In a press release of 19 July 2002, it is said that the project, internet@scuola aims at “improving ICT culture in schools and at creating cooperative work exchange”. To realize these objectives the project proposes the use of school-home connections through tools such as PC, printer, web cam etc., that involve a lot of costs for students and teachers. Do you envisage some financial support to buy the equipment?

According to FEDERCOMIN, the Italian association for information technology, (www.federcomin.it) more than 60% of the Italian families with children have a computer and internet connection, which means that they have more equipment than the school; so the Italian schools have to balance this situation both in qualitative and quantitative terms. To this regards, we are working with the Innovation and Technology Ministry to give financial support (200 Euro for each student) to those students who want to buy a computer for school activities. In this way the ICT tools can be used both at school and at home and a new prompt will be given to the information technology industry as well.

In which timeframe will most Italian schools be sufficiently connected and equipped with ICT tools to carry out the teaching activities?

The broadband plan for the Italian schools, designed by the Innovation and Information Technology Ministry, envisages that 85% of Italian schools will be provided with cable and broadband (ADSL, optic fibre, Powerline or satellite) by 2005. Private and public organizations will provide financial support. The necessary funds for the implementation of the ICT tools (PC and internal wireless cable) will be provided by the Ministry of Education (20% more than last year); banking foundations (which cooperate with the schools in the Piemonte and the Emilia Romagna Regions) Regional (POR) and European (PON) funding and by local pilot projects (such as “Mars” in the Sardinia Region or some other projects in Milan and Brescia).

The project introduces the virtual currency MERCOR, which will reward good quality projects. Can you give details about MERCOR currency? What does the word mean and how does the currency system work?

The Mercor System that is being studied by the Communication and the Education Ministries, envisages the realization of teaching software by schools using this “virtual currency”, according to the following rules:

• Each school gets funds (by the Italian Ministry of Education or by the EC) to realize ICT tools;
• The ICT tools produced will be available to schools on the MIUR website, in the Information System Portal (Direzione dei Sistemi Informativi); schools can download this ICT tools for free. This way of choosing software gives virtual credits to the sofware itself.
• The more credits a school collects (for the software chosen by others) the more funds it receives by the education Ministry to realize other quality products.

The press release also states that some private companies gave their financial and practical support in the realization of the broadband cable connection, for example FASTWEB for the Liguria and Lombardia Regions. What were the criteria to choose these private companies?Do you envisage involving other companies as well?

The broadband cable connection is being piloted in Milan, Genova and Rome; it includes free cable connection to that schools included in the pilots and 20% discount to students and teachers who decide to get these facilities. The offer came from Fastweb, with the aim of increasing, in a short time, the development of broadband cable connection starting from schools’ needs. The Fastweb example shows that the school is not a “company” but a social investment for the future of the country, which can give benefit. The Ministry of Education has foreseen 35m € for the new teacher contract to pay them back teaching software, books, training courses, ADSL subscriptions with broadband providers.

How will you direct the relationship between school and private companies in the future?

We are going to dedicate a section of the Information System Portal in the MIUR website to companies’ offers in order to give the schools the opportunity to have special prices for products and services. At present, we are working with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs on special agreements with schools and universities managed by Consip (responsible for e-procurement in public administration). We would like to increase and support the relationship between schools and private companies to direct students’ education towards the labour market needs.

Who is in charge of coordinating the different phases of the overall project in the schools? In addition to private companies did you also involve other organizations? Will INDIRE (National Institute for documentation of Innovation and Educational Research), and TRAMPI (Training Center of the Ministry of Education) be involved in a new training session for teachers?

INDIRE, and TRAMPI are the main pillars of our educational system. They are also regarded as investment by the Ministry of Education. However, we are evaluating other private organisations to collaborate with the aim of implementing the best technological equipment and skills for Italian teachers. In the press release it is stated that “an eLearning service will be given to students and teachers for a training in the English language at school with a specific teaching way, usable at school and from home.”

Can you underline the pedagogical model of the elearning services which the project will implement?

Language teaching through ICT is one of the teaching methods in the pilot project, which is on-going in 200 nursery and primary schools in Italy for this new school year.. The project includes new pedagogical methods and elearning teaching material, which have been built up by INDIRE The new pedagogical outlines are those included in the teaching reform, recently approved by the Italian Parliament. Elearning tools will be available both at school and at home to students and teachers, aiming at encouraging the use of games to learn languages. This system will be soon available for 200 schools included in the pilot project.

Are there any other special subject areas in which the project should be implemented?

The project can be implemented to teach English and ICT subjects as well as other technological subjects. Many of the pilot projects are carried out in schools which produce a lot of elearning tools that will be uploaded on the ministry website.

The project was developed by the Ministry of Communications in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, University and Research. It will be presented at the TED 2003 in Genoa (Press release in Italian).