Wellbeing and mental strength: promoting internet safety and tackling bullying

At Champittet, educational excellence has always meant taking a holistic approach to our students. This school year, we are taking extra steps to support the psychological needs of young people by embracing wellbeing and mental strength as our theme.

One of the ways in which we can support the mental health of students is by equipping them with the skills to recognise risks and protect themselves. With this in mind, we have organised a series of prevention workshops.

Helping students to stay safe online

The balanced use of technology can enhance learning and engagement, but technology and the internet can also pose certain dangers for children and young adults. For our first workshop in October, we invited François Nanchen, Deputy Chief Inspector and Prevention Officer of the Vaud Cantonal Police, to teach our students how to make healthy and moderate use of technological tools while protecting themselves from online risks.

Known as the first “e-cop” in French-speaking Switzerland, François Nanchen specialises in helping young teens use technology wisely. On his TikTok account ecop.françois and Instagram profile, he uses a light-hearted, engaging tone to transmit serious messages about online dangers. At our workshop, he discussed important topics such as criminal law, the dangers of sending nude or partially nude photos of oneself or someone else, harassment via social networks, and online reputation.

Taking a stand against bullying

Preventing harassment and exclusion was the focus of our second workshop. To learn about this subject, our secondary school students attended a performance of the musical theatre show “Par le MOI”. Through speeches and songs, the performance transmitted powerful anti-harassment messages in a positive atmosphere.

“Par le MOI” aims to empower young people and to give hope to victims of harassment. Followed by an interactive Q&A session, the show introduced students to topics such as respect for self and others, ways to protect oneself, acceptable and non-acceptable behaviour, and what to do if one is a victim of violence or harassment.

Providing our students with the knowledge and skills to protect their mental health and wellbeing is a top priority. More workshops and activities on these important topics will be held throughout the year.