Being open to other generations: a research on – and – with adolescents in Mantova (ITALY)

The research which is presented in this article has been developed in the last school year with adolescents in the secondary schools in Mantova and was sustained by Regional office for education in Lombardia, Lions club Mantova Ducale, CreadaItalia onlus, and chair of Family Pedagogy in Catholic University of Sacred Hearth in Milano. The origin of the project was related to the idea that men and women nowadays need educational help to construct their relationships in a correct way in this changing society and the adult educators must reflect on the new educational needs of the adolescents, in order to educate them to the value of reciprocal RESPECT. The chosen method was to investigate students through an “ad hoc” questionnaire prepared and with the CASI system in the computer classroom, with the presence of a researcher involved in the project. The collected data have been analyzed in order to understand the character of these adolescents and the values to which they testify in everyday life with reference to male: female relationships. The result of this research has been published in a book presented to the town, useful to educators in schools and out of schools; and this year there will be a programme of education offered to parents, teachers and students and other adults together.