Starting out at school again with an ongoing pandemic is an organizational, logistic and educational challenge. However, more than anything it is a test for every single boy and girl who has to go back to the classroom feeling confident and with a sense of well-being. How can we face up to this difficult moment and which tools are useful in making the return to school, in times of Covid-19, a positive experience despite everything?
These questions and a strong commitment are the starting point of the "Feeling strong" project conceived by the Psychology and Cognitive Sciences Department (DIPSCO) of the University of Trento in collaboration with the Department of Education and Culture, (Education Service, Office for the Evaluation of School Policies) part of the Autonomous Province of Trento (PAT). The project aims to bring out and develop, in middle school students, an academic awareness, that can be shared with schoolmates and teachers. The project, oriented toward schools and institutions in Trentino, is part of a series of initiatives financed by the Caritro Foundation, who had previously issued a call for proposals on "research for the return to school" based on first-hand experiences during the spring lockdown period.
The focus of the “Feeling strong” project are the non-cognitive processes of students attending the final year of middle school. Indicators include factors such as motivation to study, self-esteem at school, the perception of their own ability in mathematics and Italian, inner resourcefulness (self-esteem, trust, resilience, inner forcefulness), personality (especially conscientiousness and open-mindedness), readiness to help others, the perceived quality of teaching and the school social climate.
The project was divided into two parts: the first part was an empirical and quantitative study, including a student questionnaire and gathering information on learning at school; the second part focused on teachers’ professional development in reinforcing classroom learning. Seven comprehensive Trentino institutions were involved: Upper Val di Sole, Lower Anaunia - Tuenno, Lower Val di Sole, Cles "B. Clesio", Fondo - Revò, Taio and Trento 7.
Overall, the project involved 21 teachers and 322 students, in addition to the seven directors of the partner institutions who collaborated in the project last summer.
To prepare teachers to help overcome the crisis
The aim of the project is to support teachers, through a series of videoconference seminars and operational guides, in the development of teaching practices to enhance their students’ non-cognitive processes, in order to overcome periods of crisis or of difficulty. Specifically, three seminars were scheduled (in December, January and in March) on specific topics, conducted by an expert pedagogue and coupled with operational guides that teachers can use in their teaching activities.
The initial results are encouraging, as explained by the project coordinator, Franco Fraccaroli of the University of Trento: "To date, the initial collection of data has allowed us to analyze the framework of the cognitive and non-cognitive elements of the various classes. In particular, a report was presented to the teaching staff involved in which, respectful of current privacy laws, the situation of an individual class was illustrated in relation to the overall performance of the sample examined. Each teacher therefore has the picture of their own class in terms of academic self-awareness, students' level of motivation, quality of social relationships, resilience, etc. ".
"This approach has made it possible to identify which are the target variables to focus on, based on the specific framework of each class" add Francesco Pisanu (Office for the Evaluation of School Policies) and Enrico Perinelli (researcher in the Psychology and Cognitive Sciences Department of the University of Trento). “Information on students' learning levels is also being collected, in order to look into the most important correlates with non-cognitive variables. The data will also be gathered at the end of the second period, ie in May. In this second phase it will be possible to carry out a more in-depth analysis on the effects of the measures adopted. We hope to observe, in particular, an increase in the levels of academic self-awareness in the children”.
Almost halfway through its journey, the project has already achieved many of its initial objectives. All this was largely possible due to the interest and availability of the people involved. “What struck us most - explains Fraccaroli - was the interest and the great willingness of the schools to collaborate in the project, in addition to the positive reactions and the availability of the teaching staff to help, despite the pressure they are under at such a difficult time.
“One of the interesting aspects of the project - adds Pisanu - were the activities aimed at the students to help them nurture positive expectations regarding their own work. On the other hand, teacher support in providing their students with cognitive and metacognitive strategies to make their academic efforts more effective is also one of the cornerstones of the project”.
More information on the “Feeling strong” project is available on the website: https://www.cogsci.unitn.it/1049/sentirsi-forti-superare-le-difficolta-n...