Beyond the boundaries of traditional and alternative education: school choice and the geographies of experimentation in the Italian school system

Ceresa, Giulia Chiara (2023). Beyond the boundaries of traditional and alternative education: school choice and the geographies of experimentation in the Italian school system. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This thesis proposes an exploration of the geographies of alternative and experimental forms of education in mainstream schools for the first time. The research revolves around two main contributions: in the first instance, it investigates the circuits which guide parents’ choices on public schools, private schools, or schools with alternative experimentation; in the second instance, it analyses the experiences of the teachers and students in three school networks with experimentation which operate on a national scale. As such, it sits at the intersection of three wider areas of scholarship: children’s geographies, geography of education, geographies of alternative education.

In order to do this, a mixed method qualitative research programme conducted in Italy was implemented. It began in the spring of 2020, and after being modified due to the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, it concluded in the spring of 2021. The methodological programme involved three components: (1) ‘The School Of My Dreams’, an in-depth interview composed of open questions for parents who chose alternative learning sites, private schools or state schools with alternative experimentation for their children (n=40). (2) ‘All About Your School’, a programme for children from the ages of 6 to 10 which proposed the production of a lapbook through which the children expressed their own school experiences (n=75). (3) ‘What’s Education For’, interviews with key adults who work as teachers and school directors in schools with alternative experimentation (n=28).

Appropriately the research offers four key contributions: (1) Parents choose a school with experimentation, a private school, or a school outside of the public school system in the hopes of finding a solution which reflects their values and encompasses their vision of education consisting of various dimensions (2) Experimentation within the public school system must tackle dated buildings which impact on the implementation of the experimentation, and forge creative and co-productive relationships between the various social and spatial process which define these approaches. (3) The relationship between teachers and students has an organisational function in the establishment of the teaching practices. (4) The collaboration with informal education associations, alternative learning sites and communities which exist in the area is fundamental in the establishment of experimentation in the public-school sector, and has a double-function: on one hand, it acts as a complement to the training offer, supporting the privatisation of certain processes of the public school, on another, it operates as network of social support, increasing the solidarity and connections of the social fabric with the educational community.

Thanks to the field research conducted in Italy, the thesis adds to the amplification of knowledge of the circuits of choice marking the training offer in Italian primary schools, which are in constant evolution. It also offers a glimpse of some attempts at experimentation within the mainstream and the relative experiences of the children and teachers who inhabit these schools. Therefore, it contributes to the literature on the geographies of education, on children’s geographies and, at the same time, it offers critical issues from an Italian perspective, providing ideas and insights to educational policy makers and those who handle building the school of tomorrow.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):