Ending Verbal Violence in Schools
Lao Cai Province, Vietnam | Ending Verbal Violence in Schools - Lao Cai Shifters | 2025
Xin chao!
We are Lao Cai Shifters, a coalition of four youth-led teams across Lao Cai Province united by one mission: ending verbal violence in schools. Made up of students from Lao Cai High School, Le Hong Phong High School, Lao Cai-Cam Duong Vocational & Continuing Education Center, and Bao Thang District Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities, we launched a province-wide campaign to help young people recognise that words can wound just as deeply as fists, and to build a culture where kindness replaces cruelty.
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15 to 22 years old
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The Right-Sized Problem
Across Lao Cai's schools, verbal violence hides in plain sight. Body shaming, sarcasm, gossip, and online mockery are often dismissed as "just jokes," but these behaviours leave lasting psychological scars on students. In boarding schools, where students live together around the clock, harmful language becomes even harder to escape. At vocational centres, students already carry the weight of social stigma. And in the digital world, cyberbullying extends the damage far beyond school walls. Without intervention, these patterns erode self-confidence, fracture school communities, and silence the students who need support most.
What We Did
Over a year-long campaign, SHIFT Lao Cai moved through three phases: building capacity, activating change, and scaling impact.
Offline Impact
"Voice Up, Speak Kind" Competition: Classes competed by creating articles, short videos, posters, and memes promoting positive communication, with entries shared using the campaign hashtag #hslcvoiceup-speakkind
"Cyber Words" Contest: Students analyzed trending internet slang, exploring harmful meanings and proposing positive alternatives through essays and vlogs showcased on school platforms
"Positive Anonymous" Mailboxes: Anonymous spaces for students to share experiences of verbal violence and send words of encouragement to peers, with notes delivered weekly by club members
"Emotion Station" & Check-in Corners: School walls transformed into living dialogue spaces with themed bulletin boards, confession boards, and interactive feedback walls
"Speak from a Healed Heart" Workshop: Emotional regulation and communication skills training featuring role-play, reflection sessions, and expert feedback from psychology professionals
Art Contests & Grand Exhibitions: School-wide painting competitions on verbal violence themes, with winning works displayed in gallery exhibitions and artists presenting their messages on stage
"Green Words" Festival (Bao Thang): A multi-station experience featuring wall newspaper competitions, a Wishing Tree, exhibition booths, knowledge quizzes, and role-play solution stations involving both teachers and students
Youth Voice Forum: A large-scale event organized and led entirely by Shifters, bringing students from all four schools together to advocate for non-violent communication and bullying prevention
Online & Media Impact
"Brake Your Words" Podcast Series: Student-produced episodes exploring verbal violence themes, available on the SHIFT Vietnam YouTube channel
"Film Talk" Sessions: Curated screenings of short films on cyberbullying followed by interactive discussions, shifting student perspectives on the real-world impact of online words
"Student Media Perspectives" Group: A dedicated digital space where SHIFTers shared stories, memes, and vlogs about digital etiquette and responsible online behavior
Lao Cai Television Collaboration: Produced the "Issues You Care About" broadcast series featuring SHIFTers and experts discussing verbal violence prevention and child participation
School Fanpage Engagement: Campaign content including online voting for art contests, student vlogs, and postcards generated significant engagement across all participating school platforms, reaching parents and alumni
Campaign Impact
Over 4,000 teachers and students engaged directly through school-based events, forums, and workshops
More than 10,000 people reached via social media platforms
Four inter-school alliances formed, creating a unified front against verbal violence across Lao Cai Province
Schools integrated verbal violence prevention into their extracurricular curriculum, with School Board support ensuring long-term sustainability
Strategic partnerships established with Save the Children, School Psychology Counseling Boards, Class Monitors, Youth Unions, and dormitory managers
A defining success came at Bao Thang Boarding School, where the "Healing Notes" activity gave a student the courage to address insults they had endured in silence, leading to a sincere apology from their peers. At Cam Duong Vocational Center, students who had internalized the label of "underachievers" stood on stage as confident narrators and campaign ambassadors, proving that no stereotype can define a young person's potential.
What’s Next?
Scaling SHIFT club activities across all four schools into 2026
Continuing the "Issues You Care About" TV series with Lao Cai Radio and Television Station
Expanding the "Brake Your Words" podcast and postcard series to reach new audiences
Follow our journey:
This story was lovingly curated by the SHIFT team with the help of Claude (Anthropic) based on submitted source materials from our Fun Adults and Shifters.
