School drop-out is a multifaceted phenomenon, concerning in Italy all those underage students who, at different school stages (up to the age of 16) or training (up to the age of 18), manifest difficulties of different kinds, from dropping out of compulsory education without obtaining a qualification to repeated interruptions up to repetition rates and absenteeism. From the 1980s to the 2000s and beyond there is a progressive attenuation of the socio-economic model towards a multifactorial reading; but there are still few studies that directly question school components. The European Commission noted the importance of learning on this phenomenon through approaches capable to integrate large-scale quantitative surveys with qualitative analyses. Currently there is a gap in qualitative data, especially in research that seeks to explore the effectiveness of interventions to contrast school drop-out.

So, the research within which this contribution is embedded aims to study the effectiveness of some interventions designed to contrast school drop-out, which are still little studied in Italy. A privileged point of observation and field of intervention are those schools which propose alternative models of teaching and learning to the traditional school system, such as the popular and second-chance schools, which are a bulwark against drop-out. There is little scientific literature on second-chance in Italy and almost none on alternative education (with the exception of “method” schools, to which in Italy the concept of “alternative” is linked). The larger project aims to fill the gap starting to survey alternative education interventions and exploring some models of popular and second-chance experiences, in an inter-institutional perspective and connection between school and territory.

So, the first research question is: How widespread is alternative education in Lombardy? The larger project also asks: What are the main characteristics of these schools and interventions? What is their effectiveness in terms of well-being and school results?

This contribution presents the results of the first step of the research project, dedicated to mapping: a questionnaire will be distributed to all schools and some social realities in Lombardy – and selected schools in Italy – to map the presence of alternative schools/interventions in the region. This emerges as a very delicate phase in achieving the final output of the project, which is to set up a recognisable network of the schools and social realities dealing with alternative education in Lombardy, also with the collaboration of stakeholders and policymakers. This work will allow new experiences to be added to the roster of those already known: the second-chance schools “Sicomoro I Care” of the Foundation “Sicomoro per l’Istruzione” in Milan and Lodi; the alternative school “Scuola Bottega” in Milan; and the popular school of the Social Enterprise “Il Carro” in Monza. This phase will open to a two-phase exploratory design (mixed methods methodology) and to a professional development action-research addressed to teachers and educators working in alternative education.

The larger project adopts a mixed methods methodology, culminating in an action-research focusing on the professional development of educational practitioners. A sequential model was chosen: after mapping existing schools and interventions in the field of alternative education, the research design involves a qualitative phase followed by a quantitative one, after which an experimental professional development action-research intervention will be carried out on the basis of the findings obtained. Regarding the mixed methods phase (qual+quan), the design envisages integrating a sequential model with an embedded one: in the quantitative part, qualitative inserts can be entered to further investigate certain characteristics. In particular, regarding the mapping phase that is the subject of this contribution, through the Google Forms platform a questionnaire will be distributed to all schools in Lombardy and also some schools in the rest of Italy to map the presence of alternative schools or interventions. Distribution will take place also thanks to the support of the Milan Territorial School Office (UST) and Lombardy Regional School Office (USRL), who have already given their availability to take part in the research. Other social realities outside school system (such as cooperatives, cultural associations or committees) can also be questioned. The schools and other realities to be questioned outside the Lombardy region will be identified with the support of INDIRE and on the basis of existing literature and the indicators of “Futura” Plan of the PNRR (“National Recovery and Resilience Plan”). This mapping phase involves 3 main tasks: 1. co-design with UST and USRL of the questionnaire for mapping; 2. distribution of the questionnaire in Lombardy and consultation with INDIRE in order to plan the distribution to some other school and social realities in Italy; 3. distribution of the questionnaire in some other school and social realities in Italy.

Currently the research team is in the questionnaire construction phase, which will end at the end of February 2024. Then, the months of March, April and May will be dedicated to the distribution of the questionnaire in the province of Milan. Between June and August, data will be analyzed and a map will be built from the findings that emerged. The main expected outcome is a recognisable network of the schools and social realities dealing with alternative education in Italy and especially, in this phase, in the province of Milan, which can interface with alternative education and second-chance networks already active at the European level.

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