THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN ITALY

… AND MY SCHOOL IN ROME

Anna Allerhand Headteacher Primary school “Principessa Mafalda”

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University Higher technical education Lyceum (Upper Secondary school) Vocational training Lower Secondary school Primary school 2

First cycle

lasting eight years, including five years of primary and three years of lower secondary education At the end of this cycle pupils will sit a school-leaving examination.

Second cycle

lasting five years, including the various types of lyceum (upper secondary school) and technical and vocational training. Culminates in the final State examination.

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Each authonomous school

Projects its activities on the whole scholastic year Organizes in a flexible way its school time and its resources Implements the participation of the whole local community 4

INNOVATIONS

• Main role of parents into the system of education • Oppurtunity to choose directly different activities and school time, related to parents’ needs. • Next year will be introduced the new law on primary education. • Gradual opportunity to anticipate enrolment in both infant ( two years and six months) and primary school ( five years and six months).

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Early enrolment

Different methodological approach Meetings with parents Before the enrollment Knowledge of:

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Habits

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Authonomy phase

REAL EXPERIENCE More phsycomotorial activities FIRST PRIMARY CLASS

• A BRIDGE CLASS FROM INFANT SCHOOL TO PRIMARY SCHOOL

PRIMARY SCHOOL

• More time to welcome activities • More flexibility • More participation of parents 6

Experiment Handling Game Narration Artistic and musical expressions New indications for curricula (September 2007) privileged occasions to learn by practice what in following years should be made subject of more elaborate theoretical and experimental knowledge 7

TIMETABLE primary school

 Basic quote (compulsory time)  24 hours 27 or 30 hours It depends on the choices of the families, but is subject to the availability of teachers. It’s optional but after choice it becomes compulsory.  Full time 40 hours, about 30% in big towns lower secondary school 

Basic quote (compulsory time)

27 hours pro week

Integration quote (not compulsory/optional)

It depends on the choices of the families, from zero to three weekly hours. It’s optional but after choice it becomes compulsory Definite timetable for subjects 8

Division of the studies in Primary schools

The studies are divided into five years grouped in three blocks: • the first year; • the first biennium (made up of the second and third year); • the second biennium (made up of the fourth and fifth year). At the end of each biennium there is the final evaluation, covering the two-year period. No definite timetable for subjects and activities 9

PRIMARY AND LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS NATIONAL INDICATIONS

In addiction to this, there are those subjects that each school decides to teach autonomously, like:  Computer based activities;  Expression activities (theatre, dance, music,…)  Language activities (english, other foreign languages, italian …)  Projects activities (bricolage, gardening, …) 10

Educational Formative Plan

Responsibility Decision Making Who we are Didactics Training Educational Formative Plan Curriculum extra-curriculum Territory Net Other: projects Evaluation 11

SPECIAL EDUCATION SUPPORT

Pupils with special needs have been integrated into all state schools since 1977. We cannot therefore speak of particular institutions for the instruction of special needs students.

Schools must be structurally suitable and accessible to all pupils with physical and mental disabilities.

The technical and didactic equipment has to be adapted to the needs of these pupils.

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SPECIAL EDUCATION SUPPORT

Support teachers must possess the prescribed specialisation qualifications and are also responsible for the class as a whole, participating in the school scheduling and in the verification of competence of class councils.

In my school we have 21 primary classes with 12 pupils with special needs and 4 infant school Montessori classes with 4 pupils with special needs. We have this year 6 support teachers.

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MY SCHOOL: THE “PRINCIPESSA MAFALDA” PRIMARY SCHOOL

Our school is close to the centre of Rome and our pupils come from the quarters Salario, Parioli, Trieste and Pinciano. In the main building there is the primary school (6 -11).

We have also a Children's house, Montessori's nursery, for children from 3 to 6, located very close to Villa Borghese.

Take a look at our schoolyard: 14

The various plans of the school: ground floor

The entrance The lift The multitask room Offices 15

The different floors of the school: each floor has its colour

Secondo piano: le prime Terzo piano: le seconde e le terze Quarto piano: le quarte e le quinte 16

Fifth floor: laboratories

We are trying to realize A scientific lab Library The lab Where experimenting “hands on” scientific education 17

The “Scuolabus a piedi” project

With the "Walking school bus" children come and go home from school in groups on foot. They go “On" and "Down" from the "Walking school bus" (ie enter and leave the group) at specific "BUS STOP" (collection points) distributed along the paths established . 18

Our Comenius project

Traditions through the eyes of children Ceiriog Junior School The Beacon Church Of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Colegio de Educación Infantil y Primaria C.P. Federico García Lorca Özel Kültür İlköğretim Okulu

Within this intercultural project we aim to equip school community (including students, teachers, parents, local communities etc.) with the intercultural knowledge and skills to become an active citizen of the European society. Our project also intends to contribute to develop mutual respect and understanding between different communities by exploring about their own cultures and the other countries cultures.

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OUR MONTESSORI HOUSE OF CHILDREN

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The focus of activity in the Montessori setting is on children’s learning, not on teachers’ teaching. Children are inner motivated by their natural curiosity and love of knowledge. Education has only to cultivate the child’s own natural desire of learn. The teacher tries to help children to learn. All the structured materials are graduated from the simple to the complex and every child is free to select his own work and to proceed at his own pace. 21

The Montessori materials stimulate the children in independent learning by providing an impulse for spontaneous activities which are in harmony with their physical, mental and social phase of development . The materials are introduced early and used repeatedly and consistently through the spiral curriculum. Generally pupils work individually or in small, self-selected groups. There are very few whole group lessons. 22

During the work, done in a very individual way, the teacher shows to the children how they can use the didactic material. All the rest is doing by the children, every one of them taking the time that he needs. The real work of learning belongs to the individual child, that teaches himself through his own activity, observation and discovery .

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The environment in the class is designed to meet the needs, interests, abilities and development of the children through direct personal hands-on contact with either real things under study or with concrete models that bring abstract concepts to concrete.. 24

The prepared environment is a crucial part of the child's education in the classroom. When the children enter the class they enter an environment that is carefully prepared and caters to their needs. The prepared environment allows the child to develop without constant assistance and supervision from an adult.

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All the furniture and work materials are child-sized, giving the child full freedom to move-about and explore. This also allows the child to be more active and the teacher to be more passive. The work-material is kept out on the shelves and may be used by the children whenever they desire. Because the materials are always stored in the same place, the children can always locate them. It is part of the child's work-cycle to return used material to its designated place in the classroom, so that others may use it. One of the main duties of the Montessori teacher is to keep the prepared environment in perfect, orderly condition.

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biology

The sensorial way to knowledge

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Opportunities outside school

We have a lot of places where we can go by walk: Museums Monuments Modern art Etruscan museum Villa Giulia 29

A visit to Villa Borghese: drawings of the children

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A visit to the Roman forum

Fotografie di Ermanno

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A visit to Ostia Antica

Fotografie di VERONICA

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A visit to the Etruscan tombs

Tombe a tumulo di forma circolare nella necropoli di Cerveteri Affreschi provenienti dalla tomba dei Leopardi , Tarquinia Tomba con soffitto a forma di tetto e corredo funerario

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A visit to the smallest state of the Word: the Vatican city

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Thank you

Website: www.scuolamafalda.it

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