But what I miss most, in reality, are the evenings spent with colleagues discussing the day’s classroom experiences. Petri was a great educator; with his Viking beard and his jovial demeanor, he made us love Finland, even if it was gray, and he revealed to us in a direct and pragmatic way the peculiarities of Finnish education‘s success.

It can be summed up in a single word: love. The secret to success is to educate with love, speak with love, and behave with love. There are no power struggles, no yelling, no threats, no negative reports, no blood-red grades, and no failures looming. In Finland, there is a school that doesn’t judge students, but rather helps them grow. The student evaluates himself and is usually clear in giving himself a grade. The teacher listens to him, treats him kindly, smiles at him, and shows love towards the class. The student is aware of the love within the school community and is grateful for it.

This isn’t to say that Finland is a perfect country, where bullying or violence are absent, or where difficult family situations don’t arise. But I can say with absolute certainty that school is a welcoming place where even the most problematic students find comfort and help from adults.

In all of this, parents don’t exist; they trust the school, the teachers, and their choices. Parents are grateful to the school and the teaching staff who care for their children; a true pact of trust and shared responsibility is intimately signed. And, as Petri told us in the last lesson:
“If a parent doesn’t like the school or the teacher, they can change and find another that meets their expectations. In our country, school is an institution, it’s almost like church!” he concluded, laughing amused by our expressions.

L'articolo Educate with love proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.

What did our trainer Petri teach us this week? With colleagues, in the evenings, over salmon soup, we talked about school, about improvements, about the idea of ​​a new school system, sometimes different from the one we’re experiencing in Italy and sometimes our own Italian school. Because our school system isn’t to be thrown away, as it’s described and as we read in newspapers, interviews, and false commentators on social media.

Recently, Gianrico Carofiglio wrote an interesting and witty article in Repubblica titled “Courage and Kindness: The Allies of Democracy.” I quote the opening line: “The fundamental principle of jujutsu—but also, in different ways, of many martial arts such as judo, aikido, karate, and Wing Chun—is about using the opponent’s strength to neutralize aggression and, ultimately, to eliminate or reduce the violence of the conflict. If the attacker pushes you, you yield, pivot, and knock him off balance; if the attacker pulls, you push and, in the same way, knock him off balance.”

I can see between the lines the lessons taught to us by Petri, our trainer. The takeaway from the mornings with Petri can be summed up in a few terms, always with a positive connotation: dialogue, discussion, trust, kindness, collaboration, a positive outlook, and the absence of conflict. In his article, Gianrico Carofiglio urges us to address conflict by avoiding it: “There is no use of unnecessary violence; the neutralization of the attack, the imbalance created by the displacement and diversion of aggressive force, have a defensive function, but also an educational one. They show the adversary in a gentle way—let’s say, in the gentlest way possible—that aggression is useless and harmful, and backfires. Neutralizing the attack does not imply eliminating the adversary.”

Carofiglio continues by saying that these principles must be brought back to dialectics, especially to the political and institutional confrontations we see every day on TV, which are counter-educational and charged with aggression. Reading Carofiglio and having Petri’s lessons clearly in mind, I feel compelled to say that this dialectic of kindness must be brought back to the classroom.
Petri taught us to greet our students in the morning with a smile, asking how they are, even when we have a thousand things to worry about, like filling out the electronic register, absences, homework, and tests. Petri taught us to collaborate with our colleagues, to avoid conflict, inferiority, or superiority; he taught us to work as a team and told us that competition is pointless.

It’s true that this is pure theory, but when we gathered with our colleagues, some from other schools in Italy, others from across Europe, we were happy, just like all Finns. Petri taught us that teamwork creates a circle of trust. Just like a stone thrown into water, each circle degenerates into another.

When teachers collaborate and support each other, this spirit of trust and cohesion is also reflected in the classroom, creating a positive climate that encourages students to actively participate and see the value of learning.

Therefore, every step we take together, every innovative practice we adopt, becomes a living example for our students. It is through these concrete actions that we can instill in our students a desire to learn and to commit to their educational journey. School is not only a place for the transmission of knowledge, but also an environment where examples of collaboration and trust can motivate and inspire every student to give their best.

I thank Petri and all the colleagues I have met; I am sure we will meet again and stay in touch, striving to put into practice everything we have learned in our schools. I thank the Erasmus program for allowing us to bring such a wonderful experience to our students.

L'articolo Thanks to Erasmus and thanks to Petri IImonen proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.

We’re back in Poland, specifically in Krakow. This is the second installment of my diary, written during my stay in Krakow, visiting the Da Vinci and Mazzarello schools, thanks to the Erasmus program.

Upon my return to Italy, after some reflection and observation of our classes, an important topic emerged, one that would be taken for granted in the naturalness of school: reading. We’re not talking about reading textbooks, but rather the constant and continuous reading of children’s books, especially novels. My reflection begins with the school environment. I wander around, enter the classrooms, and explore the spaces: everywhere there are shelves filled with neatly arranged books. There are shelves in the corridor, in the classroom. Behind a door marked with a sign that evidently means “library” in Polish, I find myself in an immense space divided by bookcases, low shelves, tables, and rugs. I’ve arrived at the library.

Readers might think that, given that it’s a school, the presence of books is normal, just as scissors are found in a barber shop and pots and pans in the kitchen. What amazes me about the Da Vinci School is that these shelves are actually used; the books are selected, read, and put away. When I think of Italian school libraries, I’m saddened that the wealth of books accumulated over time isn’t being used by the students. Sometimes there’s no librarian, or students simply aren’t accustomed to borrowing a book every week, reading it, and returning it. I imagine our libraries dusty and dark, forgotten at the bottom of the equipment list, supplanted by rooms housing tablets and new technologies.

The schools we visited provided us with a true glimpse into the approach to books and reading typical of Polish schools. Each child has a book in their schoolbag that they choose freely, a work that captures their attention and leads them to explore distant worlds, immerse themselves in science fiction stories involving spaceships and extraterrestrials, or even in compelling mysteries that pique their curiosity.

Reading is seen not as an obligation, but as a natural activity, a continuation of the day, like a game of soccer or adventures in the world of Pokémon. I observed a well-organized library, with 8- and 9-year-olds stretched out on the floor, each with their own book, absorbed in reading as if they were watching an engaging film.

A question comes naturally to me: how many children in an Italian school freely go to the library and choose a book for their leisure time? I leave you with this reflection: should we be doing more to introduce our children to the world of reading? Despite the fact that leading sociologists blog every day that reading offers numerous benefits, such as peace and concentration, why do the majority of our students not even read a single complete novel in an entire school year?

Recently, I had an interesting conversation with my bookshop friends at Libreria della Torre in Chieri about the importance of introducing young children to reading from an early age. Elena and Giorgia are observing a sudden decline in adult reading as well. The average age of the core readership is 55. What will happen to the immense cultural heritage printed on paper when the baby boomers are no longer around? This is a question that has long been circulating among book lovers.

With the bookshops, we are planning a series of reading workshops for children. These workshops, working on interpretation and voice modulation techniques, help children understand the text and, at the same time, identify with the story.

The goal is to ignite that spark in them that will lead them to always carry a book in their backpack, ready for any occasion. Imagine a child who, while waiting in line for the school bus, instead of looking at his mother’s smartphone, picks up his book and starts reading. This is what we want to convey: a love of reading that can accompany them at every moment of their lives.

L'articolo Erasmus Program Diary (Part 2) proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.

Observing the Polish population’s attitude toward the common good, we can observe a profound maturity and significant respect for all that belongs to the community. At the Leonardo da Vinci school, the common areas are designed to resemble a welcoming living room, equipped with colorful sofas, comfortable armchairs, and coffee tables. During breaks, students arrange themselves in an orderly fashion, demonstrating care and attention for their environment. This attitude is not only a symbol of civic education, but also reflects a strong sense of shared responsibility. This premise is essential to understanding not only the essence of the school we are visiting, but also the mentality and values ​​Polish society fosters in its young citizens. Through this analysis, we can draw significant lessons about how a sense of community and respect for one’s place can positively influence the educational and social context.

Students are similar to Italians: some enjoy studying, while others strive to complete their courses with minimal effort. However, the difference is significant: the term “respect” has an intrinsic meaning for them. There is respect for the teacher, for the sofas, for classmates, for the rules, and for us, Italian visitors.

In future blog posts, I will explain in detail the similarities and differences between school curricula, grades, homework, assessments, etc. However, in this introductory article, I want to emphasize how cultural differences and the seriousness of our approach to what is not ours become an important cornerstone of my reflection on Polish schools compared to Italian ones.

In my school trips across Europe, I’ve noticed that all schools are similar. Teachers all complain about the same problems, such as excessive bureaucracy, generational change, and student vulnerability. As the principal of an Italian school, I can say that our school is founded on very solid pillars, on serious and rational planning, on content, on the classics, on literature, and on humanism.

What are we missing? Perhaps we lack a breath of fresh air in education, a real dialogue that goes beyond simply filling out forms for the Erasmus program, but represents a true awareness of the need to change teaching methods. We must put students at the center of our teaching process, not just in theory, but in practice. We must motivate students and make them fall in love with learning. I know, it’s a daunting task and may seem like empty words.

In the following articles, I’ll write more reflections, launch new proposals, and seek the benevolent opinions of my colleagues, remembering that we are teachers and that we leave controversies at the door, in an era of media where everyone shouts and complains.

See you next time!

L'articolo Erasmus Program Diary (Part 1) proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.

L'articolo New mobility activities proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.

L'articolo Towards Teaching Excellence: The Holden School in Erasmus+ Mobility, Enhanced by the PNRR in Finland, Estonia, and Poland! proviene da Istituto Pascal Chieri.