Fiona Vaz In one of my classes, a few years ago, a professor of mine who taught educators how to teach controversial issues to school students, mentioned that patriotism can never be taught. My professor had taught history in primary schools for several years before becoming a teacher educator and knew what he was talking about. I reflected deeply about what he said especially as patriotism curriculum was being introduced in Delhi. Patriotism, like happiness, cannot be taught and must be felt. These are natural outcomes of several factors that cannot be controlled. Several complex factors might influence a person’s feelings of oneness towards one’s country or even what constitutes happiness for someone. If these cannot be taught, then what does the patriotism or happiness curriculum in Delhi, for example offer? The answer to this question lies in the fact that these curriculums are created on principles of social and emotional learning (SEL) skills. In fact, the Happiness Curriculum being implemented in government schools of Delhi is the largest public SEL programme in the world. The aim of SEL programmes is to foster skills in children that will allow them to be more empathetic towards others and also be more aware of their own emotions thus helping them regulate their emotions better. Investing in SEL means that students gain in other areas of their lives too. They might have bigger academic gains, or make healthier choices and be able to regulate their emotions more effectively. However, some questions still remain: do we need to burden teachers who already have a heavy workload with another curriculum? Does everything need to be taught at school? Are homes and communities no longer places that can take on the role of nurturing skills in children? And finally, can we teach children emotional regulation and how to relate to others? These questions prompt a closer look at SEL. Social Emotional Learning: A practitioner’s definitionAccording to Joseph E Zins, who in 1995 wrote about the importance of emotional intelligence in academic and learning spaces, SEL is an extension of building emotional intelligence in children. Typically, SEL might be used to address another problem that a school or community might be facing such as drug abuse, bullying, increased mental health conditions, or even drop-outs. Misbah Shahid, who worked with the Teacher Foundation to develop their framework on SEL, mentions that schools could use SEL to curb bullying among students, for example. According to Zins, no matter what its overarching objectives, effective SEL