Education

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale degree program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrollment is by permission of the instructor. The course content covers the following topics:

a) a review of theoretical models for interpreting daily life and daily social interactions as educational arenas

b) video-ethnographic methodological approaches centered on social interaction to identify and study educational processes in daily life

c) observation and analysis of video recordings of communicative and educational events in both ordinary (e.g., parent-child interactions in the family) and institutional contexts (e.g., pupil-teacher or parent-teacher interactions at school, doctor-patient or caregiver-doctor interactions in healthcare contexts)

d) the illustration of training perspectives that can be implemented to promote self-reflexivity and support the subjects involved in communicative and educational experiences

At the end of the course, the student knows: the main theoretical assumptions concerning the study of everyday life and mundane educational events; the main theories and theoretical-methodological approaches for investigating mundane interactions as occasions for learning, education, and socialization; the micro-pedagogical approach to education, i.e., the study of the ways in which the members of a community give meaning to their everyday lifeworld, construct, and transmit culture in and through their social practices and interactions. The student is be able to: analyze mundane practices and interactions by relying on a (video-)ethnographic approach and Conversation Analysis; identify the educational value of social interactions in a variety of ordinary contexts (e.g., parent-child interactions in the family, pupil-teacher or parent-teacher interactions at school, doctor-patient or doctor-parent/caregiver interactions in healthcare settings); reflect on mundane educational experiences and the role of language and interaction in education, socialization, and learning processes; use this knowledge and skills to act as a “reflective practitioner”, in order to implement interventions aimed at promoting self-reflexivity and awareness of the subjects involved in mundane educational experiences.

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This course examines the ideas, policies, and practices surrounding education and learning with children and young people outside of formal school-based settings. The couse looks at diverse approaches to informal education, including youth work, play work, social action, social pedagogy, and educational work in other settings such as museums, libraries, science centers, and outdoors. What these approaches have in common is a child-centered or youth-centered ethos; a holistic approach to learning; a central focus on anti-oppressive practice; and a high value placed on respectful and trusting relationships between learners and staff. The course considers what out-of-school practices offer to children and young people, reflects on the vital role of informal educators in such settings, and discusses how policy can support and/or create challenging conditions for learning out of school.

This course equips students with the knowledge and skills needed to foster socio-emotional development, enhance teamwork, and embrace digital competence in educational settings. Through a blend of theory, practical application, and collaborative exercises, students gain a comprehensive understanding of how these elements interplay to create an enriched learning experience. The course has three main topics. One is to help students to become an advocate of emotional education, understanding and regulating emotions, and providing emotional support and resilience within educational organizations. Students learn skills in emotional expression, understanding, and regulation. The second topic is the importance of teamwork and collaborative work, focusing on the dynamization of groups, group observation, and essential social skills in educational contexts. Through networking, communication, and the use of digital tools, students learn to work effectively within educational teams. Lastly, students develop the skills to master digital technologies in education, conceptualizing digital competence, and utilizing digital resources for teaching, learning, and professional development. The course explores digital resources for teaching and learning, digital content, evaluation and feedback, and professional development with digital technologies.

This course offers students the opportunity to improve their mastery of skills necessary for success in university study, including time and workload management, written communication, note taking, academic writing, successful use of the library, and approaches to research. Students are introduced to university structures, systems, and resources.

This course examines the science of what enables individuals to operate at the peak of their potential, including the conditions that are thought to give rise to optimal motivation, emotional agility, resilience, and other factors that support wellbeing and performance. It explores skills and pathways for cultivating wellbeing while giving consideration to relevant individual differences and cultural factors. The content draws on a variety of disciplines, including psychology, education, philosophy, sports science, and organizational science. It covers the historical and philosophical views of wellbeing, motivation, and performance; the paradigm shift from problem-focused to strengths-based approaches; and the evolution from individual- to system-level perspectives of what contributes to wellbeing. 

The course introduces students to the role of drama in the second-level school classroom as a structured learning experience and also as an art form. It equips students with the appropriate skills and confidence necessary to use drama in the teaching of a variety of subjects and provides students with practical experiences of using the art form collaboratively to enrich and extend the study of other subjects. This course plans and evaluates learning episodes for students arising from meaningful engagement with the art form in applied settings. It also enables students to engage in reflective practice about the teaching of drama at secondary school level.  Students enact drama as a cross curricular pedagogy, through participation in and experience of practical drama-based workshops. They create, plan for, and deliver effective episodes using drama for their own teaching needs. Students focus on applying innovative practice in the area of arts in education and display leadership in future school planning in arts in education. This course teaches students how to identify and synthesize the skills and competencies to engage in a wide range of dramatic activity in interdisciplinary contexts. 

Receiving an adequate level of education can be seen as a fundamental social right. Yet, the extent and ways in which education is provided vary substantially across countries, social groups, and over-time. This course is designed to introduce students to the study of educational inequality and education policy. The course begins by reviewing the main goals, achievements, and outstanding challenges in education policy in the early 21st century. Specifically, it takes a historical perspective to review the significant progress made with respect to providing education to large parts of the world's population and with respect to reducing gender inequality in educational attainment. The course then turns to one key policy challenge of the early 21st century—reducing the inequalities in educational attainment between individuals from different socio-economic backgrounds. It discusses normative arguments for why we may care to understand and address inequality of educational opportunity. Moreover, the course examines the social mechanisms that account for educational inequalities between individuals from different social backgrounds and discusses whether and how policies and social interventions can reduce these educational inequalities. The structure of the course follows the early life-course and educational trajectory of individuals to critically examine educational policies on early childhood education, the notion of "social investment", ability tracking at the secondary level, the function of school autonomy, the effectiveness of education policy to equalize access to elite institutions, the role of large crises — such as the COVID-19 pandemic — in exacerbating existing inequalities, and how education policy can protect children's learning in the face of such crises. The course fosters students' ability to think like a social scientist and to critically approach and examine major issues of educational inequality. It develops the conceptual tools and substantive knowledge to address current questions on educational inequality.

This course covers the physical, emotional, social, and cognitive changes that occur during adolescence and how these changes affect adolescent behavior and life. Drawing from developmental science, education, psychology, sociology, and other disciplines, this course analyzes adolescent development from an interdisciplinary perspective and explores effective ways to understand and interact with adolescents. 

After taking this course, students should be able to: describe and critically discuss major theories and research findings related to adolescent development, discover practical ways to solve problems related to adolescent development, and communicate effectively with youth.