ABSTRACT
In the autumn of 2020, life mastery was introduced into Norwegian public schools as part of the interdisciplinary subject “health and life skills”, along with “sustainable development” and “democracy and citizenship”. It appears that leading politicians and educators perceive life mastery as a proper response to youths’ declining mental health. This tendency is not unique to Norway but is a trend often referred to as “therapeutic education”, which can be found in many countries worldwide. However, can teaching students life skills, in the form of psychoeducation and healthy coping strategies for handling stress and pressure, really keep its promise and prevent them developing anxiety, depression, self-harm or eating disorders? Furthermore, who will potentially profit from life mastery? Will it be the youths that need help the most, or the already-resourceful students with the best life-chances? Moreover, is the introduction of health and life mastery in public schools an expression of a tendency in the 21st century in many Western liberal democracies for all individuals, even children and adolescents, to be held accountable for their own health, education and life prospects?
