IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS - 95% of students feel safe

QUEBEC CITY , Aug. 20, 2026 /CNW/ -- This is what is revealed by a recent Humanity Index survey conducted among 514 secondary school students.

"This is a decidedly positive finding, especially at a time when public discourse leads us to believe that our schools are unsafe and plagued by various forms of bullying," says Pierre Côté, President and Founder of the Humanity Index.

The question was simple: "Do you feel safe at your school?" While 43% answered "yes, always," another 52% answered "yes, most of the time."

This sense of safety is present across the board. It is somewhat lower among students in Secondary 3 (91%) and among French-speaking students (93%).

Safety: An essential factor in a school's social climate
Of all the variables that influence a school's social climate, students' sense of safety is the most important and contributes to creating a greater sense of ease.

"Bullying and exclusion in schools remain major issues that must continually be addressed. However, the data we collected paint a less bleak and more encouraging picture, allowing us to put things into perspective. Clearly, schools are doing a good job," adds Pierre Côté.

A concrete, unprecedented and innovative project
This survey was conducted as part of the Being Human in Secondary Schools project.

Initiated by the Humanity Index, this project examines and analyzes young people's behaviours as well as their interpersonal skills, with the goal of improving them. It also provides schools with an unprecedented portrait of their social climate.

The Being Human in Secondary Schools project is now available to secondary schools across Quebec.

Methodological note
The survey was conducted through the Léger youth panel in May 2026 and consisted of 514 respondents between the ages of 12 and 18

About the Humanity Index
The Humanity Index is a non-profit organization dedicated to social health. It measures perceptions of humanity in our society and assesses the 14 dimensions that make it up.

The Being Human movement, meanwhile, focuses on behaviours with the goal of improving them through introspective exercises and tests.
Our data are based on surveys conducted among large representative samples of the Canadian and Quebec populations.

For additional articles: www.indicedhumanite.ca

SOURCE Humanity Index

For information or to obtain the complete media kit: [email protected] ; Pierre Côté, 418-524-7375