I was so happy with the auto gestione. So happy. This is a school which is alive, vibrant and pushing in the right direction. Those who organised it did themselves and the school a big favour. They did themselves a big favour because the qualities to organise, have ideas, convince and motivate are the qualities which always lead to success in whatever field you’re in. And it hasn’t just been in the auto gestione in which they showed these qualities. These students were the hands behind mobilising students against the reforms, or the setting up of the magazine, or the creating of the Umberto group on Facebook, or in leading the students out of classrooms which collapsed from damp the following day, or in organising students to propose school cuts in opposition to those proposed by the Preside. This has led to some discomfort and tension between them and authority. In fact the preside came into one of my lessons to defend his position on posters which were put on the wall, a position which was strongly criticised by the students’ representatives in a public meeting. These tensions are part of a culture which is alive, vibrant and moving. To the Preside’s credit, he understands this very well and is enthusiastic about the student’s participation in the school, whether it’s in opposition to him or not. To have students formulating independent opinions, voicing them and mobilising others against us, who are given the privilege of authority, is a sign of the school’s success in their development. We need to develop students to have an influence in the world. An impact on the world is the best measure of a person’s success in life This is part of the new paradigm in this more interconnected world. Accumulation of wealth and status was the great emphasis of my generation, but wealth is becoming increasingly transient and reliant on connectivity, and status is literally disappearing in the most progressive cultures.
Justin Demazia