|
History
Founded by Ernesto Codignola in 1945, the school started its life with
specific objectives: to offer a social service to the poor families of
Santa
Croce (indeed the school day lasted 8 hours and included lunch); a
commitment to the democratic education of the citizens who were immersed
in
a daily struggle of reconstruction, not only materially but morally and
democratically as well. This rebuilding was to be realised in the
co-management of the school by both the adults and the pupils in the
manner
of a city organised into mayor's office, councillors, advisors etc..and
indeed this aspect lent its very name to the school. So it came to be
that
strong emphasis was placed on manual activities such as typing, woodwork,
horticulture, gardening; meanwhile two important developments in the
cultural education of the pupils were established: the newspaper and the
library.
Today, more than fifty years since its foundation, Scuola-Cittą
Pestalozzi
is an experimental public-school catering for eight class levels,
subdivided
into four two-year groups, with close links to the infant school and
second
grade Secondary School. The school seeks to involve the parents in the
planning and fulfillment of didactical projects, while at the same time
renewing the forms of community life within the school through
interaction
between children, teachers and adults in the social education of the
students.
The continual experimentation takes place within an eight year
curriculum
that is designed to eliminate unnecessary repetition and utilise the
potential of laboratory activities.
At the base of everything we find the effective collaboration between
the
Elementary School teachers and first grade secondary school teachers
that
occurs in various forms depending on the age of the children, the
programmesand the specific needs of each two-year group.
In the third of the two-year groups, special emphasis is placed on the
passage
between the Fifth Class of Elementary School and First Class of 1st
grade secondary
School with input from both teachers in the areas of project work and
discipline.
CHANGES
1945
Founded by Ernesto Codignola, the school starts out as a full time,
eight
class "Didactic Differentiation" school. The core function is the
democratic education of the citizen.
It develops in line with two guiding principles: to educate the students
in
self-government (using the anti-authoritarian method) and in
self-affirmation (the motivation to learn is derived from the
requirements
of daily life).
1946
Scuola-Cittą is recognised by the Board of Supervisors as a "School of
teaching differentiation" (name given to experimental schools)
1958
Headmaster of the school - Raffaele Laporta. Under his direction, and in
line with the philosphy of the schools' founders, the Teachers Body is
established to determine the educational course of the school, and the
Advisory Board, a tighter executive body, is established to share the
responsibility. Interclass afternoon groups are set up for optional
activities.
1963
New First grade Secondary School is founded. The Secondary School
teachers
work at Scuola-Cittą to fulfill their timetable requirements.
1964/1971
Headmistress of the school - Lydia Tornatore. These years see particular
emphasis given to the scientific-mathematic fields. Some of the
experimental didactical innovations of Scuola-Cittą are taken up by
other
Italian schools.
1972/1975
Headmistress of the school - Giovanna Barbieri. Continuing the example
set
by her predecessor, the school experienced a particular boost in the
linguistic sector.
1975
Recognition from the Board of Supervisors as an entirely experimental
school. (Decreti Delegati 1974)
1975/1978
Headmaster of the school - Aldo Pettini. No longer considered completely
different from other schools, Scuola-Cittą oversees the transformation
into
a School Laboratory for the experimentation of innovation on a
structural
and didactical level. The problem of continuity between primary and
secondary
schools is first studied.
1978/1984
Headmaster of the school - Giuseppe Mazzei. Under his direction, in
1980/1981, the first program for continuity between Elementary and 1st
grade
Secondary schools is formulated. It organises the classes into four
two-year groups,
of which the third two-year group is aimed at acquiring a specific
relevance
to the connection between the two school grades.
1985
Headmaster of the school - Andrea Binazzi. In 1990/1991, his governance
sees the experimentation of the first project and the drafting of the
second
project for continuity
between Elementary and 1st grade Secondary Schools.
1992/1993
Beginning of the new four year Project of experimentation on
Elementary-1st grade Secondary School continuity.
1994
Headmaster of the school - Carlo Testi.
1995
In November, the school celebrates its fiftieth birthday with a
national convention entitled "Experimentation in Basic" School - Fifty
years of Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi".
1996
Verification and confirmation, with some variations and addenda, of the
last
Experimentation plan for the subsequent four year cycle (1996-2000)
1997
The school defines its role, on an organisational level, as a Resource
Centre for Teacher Training.
2000/2001
Beginning of the current experimentation project.
Present-day characteristics
Today, more than fifty years since its foundation, Scuola-Cittą
Pestalozzi
is an experimental public-school catering for eight class levels,
subdivided
into four two-year groups, with close links to the infant school and
2nd grade Secondary School. The school is strongly committed to the
implementation of experimental teaching methodologies, and encourages
the
participation of both students and teachers in the formation of the
projects
and the renewal of the curriculum through laboratory didactics. At the
same time, the school seeks to renew the community lifestyle by placing
at
its core the importance of personal relationships with its various
components, students, teachers, parents, personnel. It acts in a dual
capacity as an Experimental School and Resource Centre for Teacher
training,
and collaborates with the university through conventions, through
tutoring,
and through laboratories for Science students from the Primary School.
Rooms & facilities
The school is located in the Santa Croce area, in the historical centre
of
the city. Part of the school building is newly constructed and another
part
has been restored from its original ancient form. On the ground floor,
we
find the classrooms of the first three two-year groups, the woodwork
room,
the library, the newspaper, the multimedia room, the theatre, the
kitchen
with an adjacent multi-use room equipped with video player and
television,
the gym room and the secretary and headmaster's office. On the mezzanine
level, we find the classroom of the Secondary School Third class and the
music
laboratory, while on the first floor we find the art laboratory and the
classroom of the Seconadry School Second Class. There are also some
other small
rooms used for group activities.
The classrooms are small, and apart from the organisational difficulties,
this fact limits the number of pupils we can allow in each class.
Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi in 2003
It was revealed that a contradiction existed between the Ministerial
Decree
of our school as an entirely experimental school (1975 revised in 1985)
and
the 1999 Law on Scholastic Autonomy; following a year of fighting and
working in a state of emergency (in February Professor Testi was removed
and
appointed as Scholastic director) in mid-August, the provision of the
Regional School Board was adopted as the school was forced to reduce its
staff size and cancel the appointment of Headmaster of
Scuola-Cittą, coordinator of the experiment and nominated by the
Scientific
Committee. In respect of the project presented in July 2003, the
resources
allocated to the experiment were notably reduced, the school was joined
with
Circolo 1 (an elementary school)of Florence whose director Doctor Giorgi
came to be Headmaster of Scuola-Cittą. Subsequently at the meeting of
08.10.03,
the Committee recognised headmaster Ugo Giorgi as didactical coordinator
and
guarantor of the experimentation project.
Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi in 2004
The staff was not reintegrated, and the risk of a further reduction
motivated the parents of the pupils to organise various forms of protest,
including the enforcement of a permanent assembly in the classrooms from
the
month of June. Even local businesses intervened to lend their support
for
the continuing experiences of Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi, promoting a
negotiation platform between the school and the representatives from the
Ministry for Education. It was to the latter, and in particular to
Doctor
Angotti, that the teachers of Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi presented the new
2004
project to illustrate the quantity and quality of work that they
intended to
perform in the school for that scholastic year in spite of the
difficulties
they faced due to lost personnel as a result of space limitations from
the
lingering construction sites.
In September Scuola Cittą reopened with equal staff numbers to the year
before but with one less unit of ATA (secretary staff), and with the
determination to continue as a place of experimentation and research.
Indeed the goal of Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi is to continue as a learning
community combining all staff members (teachers and non teachers),
students
and parents in the management of the school. Its aim even today is to
remain as a "laboratory school" - as defined in the Experimentation plan
of
1992/1996 - that seeks to maximise the talents of each person in such a
way
that each individual represents a resource for the organisation, to
bestow
responsibility and extract contribution from adults and children,
putting in
practice the individual learning courses of shared planning through the
appropriate means.
More specifically, for some time now the school has been developing
activities for the students and collating the professional observations
of
the teachers in order to focus its attention on the following basic
themes:
- continuity between first grade primary and secondary school and
continuity
as regards preschool and upper secondary school,
also in the field of an established orientation program.
- use of the equipped laboratories (library, construction, newspaper,
theatre, art hall, multimedia centre, music hall, gym;
- laboratory teaching approach for the instruction of the disciplines
and the development of cross-sectional skills;
- "research action" project work, with particular emphasis on civic
education, diversity, multi-culturalism, emotional education and
environmental education, all integrated within the subject matters;
- use of multimedia tools, spread out over eight years to enhance
learning.
- English language learning, starting in the First Year of Primary
School
In this way, Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi is a permanent didactic laboratory
using innovative learning methods and a pedagogical research laboratory
to
create a link with public research and educational bodies.
Such characteristics are indispensable in the organisation of the school
as
a Resource Centre for teacher training based strongly on the know-how of
the
teachers and with a vision of cooperative learning, and as a centre of
documentation structured strictly in line with the level of national
development in this field through INDIRE. A stable relationship with the
university has allowed participation, within the appropriate sphere, in
research projects, systematic tutorage and teaching laboratories for the
students.
The current project, presented to the Regional School Board in July
2004,
represents an evolution of the "Plan of Experimentation, Innonvation and
Development" already defined for the 2000-2008 years (intermediate
verification 2004) with the strengthening of several characteristics and
functions of the school, primarily those related to the support of the
education of the teachers.
Within the aim of developing and examining our own scholastic setting,
question marks arise from the Italian school system over the relative
value
of an organisation and environment that express sense and value in the
personal educational path of each individual. The universities and other
agencies of research and teacher training, with whom contact has
increased
in the last few years, now present themselves as important mediators
that
encourage valuable relationships with a large number of school groups,
teachers and students, thereby placing Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi as a
privileged junction of reflection. This description is merited by the
involvement of the entire school (rather than individual teachers) in
didactic observations and by the push towards the documentation and
practice
of good educational standards. However to continue in this direction, it
is
essential to have an appropriate numerical relationship between school
employees and school children, that permits a constant and attentive
monitoring of all school activities to the benefit of non-experimental
school events. In this way, the teachers can utilise the tried and
tested
methods that are based on externally expressed needs, corresponding with
our
own specific services and filtered by specialist teaching research
entities.
The network technique, both human and technological, allows the richness
of
our experimentation to both reach and introduce many diverse scholastic
situations and teaching methods. For this reason, Scuola-Cittą remains a
fundamental and privileged instrument of growth and collctive reflection.
In 2004 Scuola-Cittą joined up with two new networks, both of which were
promoted and established by SCP itself: on a local level, this was the
Network of Florence Area Schools, Schools and Cities, while on a
national
level, the Network of Experimental Public Schools (Rinascita of Milan
and
Don Milani of Genoa) is currently elaborating its experimental project
in
light of Article 11 of the Law about Scholastic Autonomy.
The School today
Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi is set up as an educational community managed
through
the involvement of teachers, non-teachers, students and parents. The
vision
is that of a school laboratory seeking to maximise the talents of each
student, to encourage them to take responsibility, and to encourage the
maximum involvement of adults and students. The school seeks to put into
practice individual learning courses through shared planning and use of
appropriate teaching instruments.
More specifically, for some time now the school has been developing
activities for the students and collating the professional observations
of
the teachers in order to focus its attention on the following basic
themes:
- continuity between primary and first grade secondary school (within
the
same school) and continuity as regards preschool and upper secondary
school,
also in the field of an established orienatation program.
- use of the equipped laboratories (library, construction, newspaper,
theatre, art hall, multimedia centre, music hall, gym;
- laboratory teaching approach for the instruction of the disciplines
and the development of cross-sectional skills;
- "research action" project work, with particular emphasis on civic
education, diversity, multi-culturalism, emotional education and
environmental education, all integrated within the subject matters;
- use of multimedia tools, spread out over eight years to enhance
learning.
In this way, Scuola-Cittą Pestalozzi is a permanent didactic laboratory
using innovative learning methods and a pedagogical research laboratory
to
create a link with public research and educational bodies.
Such characteristics allow us to define the school, on the one hand, as
a
Resource Centre for teacher training based strongly on the know-how of
the
teachers and with a vision of cooperative learning, and on the other
hand as
a centre of documentation structured strictly in line with the level of
local and national development in this field. More specifically, a
stable
relationship with the university allows participation, within the
appropriate sphere, in research projects, systematic tutorage and
teaching
laboratories for the students.
Furthermore, acting as a promoter, both of the Florence area "School and
City" network for the promotion and practice of "good practices", and of
the
national network of schools offering themselves as candidates for the
controlled experimentation on cultural identity and organisation of
school
laboratories, allows the school to embrace the richness of our
experiment
with various diverse school cultures as well as that of teacher
training.
↑top |