Abstract
Cultural heritage is the creative expression of a people’s presence in the past. It represents a driving force to create, develop, and consolidate the sense of identity, belonging, and citizenship, as well as a means to appreciate the diversity of people and develop a policy for peace and mutual understanding. Furthermore, heritage is a source of economic development and a key factor for sustainable development. The dissemination of such values among people and the transmission of heritage to the future generations entail putting into the field proper actions, from the knowledge to the protection and conservation, and from the enhancement to the fruition and management. Such requirements increasingly involve the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) that can be considered the paradigm shift to create novel job opportunities in the field of cultural heritage. This paper aims to discuss an experience led by the Institute of Archaeological and Monumental Heritage of the (Italian) National Research Council (IBAM-CNR), with students of a secondary school of the Basilicata region (Southern Italy). The experience developed within the framework of the School-Work Alternation (SWA) (recently renamed “Pathways for Transversal Competences and Orientation” by Italian law), a training modality envisaged in the Italian school system to bring the school closer to the world of work by proper partnership between formal education contexts and external organizations. The SWA Project revolves around the acquisition of some technical and methodological tools for the approach to knowledge, conservation, and enhancement of cultural heritage, having particular regard for diagnostic tools and ICTs. This article deals with the outcomes of the activities developed during the Project, discussing both the technical-professional and transversal skills acquired or expected to be acquired by the students. In addition, starting from the results of the activities, the authors speculate about possible outlooks of SWA in the heritage field considering: (i) the role of such a training path in raising young people's awareness to preserve cultural heritage by becoming active and proactive citizens; (ii) the relationship of SWA with regional and European-supported development policy strategies; (iii) the potential benefits that SWA can provide for cultural heritage from the synergy between different institutional actors.
Highlights
Cultural heritage (CH) is “a group of resources inherited from the past which people identify, independently of ownership, as a reflection and expression of their constantly evolving values, beliefs, knowledge, and traditions
We describe the main concepts on which situated learning is based, making the reader aware of the criteria followed in the planning and development of the Project
The School-Work Alternation (SWA) Project aimed mainly to link and consolidate the disciplinary contents acquired in the formal curricular paths to the training route, as well as developing new technical-professional skills that the students will be able to use in the world of work
Summary
Cultural heritage (CH) is “a group of resources inherited from the past which people identify, independently of ownership, as a reflection and expression of their constantly evolving values, beliefs, knowledge, and traditions. It includes all aspects of the environment resulting from the interaction between people and places through time” [1]. Heritage represents the legacy of our history, the umbilical cord that links the past with the present day, helping us to understand the latter and building a bridge for a better future. It is helpful to shape safer and stronger communities, as well as to appreciate the diversity of people and to develop policies for peace and mutual understanding. CH is a fragile, non-renewable, and non-relocatable resource
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