One California lawmaker's efforts to include happiness in public policy

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I'm Nikki Strong, and this is VOA One The Hits.

Welcome to Learning English, a daily 30-minute program from the voice of America.

I'm Ashley Thompson.

And I'm Dan Novak.

This program is designed for English learners, so we speak a little slower, and we use words

and phrases, especially written for people learning English.

Today we tell you about one California lawmaker's efforts to include happiness in public policy.

Dan Novak has this week's education report.

Andrew Smith reads a winning entry from our, teach us about Ukraine writing contests.

Finally, we hear today's lesson of the day.

But first, March 20th is the United Nations International Day of Happiness.

For many years, northern European countries, especially Finland, have been named among

the happiest countries on Earth.

The United States has never made it into the top 10.

But California State Lawmaker Anthony Rendon is hoping he can do something about happiness

in the most populous American state.

In his free time, Rendon likes to stay away from the workplace and spend time with his

four-year-old daughter at his home near Los Angeles.

Recently, he took her ice skating and to an indoor play area.

He said those are the things that make me happy.

As one of the longest-serving leaders in the California legislature, Rendon is now trying

to make happiness more central to policy-making in his last year in office.

He created a first-in-the-nation group to study the issue of happiness.

The group is called the Select Committee on Happiness and Public Policy Outcomes.

Rendon said it would be silly for lawmakers to not study how they can make people happier.

As if we have everybody clothed, everybody housed, everybody has a job, and they're miserable,

then we've failed at what we are trying to do, he said.

In California, three-quarters of adults say they are very happy or pretty happy.

Twenty-six percent say they are not too happy.

The numbers come from a September 2023 study by the Public Policy Institute of California.

The study also said Californians without a post-high school degree and those who earn less

money are generally less happy than those with more education and more money.

The idea of considering happiness in public policy is not new.

The South Asian nation of Bhutan sets happiness as a goal of its public policy.

The country asks its people about their level of happiness for what is called the Gross

National Happiness Index.

Officials then work to increase happiness by providing citizens with free healthcare

and education.

They also work to protect things like cultural traditions and the country's forests.

Puncho Norbu is Consul General of Bhutan to the United States.

Norbu said the government cannot make every person happy, but he said the government

should create the right conditions to help people find happiness.

In California, lawmakers recently heard from experts about the things that make people

happy and how public officials can support people's happiness.

Big Shot Demir is a professor of happiness at California State University Sacramento.

Demir said research shows that leisure activities, social relationships, and life situations

affect a person's happiness.

He added that public officials can help by investing in mental health resources, adding

green spaces, and teaching about the value of happiness early on in schools.

Rendon said California is behind many parts of the world in looking at happiness in policy

making.

He said he wanted to create the Happiness Committee after seeing a yearly report on happiness

by the United Nations.

Last year's Happiness Report said that the way people view the effectiveness of government

can influence their happiness.

The United States was 15th in the world happiness ranking based on a three-year average from

2020 to 2022.

Scandinavian countries, including Finland and Iceland, ranked the highest.

Christina Boss Hamilton is a longtime labor supporter in California.

Governments' role is to provide for its people, Boss Hamilton said.

The goal is to have happy citizens.

That's the goal of all public policy.

A nonprofit group has identified more than 1,500 books that local schools in America

have banned from their libraries and classrooms in 2022 to 2023.

The Free Speech Activism Group, Penn America, is based in New York City.

The group said the number represented a 33% increase from the year before.

The American Library Association, or ALA, says that there were more attempts to ban

books from schools last year than ever before.

Trump's for Liberty is a parental rights group based in Florida.

The group has supported efforts to bar certain books from school libraries around the country.

Group co-founder Tiffany Justice told the Television Network News Nation last year that many

books in school libraries are not right for children or teenagers and are harmful.

Most school children, K-12, do not have unfettered access to the internet at school or movies

or music, just as said.

But somehow, these books with these horribly explicit graphic content are finding their

way onto bookshelves in public schools all over America.

A.I.V. is a professor of literacy at University of North Carolina, Greensboro.

She and her research partner, Peter Johnston, from the University of Albany, have studied

students' motivations to read.

They also have studied how students react to reading young adult literature.

A.I.V. said school boards and policy makers do not agree about the purpose of reading in school.

A.I.V. and Johnston said they found that reading books considered disturbing by students

was beneficial for their learning and emotional development.

The two said parents also noticed a growth in their children after they read the disturbing

books.

In one of A.I.V. and Johnston's studies, they spent a year in a middle school in an

Eastern town.

They asked eighth grade students in an English class to choose any book they wanted to read.

The teens read the books during class time.

They were not under any pressure from teachers to finish the book or to produce any schoolwork

about the book.

The researchers later spoke to 71 of the students about their experiences reading the books

they chose.

They also spoke to their parents and teachers.

Many of the students chose to read books that deal with difficult subjects like depression,

suicide, illegal drug use or sexual exploitation.

Some of the books students chose were ones that schools around the country have banned.

These books included 13 Reasons Why by J. Asher, Identical by Ellen Hopkins, and Sold

by Patricia McCormick.

A.I.V. told V.O.A. that students are drawn to books that deal with troubling subjects.

Instead of being harmed by such subjects, reading about fictional characters made them more

empathetic, she said.

A.I.V. said they were also more thoughtful about the characters' motivations and actions.

The researchers found that reading made the students happier and helped some heal from

sadness or depression.

The difficult nature of the books made the students more likely to discuss the subjects

with teachers, parents and friends.

The students in the study read books that kind of throw you off-kilter that make you

want to talk to somebody else, A.I.V. said.

The social interaction around it was really important, including talking to parents and

teachers.

The subjects covered in the books may make both kids and adults uncomfortable.

But A.I.V. said she and Johnston came to realize that what really matters is the

meaning that the kids make out of the books, not adults' meanings that they make, which

are often times really off-base.

A.I.V. said reading texts with difficult and troubling subject matter makes students

more involved readers and learners.

Students are able to relate to characters facing difficult decisions and think about how

they would react to a situation described in the book.

A.I.V. and Johnston interviewed one teacher who said books that dealt with drugs, sex

and other issues made it easier to discuss those subjects in class.

Discussions about books made it a safe way to kind of get into these things, the teacher

said.

Reading disturbing books also made students more likely to learn as a group, the researchers

said.

With the troubling texts, sometimes it is really necessary to grab everybody around you

and put all heads around it and teach each other, A.I.V. said.

More and different kinds of learning happens in those situations.

I'm Dan Novak.

Dan is with me now to talk more about his education report.

Hi, Dan.

Hi, Ashley.

Glad to be here.

Your story today was about book bans and research into reading habits of teenagers.

Let's start with book bans.

What are the arguments in favor of banning some of these books?

There's a few arguments those in favor of censoring books make.

They say some of the titles are inappropriate for kids.

They say parents should be able to have a say in what their children are reading, and

they say some of the books contain harmful or dangerous ideas.

It should be noted that almost half of books targeted for censorship are either from

queer voices or from people of color.

But the research you wrote about suggests that reading so-called disturbing books is actually

quite helpful or beneficial for students.

Why?

The researchers found that adolescents or young people are drawn to books that handle difficult

topics, and it's easy to imagine why.

Those kinds of books and media are often the most interesting in compelling.

But reading them made students more empathetic, especially when they read fiction.

They can see themselves or their friends inside the characters they read about, and understand

why they make certain choices.

And reading about hard topics like depression or pregnancy can be a starting point to

talking about it with parents or teachers.

There was no evidence to suggest the books actually harmed them.

The professor you spoke with, gay ivy, said what matters is the meaning the students take

from the books, not what the adults think the book is about.

Yes, I've talked to teachers, and they say adults and policymakers often underestimate

kids' ability to think for themselves.

They can form their own ideas, and they're not just going to be shaped by whatever they

read, as some advocates for bookpans seem to believe.

All right, very interesting report today, Dan.

Thanks for answering my questions.

You're welcome.

My name is Oha Baluk, and I have been teaching English for 19 years in Venezuela, Ukraine.

In a small corner of Lysium 20, a type of school comprising primary and secondary ones,

in Venetia, Ukraine, students, teachers, and community members recently gathered as the

aroma of food wafted through the air.

It was not just a usual school event.

It was a celebration of Vereniki, the beloved Ukrainian dumplings.

Vereniki is much more than a delicious Ukrainian dish.

The food represents the heart and soul of a nation.

It is a sign of hospitality, unity, and tradition, making it perfect for a school festival

to bring people together.

Every year, schools across Ukraine come alive with the spirit of unity when different festivals

are organized.

This year, the festival in the Lysium served several purposes.

In addition to bringing the community together, it was organized to provide much-needed assistance

to children in need and the brave men and women in the army.

Due to the war, a lot of people, especially children, were forced to flee from the eastern

parts of the country.

They lost their parents and friends, houses, and other belongings, so they need both

psychological and financial help.

In a parogi festival, students, parents, and teachers worked to prepare several kinds

of foods, including dumplings.

The school became a center of culinary creativity with everyone working together to create

the tastiest Vereniki.

The place of education became a colorful market, decorated with pumpkins and snowball trees.

Food and dumplings included many fillings, from classic potato and cheese, to sweet fruit-filled

varieties, salmon, ricotta, herring, and beans.

Beyond food, the parogi festival was also a beacon of hope for those who need it most.

Children who are often the most vulnerable members of society received support from this

festival.

Andri Nazarenko, grade 5D, moved to Vinicia from Bachmuth.

This town is completely destroyed nowadays.

He was excited to take part in the event.

I did not expect to get such support from my new teachers and classmates.

I am really touched, said the boy.

Money raised from the festival also went to soldiers who defend the nation and provide

equipment and supplies for the Ukrainian military.

Through their involvement in the festival, students learned that they can make a difference

in the world no matter their age.

I'm Andrew Smith.

VOA Learning English has launched a new program for children.

It is called Let's Learn English with Anna.

The new course aims to teach children American English through asking and answering questions

and experiencing fun situations.

For more information, visit our website learningenglish.veawaynews.com.

In this next report, Gregory Stockle tells us about an American gardening expert who likes

trying new fruits and vegetables in her garden.

We learn about some new seed offerings that are available in the United States this year.

Pay careful attention to the word organic.

We will talk more about it after the report.

Jessica Domiano says crops like tomatoes, garlic, chives, basil, parsley, thyme and sage

have been permanent plants in her garden for ages.

Domiano, a gardening expert who writes for the associated press, says every year she experiments

with new or new to her crops.

Many do not stay in her garden for long, like the Voyager Tomatoes that lack taste, or

the goji berries she could not seem to eat.

And others like eight ball zucchini, rainbow Swiss chard and golden beets have earned permanent

homes in her raised beds.

This year's new introductions are available in seed catalogs in the U.S.

For small apple trees from plants newvo, called blushing delight, golden treat, tangy

green and tasty red, work well for people like Domiano who have limited garden space.

The trees grow to 2.5 to 3 meters tall and just a meter wide.

And they will even grow in containers.

You can plant 2 different kinds for cross pollination and fruit production.

Another crop, love gormons on beef steak tomatoes from burpee, is available in 2 different

kinds that each produce 28 gram heart shaped fruits.

Choose between red and a yellow red fruit called sunrise.

They grow in similar ways and taste similar, but have different disease resistance.

Domiano said she tested another crop from burpee called prism sweet peppers last summer.

She said the sweet bell shaped fruits grew well in her garden.

The productive plants also added beauty to her garden as the crop turned from light green

to orange and then red as the fruit aged.

The result was many different colors of fruits on the plants at any one time.

The crop quick snack cucumbers are the newest addition to panam seeds kitchen minis collection.

They are small enough to be grown in a hanging basket or even indoors since they do not

require pollination.

The small cucumbers are crisp and sweet.

The pastel duo baby turn up seed mix introduced from Japan by Renee's garden grows small

round roots in colors like pink and white.

Both colors have a mild sweet taste and thin skin that does not need to be removed.

Domiano says her genavise basil plants often get the disease down email due more often

than not.

She said she is looking forward to growing noga praspera active DMR organic basil produced

by genesis seeds.

The plants are sold as highly resistant to the disease, but they are also slow to flower,

which she says is another problem she often deals with in the height of the summer's

heat.

Finally, the crop lila-lu saying carrots offered by baker seeds are just about as eye-catching

as vegetables can get.

They have a deep purple color on the outside and a bright orange color on the inside.

But they are more than what one sees.

They contain the gains of both purple and orange carrots.

They are sweet, tasty and full of nutrients.

I'm Gregory Stockle.

For the report, we asked you to pay careful attention to the word organic.

Can you remember when you heard it?

You heard the term used to describe a kind of basil.

Let's listen again.

Domiano says her genavise basil plants often get the disease down email due more often

than not.

She said she is looking forward to growing Noga Prospera active DMR organic basil produced

by genesis seeds.

Organic can be either a noun or an adjective.

In our example, it is an adjective.

We spell it like this.

O R G A N I C organic has several different meanings.

The meaning can depend on the situation in which the word is used.

But in today's report, you heard the term used in one of its most common ways when we talk

about foods, farming and growing practices.

The very broad meaning of organic is that it involves food produced without pesticides,

antibiotics, chemically formulated fertilizers, and so on.

So, if a person says that they are growing with organic seeds, they are saying that they

are growing with seeds that were produced using organic farming practices.

If a farmer says that they are selling organic carrots, they are suggesting that they are

selling carrots that have been grown in a special way and without the use of some kinds

of chemicals or pesticides.

And that's the lesson of the day.

I'm John Russell.

And that's our program for today.

Join us again tomorrow to keep learning English through stories from around the world.

I'm Ashley Thompson.

And I'm Dan Novak.
On today’s podcast, a California lawmaker aims to legislate for happiness; one researcher says students learn a lot from disturbing books followed by a discussion about the debate over disturbing subjects in school; then, an essay on a traditional Ukrainian food; Lesson of the Day: ‘organic.’

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