Drop-in: Digital Education Workshops in Agrigento

As part of the Drop-in project – selected by Con i Bambini within the framework of the Fund to combat educational poverty among minors – creative digital education workshops will be launched in Agrigento.

For this reason, last October 27, an operational memorandum of understanding was signed between the Community Foundation of Agrigento and Trapani and the “Leonardo Sciascia” Technical and Technological Economic Institute of Agrigento. The agreement was signed by the School Principal Dr. Patrizia Marino and the Director of the Community Foundation, Giuseppe La Rocca, with the presence of Prof. Carmelo Cammilleri, a computer science teacher and internal project coordinator.

The activities are part of the "education and training" area of operation of the Community Foundation, aimed at offering younger people innovative educational experiences to combat dropout rates and educational poverty.

The educational workshops will be conducted by a team of experts in STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and pedagogy from the Community Foundation led by Martina Ferracane, involving students from the “Leonardo Sciascia” Technical and Technological Economic Institute of Agrigento. Next school year, it is planned to replicate the experience in Trapani.

The activities are part of action 2 "competent youth" of the Drop-in project. This experience will be based on training a group of secondary school students on topics and techniques of creative digital education (3D printing, laser cutting, creative enterprise, etc.) who will then start horizontal teaching to a group of primary school children: from trained to co-responsible trainers for innovative educational growth.

The Drop-in project, in general, aims to support adolescents' transition to adult life, helping and encouraging them to build their own life project. It is a long-term process that involves multiple parties, primarily families and schools, and requires the commitment of the entire community.

The project, which began in April 2021, targets adolescents between the ages of 14 and 17 living in the territories of the provinces of Lecco, Trapani, and Agrigento.

The lead partner of the Drop-in project is La Grande Casa Società Cooperativa Sociale of Sesto San Giovanni (MI), while the partners of the Sicilian network are, in addition to the Community Foundation, the Solidalia Consortium, and the Euroform Association. The support partner for this action is the Fab Lab Western Sicily.

The Drop-in project was selected by Con i Bambini as part of the Fund to combat educational poverty among minors and is co-financed by the Peppino Vismara Foundation.