Our Comprehensive Institute N.1 in Modena, is quite young; it was born from a local school reorganization plan approved by the district of the Modena area in Emilia Romagna in the 2014-2015 school year. Before that, it was only dedicated to primary education.

Our school cluster is located in the northeast of Modena. It has four primary schools: Giovanni XXIII, Anna Frank, Lanfranco in Cittanova and Ciro Menotti in Villanova and a secondary school. It has 1,200 students: 722 pupils in primary schools and 425 in secondary school. A quite considerable number of them are of foreign origin, (199 born abroad and 136 born in Modena but from migrant families). There is also a cultural minority with a socio-cultural disadvantage (Roma and Sinti Roma students).

We also have a number of students with disabilities (22). Our institute has an administrative office with a director, a financial manager, and 6 administrative assistants. Each school has a cafeteria, a gym, an ICT classroom, a scientific laboratory, a library and a theater. In some schools there are also adequate spaces for specific rehabilitation activities for students with disabilities. Our Institute has developed inclusive procedures and has always built an inclusive record of good practices: literacy and Italian as second language courses, literacy rate labs, and projects during school hours for both migrant and Italian students. Also, in June, at the end of the school year, we started a reinforcement class in Italian language to improve their skills. We do these practices to promote the inclusion of foreign students. In our institute also works a special team of teachers and support teachers who give support to students with disabilities paying special attention to inclusion. This team supports the teachers in the didactic routine, in order to develop the potential abilities of each student to achieve educational success at school.

Our institute is linked to other local agencies known to society as aggregating centers for youth: free gyms, sports centers and libraries. In addition, our school has an agreement with a teacher training center called MEMO, which was founded by the pedagogue Sergio Neri, and also a link with the University of Modena, with the Carlo Sigonio Institute, to receive interns as well as with the Universities of Modena, Reggio Emilia and Bologna to receive students in teaching practices.

Our institute is the educational and cultural reference point of the Madonnina area, which responds to the educational needs of the students in that area.

On the other hand, it wants to satisfy the need to improve the skills of the students to address the complexity of the knowledge society. There is also a minority of excellence, to which our teachers pay attention by stimulating their capacity with specific and meaningful activities.

The good practices of the institute are externalized with the creation of projects that have as one of their objectives to enable students with disabilities to participate in these projects, together with their classmates. In this way, the activities are significant for these students and inclusive for the entire group-class.

With regard to teaching staff, various methodologies are used: the CLIL approach, cooperative learning, project-based learning, and competency learning.

We have teacher training through training courses that are activated in the network of the city of Modena with funds from the Ministry of Education and with training organized by the MEMO.

In recent years we have obtained European funding to activate reinforcement and support projects in different disciplines, PON. In this way, there has been an improvement in the competences of the students. In addition, we have implemented new technological-scientific materials for the workshops that have been preparatory to modify the way of doing didactics.

www.ic1modena.edu.it/