January 3, 2006
The project which has been re-proposed for the sixth year, is addressed to all European and non-European students and, particularly, to the students of Liceo Classico "Duni"-Matera (Italy), the leader school that coordinates and organizes the work, and of the primary and secondary schools of Matera and its province.
A real newspaper starts with the cooperation of pupils from different schools helped by their teachers; it is a virtual editing that is in charge of choosing topics, pictures, article headlines. The on-line newspaper is like a room where young people can know each other, debate, share their projects: shortly, they meet in a "virtual square". So new technologies become a vehicle of critical meditation and their conscious use allows cultural enrichment and, why not, also entertainment. The online newspaper was published in the past five years in the web site of the newspaper” The Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno”. It has been recently moved in is own website.
The project was awarded at Netdays Europe 2001 in the European Citizenship on the Net category.It has also been chosen among 12 best school contributions for Ted 2002 Exhibition, the most important Italian meeting about ICT, organised by CNR Teaching Technology Institute and MIUR (Ministry of Education, University and Research). In 2003 the newspaper won an important international award, the "Cable & Wireless Childnet Award", achieving the third place in the school category; it was the only Italian project. The prize giving took place at the Science Museum in London, in the presence of Sir Stephen Timms MP – Minister for E-commerce and Competitiveness-Department of Trade and Industry and with Tony Blair's congratulations.
The newspaper received another prestigious recognition, placing, once again the only Italian project, among 24 finalists of the Stockholm Challenge Award 2004. The candidate projects were 900 from 107 countries. In 2004 the on-line newspaper was also awarded in Rome, in the initiative “Cento Progetti” (a hundred projects), promoted by Formez and by the Ministry of Public Office .
The ceremony took place on May 14th , 2004, in the presence of the Minister of the Public Office during the FORUM PA (Forum of the Public Administration) closing day. Even on that occasion our project was on high level and had to compare not only with other schools projects but also with proposals coming from all the Public Administration area.
The project has been chosen by a Committee of members of Basilicata IRRE (Regional Office for Research and Education) and of Basilicata Regional School Management as the best project carried out in our Region and it has been included by INDIRE( National Office for Change and Educational Research ) in Gold (Global On Line Documentation) a national data base among the innovative didactic practices , shown as good examples for schools.
The project, besides, has been considered as a case study by the Alberta Online Consortium and was shown to the eighth Online Learning Symposium 2004, in Edmonton/Alberta/Canada on 2nd –3rd –4th November, 2004.
The Online newspaper has been selected among 84 projects finalists at the Global Junior Challenge, among about 650 projects from all over the world. The Liceo “Duni” teachers and students together with other finalists went to the Capitol on 19th November, 2004. Finally the project has been awarded by the school Foundation Compagnia di San Paolo of Turin, inside “Centoscuole (A hundred schools) 2004 competition”.
The project goals are:
• To promote a positive use of the new ways of communication, as means of meeting, comparison, participation
• To acquire the ability of criticism and of independent thought necessary to take part actively in the information society
• To teach young people to work in cooperation and to promote the culture of the new media
• To train students to express and propose their ideas through non traditional ways of writing
• To put the school in touch and collaboration with the external world and other schools realities
• To stimulate students to participate actively in the life of the European society, respecting "diversity" and encouraging a democratic confrontation
• To deepen the knowledge of the European cultural inheritance, comparing traditions and appreciating the cultural differences which are at the basis of our common history and civilization
• To improve the knowledge of languages through the publication in English and other European languages of works written by students.
• To promote the integration in the European social and cultural context of students who are in disadvantaged conditions and of schools placed in remote and economically depressed geographical areas.
The project takes aim to satisfying the society's request for school system adaptation to the new demands of the information society, introducing new media in teaching, stimulating the ability of criticism.
New technologies will be used to facilitate cultural exchanges, European integration, allowing schools placed in remote geographical areas the access to information. Thanks to new technologies also disabled students will be able to take part in debates with same age students.
Students will be stimulated to tell their opinions by writing articles, interviews, surveys., to be involved in politics, traditions, customs, recent events, environment, music, sports, etc.
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