It might be difficult to explain one’s own point of view with words, while avoiding to slip into verbal and physical violence, especially for young people who feel that imposing themselves is essential.
Yet it is in schools and among young kids that we fight every day a crucial battle for democracy, where we all have to come to terms with the pressure and opportunities of a multicultural society.
The lower secondary school “Savino Pedrolli” in Gardolo has been working for years on educating its students to living together and understanding religious differences, to foster dialogue and mutual respect among students coming from different parts of the world.
But how can we support both students and teachers in this process? Well, we introduced them to the techniques of legal reasoning, which can be applied also out of the courts of law, in everyday life.
This initiative stems from the School of International Studies in Trento, which established a cooperation project with a number of classes of the school and brought them on an experimental journey to education to critical thinking and debate.
Serena Tomasi, researcher in law, is guiding the students on this trip towards a sort of “bon ton of the spoken word”, trying to find a balance between the logic of content and the beauty of the form. The project is a creation of hers and has been put in place thanks to the Fondazione Caritro and the collaboration of the Rete di istituti comprensivi (network of middle and elementary schools), Cermeg (Research Center on Legal Methodology, based in Trento) and the Centro Interculturale Millevoci (a cultural center) in Trento.
It is a pilot project, in that it proposes an original research and experimentation project because of its target, i.e. students and teachers of lower secondary schools. The aim is ambitious: to offer a solution to the issues of civic education connected to living together and religious diversity that can fit our local reality. For the first time, legal reasoning (from a context that is, at least in principle, very different) is combined with a practical exercise for young students of middle schools. This represents a true challenge in the field of research and experimentation.
The project was launched last spring with a training course for the school’s teachers and continued the following year in autumn with a two month didactic lab where the students of two classes practiced with reasoning and debating exercises. The laboratory ended in December with an cross-evaluation test (extended also to students who were not included in the experiment).
“We all have to give reasons for our views, every day - explains Serena Tomasi, researcher at the School of International studies, In order to state an opinion, motivate a point of view, make a decision, compare options and ideas. An effective reasoning ability is an asset to speak to the people’s mind but also to their heart. A discourse is indeed effective when it is convincing and persuading: that’s why reasoning is not simple logic, but also sensitivity, emotional intelligence, adaptation to the context”.
“The ability to use critical thinking and legal reasoning as a tool to exchange views and to express oneself in ad adequate, non-violent, effective and respectful way is one of the key aspects of civic life”, says Stefano Kirchner, principal. “The experience that we offered to the classes involved in the project is extremely important and positive. The students had the opportunity to experiment using an hands-on approach, with an expert guide. Teachers were able to see very gratifying results at the end of a path that can be applied in school programs to involve kids and promote the growth of very important skills”.
The project by Serena Tomasi will be presented in detail at a round table on “Integration between law and words: Reasoning and citizenship education” which will take place on Monday 25 January at 3:00pm at the School of International studies.
The presentation will open with an introduction by Luisa Antoniolli, director of the School of International studies, Stefano Kirchner, principal at the I.C. Trento 7 school and Laura Bampi, responsible for the Centro Interculturale Millevoci in Trento (Education department of the Autonomous Province of Trento). Federico Puppo, professor of Philosophy of Law at the Faculty of Law (University di Trento), Maria Arici from the Istituto Provinciale per la Ricerca e la Sperimentazione (Iprase) and Enrica Proli and Elvia Tarter (from the I.C. Trento 7 school) will discuss the subject at the round table.
For more information see the attached press release.