School-family communication – although it has repeatedly been the subject of study in educational research, especially in terms of the need to build solid school-family alliances (Capperucci et al., 2018; Caronia, 2012) – is a topic that often takes a marginal position in pedagogical reflections that have the world of formal education as their object. The complexity of the phenomenon, already rich in terms of variety and situations, has been further amplified by the increasingly relevant introduction of technology in school contexts not only as a tool to support teaching, but also as a supporting element to build the communication infrastructure between teachers, parents and pupils. Reference is made, in particular, to the relationships dynamics involving pupils, teachers and parents and how these have been the protagonists of an intense process of evolution motivated by a series of factors including a greater intensification in the use of technologies by users and an increasing presence of a multitude of communication channels (messages, telephone calls, e-mails, audio messages, images, videos and other modalities made possible by today's social networks) over the years. In this regard, the spectrum of possible communication channels is very wide and ranges from digital tools that can be defined as "official", i.e. designed and made available in an institutional manner by the school for purely scholastic purposes (school website, electronic register, institutional e-mails of teachers and students), and "unofficial", i.e. all those means that, instead, are spontaneously used by subjects as the stage of their relational dynamics (chat, WhatsApp groups, other social networks). This very dense network of relationships mediated by digital contexts – reference is made to the relational dynamics between students/students, students/teachers and teachers/teachers – which takes place seamlessly in and out of school times and spaces, influences in a very decisive way the social climate of the classroom environment (Soriani A., 2018; Pacetti, E., 2018) and beyond. While these dynamics have been previously explored, albeit in a partial way, there are others that remain unexplored and which, in their own way, could equally influence the way teachers and parents exercise their profession as teachers and the way they treat relationships around the school world. These are the communicative exchanges mediated by digital contexts that take place between parents and other parents and between parents and teachers: this issue represents an important junction in the school/family communication space and often runs the risk of resulting in conflictual dynamics that are managed in a difficult way or simply perceived as an unnecessary burden and an additional load on the shoulders of teachers and parents. The issue transversally affects the school context in its entirety, especially in those school orders where the parents' role is still that of the main mediator. Therefore, the research subject of this contribution has mainly focused on investigating the phenomenon of school-family communication within a comprehensive school in its entirety: that is, from the first instances of pre-school to secondary school. The purpose of this proposal is to illustrate a research conducted by the Department of Educational Sciences carried out at the comprehensive school “Il Guercino” in Bologna, between 2019 and 2022: the project aimed to investigate how communicative exchanges mediated by digital contexts are able to influence the relational dynamics between teachers and parents and between parents and other parents. The methodological framework identified to conduct the research was that of Teacher Professional Development Research (TPDR) (Asquini, 2018). In this regard, an TPDR coordination group was established consisting of: Staff of researchers from the University of Bologna; Teachers from the comprehensive institute where the research was conducted and working in different school grades (pre-school, primary and secondary); Parents with pupils enrolled at the same CI, one for each school grade. The reason for the choice in pursuing this methodological approach derives from the fact that the CI of the Municipality of Bologna, where the research was carried out, made an explicit request for training for their teachers and parents on the issue of relationships mediated by digital contexts and how these influence the work of teachers and the relationships between the actors in the field. The school in question is located in an area on the outskirts of Bologna, a context characterised by strong socio-cultural and economic heterogeneity. The families benefiting from its services have different backgrounds: there are a large number of families with migratory histories, families that are not completely Italian-speaking and with different economic possibilities. For this reason, the need to work on more inclusive school-family communication was very much felt. In the first year, 51 questionnaires were collected from teachers and 126 from parents, and three focus groups were held with teachers and three with parents (one for each school order). In the second year, 69 teacher questionnaires and 566 parent questionnaires were collected and the focus groups with teachers and parents were repeated. See (Pacetti E. & Soriani A., 2021) for more on the findings of the first year of research. Other actions undertaken in the course of the research were: the organisation of two training initiatives (one for teachers and one for parents) about inclusive school-family communication mediated by technology and the publication, on the school's website, of a document containing guidelines for inclusive school-family communication mediated by technology, collectively written by all those involved in the TPDR coordination group. It is worth highlighting three aspects that emerged from the inquiry. The first is about the need for the construction of a more inclusive school model, open to the diversity and differences (especially in socio-economic terms) of the beneficiary families; the second highlights the necessity of being more aware and of acting correctly through the communication channels available (technological and otherwise): a focus that has become even more fundamental during the second term in the s.y. 2019-20 with the pandemic, where the usual relationships and routines came to a standstill; finally, the third element is inherent to a more conscious and reasoned use of the various communication channels available: careful school-family communication, which also knows how to enhance the figure of the parents' representative, of the plexus referents, of the coordinating teachers, which explicitly sets out protocols and guidelines, is the bearer of a more serene, more collaborative climate and, consequently, of greater social well-being.
La comunicazione scuola/famiglia – sebbene sia stata più volte oggetto di studio nell’ambito della ricerca in campo educativo, soprattutto in termini di necessità di costruzione di alleanze scuola-famiglia solide (Capperucci et al., 2018; Caronia, 2012) – è un argomento che spesso assume una posizione marginale nelle riflessioni pedagogiche che hanno come oggetto il mondo dell’educazione formale. La complessità del fenomeno, già di per sé ricca per varietà e per situazioni, è stata ulteriormente amplificata dall’introduzione sempre più rilevante delle tecnologie nei contesti scolastici non solo come strumento a supporto della didattica, ma anche come elemento portante per costruire l’infrastruttura comunicativa fra insegnanti, genitori ed alunni. Si fa riferimento, in particolare, alle dinamiche relazionali che interessano alunni, insegnanti e genitori e di come queste siano state protagoniste di un intenso processo di evoluzione motivato da una serie di fattori tra i quali una maggiore intensificazione negli usi di tecnologie da parte degli utenti e una effettiva presenza di una moltitudine di canali di comunicazione (messaggi, telefonate, e-mail, audio messaggi, immagini, video ed altre modalità rese possibili dagli odierni social network) che si è andata intensificando negli anni. A tal proposito, lo spettro dei possibili canali comunicativi è ampissimo e spazia da strumenti digitali che possono essere definiti come “ufficiali”, cioè concepiti e messi a disposizione in maniera istituzionale dalla scuola per scopi prettamente scolastici (es.: sito della scuola, registro elettronico, mail istituzionali dei docenti e degli studenti,), e “non ufficiali”, ovvero tutti quei mezzi che, invece, sono spontaneamente utilizzati dai soggetti come teatro delle loro dinamiche relazionali (es.: chat, gruppi di WhatsApp, social network vari). Questa fittissima rete di relazioni mediata da contesti digitali – si fa riferimento in particolare alle dinamiche relazionali fra studenti/studenti, studenti/insegnanti ed anche insegnanti/insegnanti – che avviene senza soluzione di continuità dentro e fuori i tempi e gli spazi della scuola, influenza in maniera molto decisa il clima sociale dell’ambiente classe (Autore, 2018) e non solo. Mentre tali dinamiche sono state precedentemente esplorate, seppur in maniera parziale, ve ne sono altre che rimangono ancora inesplorate e che, a loro modo, potrebbero influenzare in maniera altrettanto importante il modo di esercitare il proprio mestiere di insegnante e di curare le relazioni intorno al mondo della scuola da parte di insegnanti e genitori. Si tratta degli scambi comunicativi mediati da contesti digitali che avvengono fra genitori ed altri genitori e fra genitori ed insegnanti: questa tematica rappresenta uno snodo importante nello spazio comunicativo scuola/famiglia e rischia spesso di sfociare in dinamiche conflittuali gestite in maniera difficoltosa o semplicemente percepite come un inutile peso ed un ulteriore carico sulle spalle di insegnanti e genitori. La problematica interessa trasversalmente il contesto scolastico nella sua interezza, specialmente negli ordini di scuola dove il ruolo dei genitori è ancora quello di mediatore principale. Pertanto, la ricerca oggetto di questo contributo si è focalizzata prevalentemente nell’approfondire il fenomeno della comunicazione scuola-famiglia all’interno di un istituto comprensivo nella sua interezza: ovvero dalle prime istanze di scuola dell’infanzia fino a quelle della scuola secondaria di primo grado. La presente proposta ha l’intento di illustrare una ricerca condotta dal Dipartimento di XX svoltasi presso l’Istituto Comprensivo XX di XX, tra il 2019 e il 2022: il progetto ha avuto lo scopo di indagare come gli scambi comunicativi mediati da contesti digitali siano in grado di influenzare le dinamiche relazionali fra insegnanti e genitori e fra genitori ed altri genitori. L’impianto metodologico individuato per condurre la ricerca è stato quello della ricerca-formazione (RF) (Asquini, 2018). A tal proposito, è stato costituito un gruppo di coordinamento della R/F composto da: Staff di ricercatori dell’Università di XX; Insegnanti provenienti dall’istituto comprensivo in cui è stata condotta la ricerca e operanti in diversi gradi della scuola (infanzia, primaria e secondaria di primo grado); Genitori con alunni iscritti presso lo stesso IC, uno per ogni grado di scuola. Il motivo della scelta nel perseguire questa impostazione metodologica deriva dal fatto che l’istituto comprensivo del Comune di XX, dove la ricerca si è svolta, ha fatto richiesta esplicita di una formazione per i loro insegnanti e per i loro genitori, riguardo alla problematica delle relazioni mediate da contesti digitali e di come queste influenzino l’operato degli insegnanti e i rapporti fra gli attori in campo. L’IC in oggetto è collocato in una zona della prima periferia di XX, un contesto connotato da una forte eterogeneità socio-culturale ed economica. Le famiglie beneficiarie dei servizi di tale istituto hanno differenti background: sono presenti in grande numero famiglie con storie migratorie, famiglie non completamente italofone e con differenti possibilità economiche. Per questo motivo, il bisogno di lavorare ad una maggiore inclusività della comunicazione scuola-famiglia era molto sentito. Nel primo anno sono stati raccolti 51 questionari rivolti ad insegnanti e 126 a genitori, e sono stati svolti tre focus group con insegnanti e tre con genitori (uno per ogni ordine di scuola). Nel secondo anno, sono stati raccolti 69 questionari insegnanti e 566 genitori e sono stati ripetuti i focus group con insegnanti e genitori. Per un approfondimento su quanto emerso dal primo anno di ricerca si veda (Autori, 2021). Altre azioni intraprese nel corso degli anni di sviluppo della ricerca sono state: l’organizzazione di due iniziative di formazione (una rivolta agli insegnanti e una rivolta ai genitori) avente come oggetto la comunicazione scuola-famiglia inclusiva mediata da tecnologie e la pubblicazione, sul sito dell’istituto comprensivo, di un documento contenente linee guida per una comunicazione scuola-famiglia inclusiva mediata da tecnologie redatto in maniera partecipata da tutti i soggetti coinvolti nel gruppo di coordinamento della RF. Vale la pena sottolineare tre aspetti di interesse emersi dai risultati di questa indagine. Il primo riguarda la costruzione di un modello scolastico più inclusivo, aperto alle diversità e alle differenze (soprattutto in termini socio-economici) delle famiglie beneficiarie; il secondo rimarca la necessità di conoscere ed agire correttamente attraverso i canali comunicativi a disposizione (tecnologici e non): attenzione che è diventata ancora più fondamentale durante il secondo quadrimestre nell'a.s. 2019-20 con la pandemia, dove i rapporti consueti e le normali routine sono venuti a cadere; infine, il terzo elemento è inerente ad un utilizzo più consapevole e più ragionato dei diversi canali comunicativi presenti: un’attenta comunicazione scuola-famiglia, che sappia anche valorizzare la figura del rappresentante dei genitori, dei referenti di plesso, dei docenti coordinatori, che espliciti protocolli e linee guida è portatrice di un clima più sereno, più collaborativo e, di conseguenza, di maggior benessere sociale.
Alessandro Soriani, Elena Pacetti, Elena Marcato (2022). Technology-mediated school-family communication: a Teacher Professional Development Research in a school institute set in Bologna. Lecce : Pensa MultiMedia.
Technology-mediated school-family communication: a Teacher Professional Development Research in a school institute set in Bologna
Alessandro Soriani
Co-primo
Writing – Review & Editing
;Elena Pacetti
Co-primo
Writing – Review & Editing
;Elena Marcato
Co-primo
Writing – Review & Editing
2022
Abstract
School-family communication – although it has repeatedly been the subject of study in educational research, especially in terms of the need to build solid school-family alliances (Capperucci et al., 2018; Caronia, 2012) – is a topic that often takes a marginal position in pedagogical reflections that have the world of formal education as their object. The complexity of the phenomenon, already rich in terms of variety and situations, has been further amplified by the increasingly relevant introduction of technology in school contexts not only as a tool to support teaching, but also as a supporting element to build the communication infrastructure between teachers, parents and pupils. Reference is made, in particular, to the relationships dynamics involving pupils, teachers and parents and how these have been the protagonists of an intense process of evolution motivated by a series of factors including a greater intensification in the use of technologies by users and an increasing presence of a multitude of communication channels (messages, telephone calls, e-mails, audio messages, images, videos and other modalities made possible by today's social networks) over the years. In this regard, the spectrum of possible communication channels is very wide and ranges from digital tools that can be defined as "official", i.e. designed and made available in an institutional manner by the school for purely scholastic purposes (school website, electronic register, institutional e-mails of teachers and students), and "unofficial", i.e. all those means that, instead, are spontaneously used by subjects as the stage of their relational dynamics (chat, WhatsApp groups, other social networks). This very dense network of relationships mediated by digital contexts – reference is made to the relational dynamics between students/students, students/teachers and teachers/teachers – which takes place seamlessly in and out of school times and spaces, influences in a very decisive way the social climate of the classroom environment (Soriani A., 2018; Pacetti, E., 2018) and beyond. While these dynamics have been previously explored, albeit in a partial way, there are others that remain unexplored and which, in their own way, could equally influence the way teachers and parents exercise their profession as teachers and the way they treat relationships around the school world. These are the communicative exchanges mediated by digital contexts that take place between parents and other parents and between parents and teachers: this issue represents an important junction in the school/family communication space and often runs the risk of resulting in conflictual dynamics that are managed in a difficult way or simply perceived as an unnecessary burden and an additional load on the shoulders of teachers and parents. The issue transversally affects the school context in its entirety, especially in those school orders where the parents' role is still that of the main mediator. Therefore, the research subject of this contribution has mainly focused on investigating the phenomenon of school-family communication within a comprehensive school in its entirety: that is, from the first instances of pre-school to secondary school. The purpose of this proposal is to illustrate a research conducted by the Department of Educational Sciences carried out at the comprehensive school “Il Guercino” in Bologna, between 2019 and 2022: the project aimed to investigate how communicative exchanges mediated by digital contexts are able to influence the relational dynamics between teachers and parents and between parents and other parents. The methodological framework identified to conduct the research was that of Teacher Professional Development Research (TPDR) (Asquini, 2018). In this regard, an TPDR coordination group was established consisting of: Staff of researchers from the University of Bologna; Teachers from the comprehensive institute where the research was conducted and working in different school grades (pre-school, primary and secondary); Parents with pupils enrolled at the same CI, one for each school grade. The reason for the choice in pursuing this methodological approach derives from the fact that the CI of the Municipality of Bologna, where the research was carried out, made an explicit request for training for their teachers and parents on the issue of relationships mediated by digital contexts and how these influence the work of teachers and the relationships between the actors in the field. The school in question is located in an area on the outskirts of Bologna, a context characterised by strong socio-cultural and economic heterogeneity. The families benefiting from its services have different backgrounds: there are a large number of families with migratory histories, families that are not completely Italian-speaking and with different economic possibilities. For this reason, the need to work on more inclusive school-family communication was very much felt. In the first year, 51 questionnaires were collected from teachers and 126 from parents, and three focus groups were held with teachers and three with parents (one for each school order). In the second year, 69 teacher questionnaires and 566 parent questionnaires were collected and the focus groups with teachers and parents were repeated. See (Pacetti E. & Soriani A., 2021) for more on the findings of the first year of research. Other actions undertaken in the course of the research were: the organisation of two training initiatives (one for teachers and one for parents) about inclusive school-family communication mediated by technology and the publication, on the school's website, of a document containing guidelines for inclusive school-family communication mediated by technology, collectively written by all those involved in the TPDR coordination group. It is worth highlighting three aspects that emerged from the inquiry. The first is about the need for the construction of a more inclusive school model, open to the diversity and differences (especially in socio-economic terms) of the beneficiary families; the second highlights the necessity of being more aware and of acting correctly through the communication channels available (technological and otherwise): a focus that has become even more fundamental during the second term in the s.y. 2019-20 with the pandemic, where the usual relationships and routines came to a standstill; finally, the third element is inherent to a more conscious and reasoned use of the various communication channels available: careful school-family communication, which also knows how to enhance the figure of the parents' representative, of the plexus referents, of the coordinating teachers, which explicitly sets out protocols and guidelines, is the bearer of a more serene, more collaborative climate and, consequently, of greater social well-being.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.