Our talents: Gymnase de Bussigny

Why are more and more pupils from Bussigny taking part in the Olympiads? Is this an individual or collective initiative, or is it part of a talent promotion strategy? 

Célia Pittet: It's more of a bottom-up, individual initiative. In geography, I do it across the board, with all my classes, every year. This allows students to discover all branches of the discipline and what is taught at the national level. For me, it's an opportunity to showcase geography. y colleagues in mathematics tend to offer the Olympiads to students who are studying advanced mathematics, whereas there is no focus subject in geography. The Geography Olympiads lends itself to equal opportunities, as there are rarely any prerequisites other than curiosity. Of course, there are differences that arise at home, but at school we manage to put the students more or less on an equal footing and show them that there are national activities for those who want to go further.

Daniel Gardini: For me, too, participation in the Olympiads is an individual initiative; we were not encouraged to do so, even though, for the first time in 2025, the headmaster sent us a  general email promoting the Science Olympiads. My participation stems from the fact that I volunteered at the Chemistry Olympiad; I organised the second round and the training sessions at EPFL. In chemistry, previous knowledge is needed, so the competition is aimed more at third-year students who have chosen the a focus on chemistry and biology. I do a bit of pre-selection in the first year, based on averages of 5-5.5. I invite these students to take part in the Chemistry Olympiad and train them to participate in the third year. 

What does this training involve?

Daniel Gardini: I give interested students scripts to read over the summer. I don't know whether they read them or not. In their second year, students can take part in an optional course. If there are enough enrolments, I train them during a few free periods, with more advanced chemistry, so that they reach the required level after the central exam [the second round]. The level required for the National Chemistry Olympiad is similar to the level at high school, but for the International Chemistry Olympiad, the level is much higher, with quantum chemistry and molecular orbitals. I give them some pointers so that those who reach this stage are not taken by surprise.

Célia Pittet: For my part, I share the link to previous Geography Olympiad exams on the Moodle course platform. I do this for everyone; I don't prepare them beyond the teaching given to everyone. In general, I take the test in the same week with all my classes, following my weekly programme. 

This requires personal commitment. How do you get through the first round? With the new OlyPortal online platform, exams can be taken at any time, provided you have a device connected to the internet. 

Célia Pittet: We know that what isn't done in class won't be done outside of class. Students already have a heavy workload, and the Olympiads are optional. If we want as many people as possible to participate, it's better to administer the test in class. It depends on the teacher's philosophy.

Daniel Gardini: For my part, I administer the test during one of the lessons I teach on a voluntary basis; this class brings together students from different classes and is smaller than a normal class. It is true that in chemistry, we could administer the exam to the whole class, but that would require reserving computers. For now, it's easier to do it in a small group. The positive side of digital technology is that there is no need to collect answer sheets and send them by post; the negative side is that you need to have the necessary infrastructure, which is not always the case.

Let's now return to the increase in the number of participants. Do you feel that more teachers are participating, or are you organising yourselves in terms of the queue to participate?

Daniel Gardini: There are five of us chemistry teachers. One colleague has taken over the organisation of the second round of the Chemistry Olympiad at EPFL, so she is motivated, but the other colleagues have not expressed any interest, apart from putting up the poster in the classroom. Two of them don't have any students taking the specific option; perhaps they don't feel comfortable recommending the offer to students at the moment.

Célia Pittet: In geography, it's the same thing, there is no organisation at the course level; there are two and a half of us. 

In our ideal world, young people would participate two years before obtaining their matura, in order to understand how the Olympiads work and increase their chances of success the following year.

Daniel Gardini: When the grammar school becomes a four-year programme [scheduled to be introduced in 2032-2033], it will be easier to send more candidates, at least in chemistry. There will be an extra year to participate, whereas currently, after the third year, students start their studies and can no longer take part in the Olympiads.

Dean Daniel Gardini and Ms Célia Pittet receive the 2025 New School Award at the Bussigny Gymnasium. Image: Charlotte Vidal

Sometimes, Science Olympiads are part and parcel of a school's talent promotion strategy. In German-speaking Switzerland, some schools have a representative to support gifted young people. What is the situation at the Gymnase de Bussigny and in the Canton of Vaud? 

Célia Pittet: We have compensatory teaching, which involves making adjustments for pupils who have great difficulty achieving average grades. We do not have any programmes to encourage “champions”. I would say that we are currently focusing on community.

Daniel Gardini: The idea of a talent promotion strategy is quite interesting. At the moment, it has not been implemented at the cantonal level. Will it come with the matura reforms? We don't know. 

Célia Pittet: Given the direction the canton is taking [budget cuts from 2026], we now have to make do with what we have, or even cut things back. At present, we are unable to expand individual initiatives. This year, educational coaching was introduced; the direction managed to defend it. Educational coaching consists of one-off support, in the form of three to five sessions, for students who are encountering obstacles. It is up to them to take the initiative; teachers can also refer them. In terms of organisation, coaching could, for example, focus on organising training for the Olympiads. 

Daniel Gardini: Coaching focuses on methodology, i.e. learning how to learn. It is not useless for the Olympiads, but it does not target any particular subject.

Célia Pittet: A maths teacher, a biology teacher and an english teacher offer these educational coaching sessions. The offer is varied, so there is potential for many subjects.

Are there any extracurricular activities that you as a school would like to promote? For example, the Lycée-Collège de La Planta organises its own Model United Nations (MUN), while other schools host TechDays or promote the activities of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences.

Daniel Gardini: We have various clubs, such as the sustainability club and the student committee. We are a young school, so we had to launch these from the ground up. They have been slowly taking shape since last year. This will surely develop in the future. 

Célia Pittet: There are optional courses, which require ten or fifteen students to be conducted. As we are a relatively small school, this minimum is sometimes difficult to achieve.  

Daniel Gardini: I would also add that the school is located outside the city. As a result, students are not necessarily keen to stay after class. We therefore have to schedule activities during the long lunch breaks, which is a challenge in terms of scheduling. When we switch to a four-year school, the main idea won't be to add many more lessons, so then we may be able to develop these activities. As dean, when I receive extracurricular offers, I pass them on to the relevant department, which decides how to proceed. I do not impose participation. The important thing is to have one or more teachers who agree to supervise the pupils, knowing that it is extracurricular and that they will not be compensated for it.

Célia Pittet: We are encouraged to participate and we organise outings. If we were to set up something like science weeks, it would have to be done in consultation with colleagues.

What advice would you give to us on how to better promote the Science Olympiads?

Daniel Gardini: I think that at the beginning of the year, we should either ask the headmaster to communicate about it or present the Olympiads at a teachers' conference. I don't think there are many people who are unaware of the existence of the Olympiads in their field.

Interview: Daniel Gardini (chemistry teacher), Célia Pittet (geography teacher). Questions: Charlotte Vidal (Science Olympiad).

The Newcomer School Award recognises the high school that shows the strongest increase in participation in the first rounds of the Science Olympiads. The increase is measured based on figures from the last three school years. This award, worth CHF 1,000, recognises the commitment of the teaching staff. It replaces the previous Science Olympiad School Award.