L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 4 GENEROSO D'AGNESE NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS O n M o n d a y , schools reo- p e n e d i n t w e l v e r e g i o n s o f Italy, more than six months after the bell rang for the last time in March. It's been an important moment for the almost nine million students who finally, rucksack in hand and homework completed, managed to meet their peers and teachers again: so many things have changed in the world since the last time they s a t t h e r e , a t t h e i r d e s k s , changes they — and we — m a y n o t e v e n f u l l y c o m - prehend just yet. Ripartenza, as symbolized powerfully by the presence of Sergio Mattarella, the Pre- sident of the Italian Repu- blic, at Vo' Euganeo on M o n d a y t o c e l e b r a t e t h e beginning of the school year just there, where the first Covid-19 red zone of Europe was created in the late days of February. B u t i n t h e c o n t e x t o f school and education, ripar- tenza does not only mean getting back to class, but also doing it placing learners at the heart of the process. Students need to go back at the heart of the teaching- learning process because the future is theirs. It is in this context of the didactic centrality of the child and the student that Maria Montessori, whose 150th birthday was celebra- ted a handful of weeks ago, t a k e s p o w e r f u l l y c e n t e r s t a g e : a s a n e d u c a t o r , o f course, but also as a woman of science in times when it was even more difficult to b e c o m e o n e , a n d a s a profound estimator of the importance of technology in a pedagogical context, an aspect that has been stressed a lot during the lockdown months when distance lear- ning was the norm, but that remains important now, as it will still be used through t h e s c h o o l y e a r . B u t t h e importance of technology in Italian schools goes beyond distance learning today: IT is taught to children and is then used at later educatio- nal stages as a support both in class and at home. Scien- t i f i c s u b j e c t s , o r S T E M subjects, have also gained popularity, essential as they are to prepare the citizens of the future to a professional world that is bound to be increasingly based on them. And we could go on, talking about how robotics are used didactically and how simple coding became part of the curriculum in many elemen- tary schools, all to underline the relevance of technology, but also Montessori's insight in understanding it already more than century ago. Indeed, her whole life was to develop along the techno- logical and scientific ways of human knowledge. And to fulfill her dream, Maria Montessori had chosen the F a c u l t y o f E n g i n e e r i n g , accepting to move from the tranquillity of Chiaravalle, in the Marche region, to the bustling and lively reality of Rome, capital of the King- dom of Italy. She was born in 1870, daughter of Alessandro and Renide Stoppani, both of t h e m a c t i v e i n p o l i t i c s . Maria was an only child and, thanks to a liberal and tole- rant family environment, she soon developed the roots of that altruism and interest in others that were to characte- rize her. In 1875, she enrol- led in a Roman public pri- m a r y s c h o o l , a n d t h e n continued her studies in a t e c h n i c a l a n d s c i e n t i f i c institution, where she obtai- ned her high school diploma: by then, she had clear ideas and a fearless attitude. But there wasn't much space for fearless, resource- f u l w o m e n , i n t h o s e l a s t years of the Italian 1800s, especially for a woman who wanted to become an engi- neer: Maria had to fall back on medicine. Along the way, the young student discove- red a third way, one that with time was to bear the richest fruits for her. She decided to become a psychia- trist and to prepare her the- sis on the subject of human m i n d . S h e g r a d u a t e d i n 1896, among the first women in Italy and, after four years, she was offered her first job a t t h e S a n t a M a r i a d e l l a Pietà mental asylum. It was a terrible experience, spent among the most unfortuna- te, which touched the young doctor immensely. It was the presence of children, often suffering simply from beha- vioral issues, to upset her t h e m o s t : a b a n d o n e d t o themselves, they were trea- ted like adults, that is, just a little better than animals. Maria's professional interest grew and she decided to dedicate to them her mis- sion. Resolute and energetic, she dedicated herself fully to t h e c a r e o f h e r y o u n g patients and with the help of t h e r i g h t e q u i p m e n t s h e obtained unexpected results. With great excitement, the doctor began then her perso- n a l b a t t l e i n s u p p o r t o f d i s a d v a n t a g e d c h i l d r e n , championing for their rights at all the early 20th century m e d i c a l c o n g r e s s e s s h e attended. At the same time, Montessori began working with healthy children, with the aim of making a diffe- r e n c e i n t h e w a y I t a l i a n s c h o o l s w e r e o r g a n i z e d . Once she obtained the posi- tion of professor of pedago- g i c a l a n t h r o p o l o g y , t h e y o u n g d o c t o r d e c i d e d t o i m p l e m e n t h e r d i d a c t i c method in a private school. And this is how the 6th of Maria Montessori with young children (Photo courtesy of Fondazione Chiaravalle Montessori) Continued to page 6 Children above everything else: Maria Montessori, our schools and learning in a post-Covid world

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