School dropout prevention in France

For this 9th-grade school year (2024–2025), the students in the dropout-prevention group focused on career guidance and set out to explore various professions and vocational paths. After discovering woodworking, writing, illustration, and physical sciences, the students chose one profession they wanted to explore more deeply and present for the national competition “Je Filme le Métier qui me Plait” : the profession of chocolate artisan.

After watching a documentary about the world of chocolate—a world not as fair as it may seem—they began working on the storyboard for their video and on the message they wanted to convey. Once the storyboard was completed, they visited the Schaal chocolate factory and interviewed chocolatiers about the realities of their work. Of course, questions about fair trade were plentiful, and some group members have since become very attentive to the origin of their chocolate!

This entire process led to the creation of a short documentary that was presented during the award ceremony at the Grand Rex, Paris, where the students were proud of their work, even if they unfortunately did not win a prize.

To discover the behind-the-scenes of this project, you can watch the making-of video here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UAxFeRXjyE

In addition to this project, the students also took part in organizing and carrying out an Innova’thon - an innovation competition addressing sustainable development issues, in which teams made up of professionals and students competed over two days. The teams came up with some amazing ideas to reduce cigarette butt pollution, how to make schools more inclusive and lots more ! These moments of sharing and exchange concluded with judging panels and an emotional award ceremony. The students came out of the experience more mature and confident, and some with a clearer idea of their future career path.

This school year ended on a successful note, as a large majority of students continued their educational journey.