With the rapid advancement of AI, future societies demand higher-level competencies. To foster students’ higher-order thinking and achieve the goal of making learning “more scientific, happier, and more effective,” the Peking University Learning Sciences Laboratory proposed the concept of New Happy Education. It aims to integrate the learning sciences and game-based learning so that every child can enjoy learning and grow into an innovative talent prepared for the future.

Guided by the New Happy Education framework, the laboratory integrated research outcomes from the learning sciences and game-based learning. After two years of intensive development and four rounds of classroom-based research, the team created a “student learning-science literacy” curriculum—Exploring the Secrets of Learning. The course includes three units—learning fuel, learning strategies, and learning technology—focusing on motivation, cognitive strategy optimization, skill building, and the use of intelligent technologies. It highlights brain plasticity, equips students with strategies such as metacognition and self-regulation, and leverages modern technology to support learning. Combining scientific rigor with practical application, the curriculum offers rich interactive experiences to help students understand how learning works, strengthen effective learning from the ground up, and ultimately support the cultivation of top innovative talent.

To promote the New Happy Education concept more broadly and enable more students and teachers to apply learning-science principles in learning and instruction, we have compiled the textbook, slide deck, and video-based courseware into a resource package and made it freely available to all schools in basic education. Primary and secondary schools can access materials related to Exploring the Secrets of Learning to learn about the learning sciences and improve learning outcomes using strategies such as game-based learning. Please note that these materials are freely open only for classroom use in basic education settings; without authorization from the Learning Sciences Laboratory, they may not be used for any commercial purposes.