Valdobbiadene (Italy). From 6 to 8 September 2024, in the elegant setting of the Villa dei Cedri in Valdobbiadene, Treviso, the IV edition of the National Festival of Scholastic Innovation was held, an event that aims to share among various scholastic realities experiences of innovative teaching, in a perspective of valorization and dissemination.
“Move the body and mind: sports, creativity, and sociality” was the theme of this edition, with the aim of enhancing educative experiences that propose to make the school an environment which aims to develop all human dimensions; an educational environment that values, together with the mind, also the body, hands, gestures, imagination, and social dimensions.
Among the selected schools, from the more than 100 applications received, the Institute of Mary Help of Lecco, Lombardy Holy Family Province (ILO), participated with the representation of the Coordinator of educative and teaching activities (AED), Sister Laura Agostani, FMA, and the Teachers of the Secondary School of 1st and 2nd year, Alessandra Sala, Michelle Crippa, Laura Arrigoni, Marisa Gottifredi, Xenia Marinoni, and Alessio Dossi.
The project presented by Professors Sala and Crippa was entitled, “Le trame del guazzabuglio”, (The Plots of the hodgepodge) realized with the 2nd year classes of the Secondary school. The idea was to create a theater spread throughout the city of Lecco on the Manzoni sites, with the aim of enhancing students’ abilities, putting them in front of the analysis and representation of the famous novel “I promessi sposi” (The Betrothed) by Alessandro Manzoni. It was definitely an immersive way to grasp the value, even today, of this great and important work.
The festival was, above all, an opportunity for discussion and networking, allowing participants to reflect together, even before good practices, on the very meaning of innovation. This is all the more necessary in a world in continuous change in which young people are immersed and to which schools must necessarily be able to give the right answers if they are to remain a solid reference point for the educative process.
In this regard, in the introductory and concluding seminars, personalities of the school such as Angela Colmellere, Delegate of the Ministry of Education and Merit; Roberto Ricci, President of Invalsi; Andrea Toselli AD of PwC Italia, a multinational network of professional services companies; Giorgio Vittadini, President of the Foundation for Subsidiarity; Luigi Ballerini, author; and Alessia Rosa, first researcher at the National Institute for Documentation, Innovation, and Educational Research in Indire.
Apparently linked to sport, the annual theme had the intention of enhancing all the didactic experiences that, moving in an interdisciplinary perspective, promote a balanced psychophysical growth in the students. It was therefore a good opportunity to reflect on some fundamental principles, so that innovation is not just “doing something new” for the sake of it. On the contrary, innovation is born in the measure that it maintains an attentive observation on the real needs of children/youth, in order to grasp the concrete needs to be answered and then, subsequently, to build compelling instruction, a didactic that captures not only the student, but also his or her humanity in all its forms.
The festival was also a good opportunity to share some initiatives that were able, within the context of the territory in which the schools operate, to read the local reality and propose educational initiatives that know how to look ahead.
Many projects were significant from this point of view. There were those who chose to open up the territory by urging lessons that would take on life in the environment and nature surrounding the school (Trento). Others used orchestral workshops with the aim of increasing motivation, management autonomy, and self-regulation of students (Piacenza). Others sought to respond to the increasing difficulties of maintaining attention, introduced 1 km per day of walking to be done in the school context as an opportunity for relaxation, reduction of anxiety, and, consequently, greater mental presence during the following hours in class (Vittorio Veneto).
The theme for next year was launched at the end of the event: “Promoting and evaluating non-cognitive skills”. On the website o the festival you can find all the information and videos of this edition and previous editions.
