At Sarroch tablets for the students to help develop their critical thinking

“School is changing and innovating, and wants to govern change to offer better education.”

These words by the director of the Comprehensive Secondary School of Sarroch (Cagliari),
Fatima Pasella are received with keen interest by two classes of second-year students. This is no ordinary lesson
– this is the presentation of the ‘Tablet Project’, designed to gradually add tablets to the students’ standard textbooks.

The Saras Group is sponsoring this project which aims to help students use digital devices in a conscious,
critical and creative manner.

“From monsters to friends”, these were the words used by the deputy headmaster of the institute, Paolo Ligas,
as he spoke in particular to parents, referring to the diffidence at times shown by mothers and fathers
in regards to the internet and its access devices.

This experiment will start firstly in two second-year classes – A and B – and will allow the youngsters,
digital natives, to exploit to the full their skills, learning that technology is their friend: the enemy to be overcome is its bad use.

The director of Sarroch’s comprehensive school, Fatima Pasella and the deputy headmaster, Paolo Ligas

A vital factor in the success of the project will be the role played by teachers, specifically trained
to exploit to the best this opportunity, and the collaboration of parents who showed great interest in the initiative.

“The opportunities are many and varied – pointed out Mr Ligas – new teaching methods will make it possible
to use the classroom spaces better, they will facilitate the use by the students of textbooks
– now also available in digital format – and will allow immediate checks of learning outcomes.

What is more, sharing and cooperation will foster the development of creative talent.
It will also be possible to assist better those students experiencing difficulties.”

So not only fewer books in the teens’ backpacks, but also the chance to improve learning techniques and learn
to sift through information and verify its sources, a very topical theme in our age of ‘fake news’.