The ITET Rapisardi-Da Vinci is a technical secondary school of the economic and technological sectors. The school has two seats, one situated in the historic center of the town while the other is in the modern outskirts. The overall staff includes 88 teachers and 708 pupils (1/3 of them are commuters from the nearby small towns). Our territory is characterized by an early- school leaving high rate, a high rate of youth unemployment (over 40%) and a growing presence of immigrants coming mainly from Morocco.
Many of the students come from socially disadvantaged families (low income, low level of education) who are now facing problems like job losses, due to economic recession. The first motivation to join the project is that the overall objectives of the partnership reflect the educational aims and priorities of our institution for the next years (as stated in the Triennial Educational Offer 2019-22).Our mission is to foster social inclusion, give students better chances to learn foreign languages for communication, to share new knowledge and acquire key competences as well. In our school great care is given to pupils with disabilities, with specific learning disorders, students from disadvantaged background or foreign origins.
Our school has also identified some priorities in the quality improvement of the teaching process and has stressed the importance of adopting active methodologies aides by digital technologies. We want to continue the process of internalization of the school to widen the sociocultural horizons of students and teachers. By joining this international project our school aims to raise students ́ awareness of the European common grounds and of the existing cultural heritage through the exchange of good practices and the sharing of learning activities. Students will be encouraged to develop intercultural competences and the feeling of belonging to a greater community.
Today each educational institution is asked to play its important role in promoting respect towards minorities and immigrants. Pupils will acquire awareness of the natural environment and will share an analysis of its protection and care.
The teachers who will run the project are language teachers, teachers experts in the use of ICT and middle staff in a number that can ensure continuity of the project in the case some of them should leave their post in the future. Our school has participated to International program since 1996 and teachers have successfully exchanged views on methodological approaches and shared good practices with many other European partners.
Many eTwinning projects received National Quality Label and European Quality Labels (the last one "Everyone Matters: 5goals4inclusion) won the National Quality Label in 2018.People involved in this project are really curious and eager to learn and to face this challenge.
Key people in this project are the legal representative Santa Iacuzzo and contact person Rosaria Trombello.