"Dream Lesson" from 1+1 Marathon and TSN presenter Natalia Moseychuk and teacher-innovator Petro Sitek
Today, on the International Day of Happiness, Natalia Moseychuk, the permanent curator of the Global Teacher Prize Ukraine, host of 1+1 Marathon and TSN, interviewer, together with Petro Sitek, a teacher and one of the finalists of the prize, held an open lesson in Irpin Lyceum No. 3, which suffered during the occupation.
This institution is currently being restored with the support of the Osvitoria NGO. During the open lesson on 'Dream', students learned how important it is to set goals in life and what to rely on to achieve them.
The unique course was developed by Lviv educator Petro Sitek. Last year, he received an award in the Young Teacher nomination from the Global Teacher Prize Ukraine 2023, a national award organised by Osvitoria. The teacher received one million hryvnias from Finn Church Aid, a Finnish international non-governmental organisation, to help him realise his educational dream.
"The school should help students work with their level of happiness and provide them with specific tools that will affect their well-being. The Happiness project is aimed at spreading the culture of happiness in Ukrainian schools and strengthening teachers in helping students," explains the educator.
The Happiness curriculum is based on the most popular course at Yale University, The Science of Well-Being. It focuses on two main tasks: helping students understand what happiness is and teaching them how to implement this knowledge in their everyday lives. The Citek programme will prepare school teachers to do this: by the end of the course, more than 60 of his colleagues will have become teachers of happiness.
"We talked to the lyceum students about their dreams. And we did an exercise developed by Petro - we closed our eyes and moved 5-10 years ahead. And although it was scary at first to look so far into the future, in a moment we didn't want to return to the present. Just like the children. Because their dreams of the future are bright. There is no war, no losses. There is only a successful career, a happy family and loving friends," Natalia Moseychuk is convinced.
The Global Teacher Prize Ukraine national award has announced the start of collecting applications for the best teacher in the country in 2024. The main winner will receive one million hryvnias for their own educational project and will go on a trip to the Global Teacher Prize.
Applications are being accepted until 8 July on the Global Teacher Prize Ukraine website. The application can be filled out directly by the teacher, or it can be submitted by his or her colleagues, students, or their parents.
