging students in a “lectorial” approach, combining elements of lecture and tutorial

5. Inspire with knowledge, empathy and understanding

6.Provide an enriching and engaging learning experience

7. Nurture “sustainable happiness” within the teacher-student relationship

8. Give feedback, encouragement, hope and future promise

9. Facilitate discussion so students can openly express their views

10. Undertake continuous professional development to become holistic educators

Future of teaching- the teacher will be facilitator, mentor and coach

Student happiness is very important in determining academic performance

In the midst of dehumanisation, achieving happiness and satisfaction is a challenge

Teachers can be positive mentors for students

Re-humanising learning is important

Teachers have a role- training students in emotional resilience and nurturing “sustainable happiness”

Teachers contribute to student happiness and a happy student likely to excel in academic pursuit.