Morris, I. (2009). Teaching happiness and well-being in schools: Learning to ride elephants. London: Continuum International Publishing Group.

This book sheds light upon the remarkable characteristic of human nature, that is, everyone wants to be happy! But how do we get that happiness? Is it in the materialistic things that we hoard day after day? Is it something that lies within the individual? Or is it a subjective experience that can be facilitated when children are at school? The author, Ian Morris aims to provide a framework for a new perspective in which the progress of our society is measured by the calibre of our experience. At a time, when an avid interest in positive psychology and teaching of happiness and well-being is blossoming, this book provides a pragmatic introduction to the theory and specific advice on how to implement the potentially life-changing and human-flourishing ideas in the classroom. It introduces middle and high school teachers to a curriculum of happiness and well-being which is developed by the author and is being taught at Wellington College in Berkshire where he is employed.

In the first chapter of the book, Morris provides a justification for the metaphorical title, elucidating how teaching happiness and well-being is about trying to help children to bring the elephant and rider into one harmonious whole:

The aim of teaching happiness and well-being is to teach the rider, not only about himself, but also about the elephant that he rides. Many people go through life experiencing an antagonistic relationship between, metaphorically speaking, the elephant and the rider and this antagonism is the source of psychological and physiological problems. If we can provide young people with an elephant rider's manual, in other words, if we can teach them how they function as humans and then teach them how to be not just functioning humans, but excellent ones, we might be able to help them to avoid many of the pitfalls that arise either from a rider that tries to exert too much control, or from a runaway elephant (p.3).

The author denounces the 'full catastrophe teaching' (p.3) for its focus on preparing children for the worst-case scenario, neglecting to educate them in how to achieve the best-case scenario. He strongly recommends teaching children what it means to flourish and how to be excellent human beings. He suggests that the process of teaching well-being involves students in a simple three-stage, cyclical process: awareness (notice), intervention (act) and evaluation (reflect). He proposes a logical idea of how well-being of students is anchored upon teacher well-being and whole-school well-being. It is poised at the centre of education with the support of 'satellite principles' (p.15) of stillness, awareness, strengths, prudence, values and relationships.

In chapter 2, the nature and history of happiness and the need for teaching it in schools are explored methodically. Morris emphasises his argument that happiness could be considered as an attitude of mind that can be practised and it is possible to believe that people can be taught to be happy. In the following chapter, he makes his point clear about the importance of the well-being of human machine and its harmony with the outside world.

Starting from Chapters 4 through to 8, Morris elaborately explains each of the satellite principles in his fluent and captivating style of writing. He effortlessly captures the readers' attention and gears them to read further about how these pertinent principles could be imparted to students in a classroom situation. His systematic illustration and investigation of each of the principles, peppered with examples, case studies and readings from various sources, including Buddhism and Christianity would serve as an inspirational resource for teachers.

In the most arresting chapter titled, "Modern Life is rubbish", Morris delves into 'the idea that the modern Western society is often pressured and rushed and that we find ourselves charging from one thing to the next under constant pressure to maximise our productivity' (p.180). His approach to this idea strikes a very fine balance, cautiously complementing the advantages of science and technology while impartially criticising its misuse. He tenaciously advocates how 'delayed gratification' (p.165) could avoid 'anomie' (p.166) that can arise from modern day consumerism, challenging the teenagers' attitude and behaviour, indeed!

Morris adeptly concludes the book with a chapter on 'Mindfulness, meditation, spirituality and meaning', where he proposes the magnitude of the practice of mindfulness and the importance of encouraging spirituality in schools. When the educational system boasts of preparing the youth to be the worthy citizens of the world, this initiative deserves attention. His argument for its need is well-documented by the positive feedback from his students who learnt about meditation in the well-being course. He affirms that the teaching of well-being helps to 'complete what is missing from education and it can transform the experience young people have of education and the experience that educators have of young people' (p.199).

The strengths of the book are multi-fold: chapter previews, lesson ideas and teacher resources for each chapter, provision of film suggestions to drive home the basic concepts, a number of case studies to reiterate the essence of each chapter content and an endnote section providing notes to references reflecting the author's wide reading and in-depth knowledge in the area of well-being. His meticulous recommendation of how a well-being curriculum could be designed reflects his proficiency and wisdom in teaching this subject. The author's expertise and thoroughness are exemplified through his suggestions regarding sources of information for help in devising a curriculum on well-being, for further reading and useful websites. I fully agree with Lord Richard Layard who, in his foreword, said, 'for teachers of that (well-being) curriculum, this book will be a godsend'.

While there is a plethora of information in the book on the significance and teaching of well-being in schools, which would definitely motivate the teachers to deliver the goods through a sound pedagogy, what I miss is a section on a systematic approach to course delivery. A progressive introduction of concepts and content of the well-being curriculum over a period of four years of high school is crucial for two reasons: i) the developmental changes that occur in adolescence, especially their mental abilities need consideration so that students would understand the abstract concepts like happiness, prudence and values ii) the curriculum content needs to be introduced gradually and methodically from Year 7 through to Year 10. The content for the final year students of high school could be much more rigorous and intense than that is for students who are in the first year of high school. It would be of enormous assistance to teachers if an exclusive section on suggestions for course framework and content for different year levels in high school could be included in the next edition of the book. This would strengthen the relevance and context of teaching this new subject to adolescents who are at the transitional stage of their lives in the changing world.

This diminutive shortcoming aside, the success of Teaching happiness and well-being in schools: Learning to ride elephants lies in its content and significance which are undoubtedly imperative in the lives of teenagers. This book is an epitome of Morris's passion in this subject where he gives a concrete compendium of resources for classroom practitioners to instil in students the skills related to their well-being not only through their school years but also throughout their lives.