Teachers and parents

The functioning of our NC is dependent on all the dedicated teachers and representatives at various schools throughout Switzerland. Usually, students will first get involved in EYP through their teachers, who can continue to coach and support them with the valuable experience they have from attending sessions for many years.

During sessions, students communicate exclusively in the official languages of the EYP (English and French) and therefore get an opportunity to put their language skills into practice both in academic discussions and social situations. The same applies to political knowledge and debating skills, which are both fostered within EYP. For all these reasons, many teachers value EYP as a unique opportunity for learning and self-development for young students.

Teachers and schools

EYP wants to promote non-formal learning in the field of political education. Our work is volunteer-based only, and we are grateful for the continuous trust of dozens of Swiss high schools in the past 27 years.

As a school, you will be interested in EYP if ...

  • ... you want to show your students politics as a real experience
  • ... you want to foster your students' public speaking and debating skills
  • ... you want to sensibilize your students for cultural and political diversity
  • ... you want your school to offer a rich extracurricular activity that entails little additional work for your staff

As a teacher, your tasks will be to ...

  • ... sign up a delegation to one of our events
  • ... overlook the delegation in its preparation for their topic and the different parts of the programme
  • ... accompany the delegation to the session

Further reading you might be interested in:

Safety and Welfare during EYP sessions is of furthermost importance to us and the entire Network. Extensive safety policies have been put in place that our participants have a pleasant experience during their time with us. Our National Safe Person is the main contact point as well as the overseeing party for all matters concerning safety and welfare during EYP Sessions. For any questions, please don't hesitate to contact them.

If you are interested in signing up a delegation of your students to the upcoming NSC, please visit our Teacher Guide for more information.

Have you participated in EYP sessions as a teacher and would like to stay in touch with our organisation? We value your contribution and your support, please do keep in touch and join our Teacher Slack channel and contact our National Coordinator.

Parents

While parents obviously can't participate in a youth parliament, we wish for parents to know about our organisation and why your loved one will benefit from EYP.

The European Youth Parliament is a unique adventure for your children. In a society where extracurricular activities are more and more important, we offer a holistic way of learning and experiencing the politics and culture of Europe - but we take pride in not being limited to this. Under the guidance of experienced and responsible students aged 18-25, and assisted by the accompanying teachers, our events offer a safe and welcoming environment for everyone.

Safety and Welfare during EYP sessions is of furthermost importance to us and the entire Network. Extensive safety policies have been put in place that our participants have a pleasant experience during their time with us. Our National Safe Person is the main contact point as well as the overseeing party for all matters concerning safety and welfare during EYP Sessions. For any questions, please don't hesitate to contact them.

Participating in EYP will not only foster academic skills of your children, but perhaps just as importantly, we care about personal development. Through an inspirational and innovative non-formal methodology that was developed at sessions for more than 20 years now, we seek to educate, inspire - and be fun, too!