on the quality of school services with reference
to didactic and organisational autonomy
This publication is part of the material prepared for Progetto Copernico, an initiative of in-service training on organisational and teaching autonomy, based on the definition of original paths for continuing education of school staff through support materials made available to the national education system.
The Project, promoted by the Ministry of Education and co-ordinated by the Directorate for Lower Secondary Education, involved Directorates of all categories and levels. It started in November 1997 and was completed in October 1999.
The Project was based on six local networks, each composed of 12 institutes (3 primary schools, 3 lower secondary schools and 6 high schools) and co-ordinated by a leading school. Each network was assigned a topic concerning autonomy for a theoretical in-depth study to be transformed into a path of training and production according to the “research-action” methodology.
Each school network co-operated with a Centre for Research to guarantee the quality of the theoretical elaboration and training. The centers of research have been selected the basis of their specific competences and interest in developing joint projects with the school system.
The school networks and centres for research have thus become new scientific poles on the territory: the results were obtained with full planning autonomy and responsibility for the choice of contents and methods.
At national level, key roles in project activities have been played by the Technical-Scientific Committee, composed of the science experts from the six Centres for Research and the head teachers from the leading schools of the six networks, the National Co-ordination Group, composed of representatives from the different directorates and school staff, and the Technical-Operative Team. In setting up the Project, each network was granted special financing for training activities and production of the educational support materials.
Training involved 5 persons per school (the head teacher, three teachers, and the chief of administration), 60 persons for each network and 360 for the whole Project.
The complexity of the initiative and its advanced goals of training and research, has required the whole Project to be monitored by CEDE (Centro Europeo Dell’Educazione - European Centre for Education) in Frascati; the results of this activity allowed the National Co-ordination Group and the Technical-Scientific Committee to periodically re-direct the Project and the actions concerned.
The main elements of Progetto Copernico - the network structure, communication, use of technologies - have made it necessary to create processes and relations based on innovative solutions. They are certainly not easy to implement due to the complexity of cross-activity training that involves different levels of education and professional figures.
This synthesis of the Project is aimed primarily at school staff who plan to carry out training courses within a framework of organisational and teaching autonomy.
The qualified work accomplished by Progetto Copernico will remain, beyond the life of the Project itself, an important reference point thanks to the analytical work carried out by the Centres of Research and the training experience gained by the school networks.
Progetto Copernico provides the school system with its experience as a permanent laboratory and communication network. We are fully aware that organisational and teaching autonomy requires methods for planning, innovation and self-assessment to enhance the skills already existing in the school system, towards research and development and integration with the territory.
The Copernico experience shows that efficient in-service training in an independent school must be constructed according to the education system as a whole and to the single institution as part of an organism in which each component can develop only in relation to others.
Technical Operative Team
Progetto Copernico
