! Rome International School
RIS report Issue 30, April 2014 - www.romeinternationalschool.it
Plus: The Economics of Sustainability; Grade 6 PYP Exhibition: Celebrating our learning journey; Global Perspectives for an interconnected world; Bringing ideas to life through 3D printing; Une société multiculturelle est-elle une source de richesse ou de
problèmes?
Education for a
sustainable
tomorrow
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carcity is one of the main problems for an economy. Almost all natural resources on Earth are scarce compared to the
infinite wants and needs of human beings. One of the main goals for a nation is to be sustainable in terms of allocating resources. Natural resources such as coal, oil and natural gas are limited and are predicted to one day be all consumed illustrating the main problem of sustainability for our future generations. Coal, oil and natural gas are the resources which are most frequently used for producing electricity. These resources produce more than 1/3 of greenhouse gas emissions on earth. In order to support necessities for basic human living conditions, governments subsidize fossil fuel investment thus hugely increasing the consumption of these resources. Various organizations have estimated that by the year 2050 almost all of the natural resources will be completely consumed, placing a major threat to future generations who theoretically may not have access to electricity. Both the private sector and the public sector are interacting and investing in order to develop and discover a more efficient way of allocating resources. For example thanks to recent studies it can be seen how China, who ironically is one of the most polluting countries in the world, invests around $54 billion a year in research for more innovative and sustainable ways of allocating resources. For example the wind turbines at the Sino Singapore Tianjin “Eco-city” illustrates clearly the way in which the Chinese government, together with the government in Singapore, is investing for a cleaner and more sustainable way to produce energy. Nevertheless these
“renewable energy” solutions, such as wind turbines, solar panels and hydroelectric dams, can be extremely costly for both the government and the private sector thus placing an economic threat to profits. Also these kinds of solutions need the appropriate conditions to work effectively and therefore not many businesses can afford them. For example, solar panels can majorly increase the costs of production of the company. !Nevertheless, people cannot avoid thinking about sustainability. If people do not start to interact now and start to find a more sustainable and efficient way of a l locat ing resources , our future generations will have a huge ordeal in their lives thanks to our selfish ways of living. Future generations will be carrying the results of our generation therefore not providing adequate solutions place a huge threat to the world and to the security of our future. People of my age should take a long-term view investing more thought in how to allocate resources appropriately in order to reduce the consumption of these limited (and polluting) resources and d i s c o v e r i n g m o r e e f f i c i e n t a n d environmental friendly resources. !Sources: !ht tp : //www.pe t ro s t r a t eg i e s . o rg/L e a r n i n g _ C e n t e r /are_we_running_out_of_oil_and_gas.htm !http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-04/world-s-most-polluting-c o u n t r y - l e a d s - i n - c l e a n - e n e r g y -investment.html !http://www.wri.org/our-work/topics/energy
BY DANTE DE TOMA!GRADE 12
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The Economics of Sustainability
Is this the biggest threat or the greatest opportunity facing our future generations?
The school buildings, as we pointed out in the last issue of the RIS report, are an important factor in our students’ wellbeing. However, some of the unavoidable everyday aspects of our students’ experience can be no less important. An example of this is food, starAng with the main meal. The choice to provide only organic foods is undoubtedly aligned with the healthy profile we want to promote, just as we have decided to exclude so-‐called “junk-‐food” (and drink) from the vending machines and the school’s on-‐site cafeteria: a choice which we obviously believe to be in line with what our parents allow their children to eat and drink outside the school. It will also be possible, as an addiAonal service, to have a “Mediterranean-‐style” breakfast at school (two health factors are at work here: 1) having breakfast in the first place and 2) following the Mediterranean diet). But, from our point of view and in a broader sense, it is also a healthy choice to establish rules of behaviour that are consistent with the quality that RIS represents. It is healthy to wear a uniform; it is healthy to stand up when the teacher (or a guest) enters the classroom; it is healthy to encourage parAcipaAon in sports in which respecAng the rules and respecAng one’s opponent is a must and not something open to interpretaAon; it is healthy to respect the property of others. In one word, respect is healthy; towards each other, and also towards the environment. Having this consideraAon towards the environment also means giving aQenAon to everyday acAviAes. We are gradually introducing more sustainable tableware (effecAve as from this year in the High School canteen, with the other two lunch rooms following soon aTer). Since our new building will be in energy class A, we have the duty to act consistently with this first-‐class cerAficaAon. There is no other school in Rome that can boast this level of energy efficiency. Proud to be RIS. Proud to be at RIS.
IVANO BORAGINEHEAD OF SCHOOL
More about our healthy school
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echnology is evolving everyday, creating new things and improving what already exists. What may
seem as impossible today may become reality in just a few months from now, through planning ideas and developing new inventions. 3D printing is now one of the most discussed and hot topics of this period. These are new machines that just have been inserted into the technology market thanks to their usefulness and liberty of use. The printer is a machine with three main motors that turn (one for each axis, the horizontal x, the vertical y, and the depth axis z). 3D printers exploit the freedom of movement of the nozzle mounted on it to create real physical objects from a digital project. It ‘prints’ on different types of materials, ABS and PLA being the most popular and most used ones. The first one is fairly similar to the material our car tires are made of: a strong plastic obtained from petrol. The second one instead, is a derivate of cornstarch, that is nearly all recyclable and when used, it does not smell like burnt plastic. Another cool material that can be used is called “Laywood” which is a special type of PLA filament that looks exactly like wood; its colour also varies on the temperature extruded from the nozzle, in other words, the temperature at which the filament exits the nozzle (which may also be called extruder) and is laid on the surface. The principle of how it works very simple. The plastic filament is inserted inside the extruded that is previously heated up at about 230°C (depending on the material you have to use to print). Once the material reaches the end of the nozzle, it starts to print on a flat surface. It first prints a base layer, moving the extruder in the four different directions (left, right, forward and backwards). After the first layer is complete, the extruder lifts up by a tiny value (often 0.2mm) in order to then print the second layer on top of it and so
on until the object is finished. For some constructions you may want to add supports to hold angles that may exceed 45°. These are simple columns that will help to support the structure stay straight and without any falling angles. Now that 3D printers exist it will be possible for us to print objects that otherwise we normally buy in the shops. For example, need a new zip for your favorite hoodie because the old one broke and fell off? Now you can print it with a 3D printer! New communities and forums have been formed to make communications between users easier. Moreover, users can go on sites such as Thingiverse where there are millions of different ready-made projects to print straight away. This is a huge database where people can upload files and make it accessible for the rest of the world to download it, print it or even make their own changes in order to make it the exact way they want it. Obviously since it is a technology that has just been introduced it does also have some problems that may start to occur whilst using the printer. This can either be the malfunctioning of some particular parts of the printers or some occasional bugs and defects within the designing of the digital project. As a final point, I think that although it is now still a work in progress and just starting to be introduced to consumers with some minor problems, in the future it can really make our lives easier. Below I have included a link to a video that I personally like a lot and strongly suggest all of you readers watch! !Useful resources: Different types of materials – www.3dprintingindustry.com/raw-materials/ Thingiverse database - www.thingiverse.com 3D prints in real life (video) - http://vimeo.com/43442146
‘Sustainability’ tends to be something mainly discussed in terms of the environment, agriculture, biosystems and so on. As a field of study, it looks closely at how to develop and manage harmonious systems focusing on the concept of interdependability. It is understandably a developing academic field, as the world looks to manage the effects of years of over-production, consumption and resultant pollution. However, the term can also be used in a wider sense, to include topics and issues more commonly thought of as humanistic in nature. As a UNESCO statement puts it, ‘Through sustainable development we meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This vision of development embraces environmental concerns as well as issues such as the fight against poverty, gender equality, human rights, cultural diversity, and education for all.’ Put this way, it seems a central idea or focus for any school to consider. How do we plan for development in the future but still leave a positive footprint, ecological and sociological, for those that follow us? The school curriculum is certainly one key area. Through this the school can focus on critical issues through specially designed courses such as Global Perspectives, or through individual subject areas that lead naturally onto wider discussions of pan-national importance. The curriculum can also offer connections with issues such a well-being and community life. An ‘education for sustainability’ thus suggests an attempt to help students find that balance between present needs and future demands. It also perhaps embodies the concept of ‘lifelong learning’, one that is also at the core of an IB education. The aim of all IB programmes is “to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing t h e i r c o m m o n h u m a n i t y a n d s h a r e d guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world.” Education should not start and finish with school and university, but reflect a lasting need and desire to understand our world and how it works (or risks not working). As the ‘decade for sustainability’ designated by the United Nations draws to an end, what can we conclude? Clearly we have come a long way in terms of awareness of the necessity for sustainability, but we seem to have an even longer way to go in terms of connecting the idea of sustainability to every area of our physical and intellectual lives. This surely is the next step. According to UNESCO, ‘learning about sustainability is not a solitary or separate area for study, but is by its very nature a holistic educational approach’.
WILLIAM IRELAND DEPUTY HEAD
MIDDLE & HIGH PRINCIPAL!
Sustainable Futures
Bringing ideas to life3D Printing
BY CARLO ALBERTO CAMPOLO GRADE 12
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thought I would take this opportunity to share some of the issues our Global PerspecAves students (Grades 10 and
11) have been working on during their course focused on thinking locally and acAng globally. This course involves a host of academic challenges, criAcal analysis, innovaAon and collaboraAon. Recent research suggests and supports the view of internaAonal employers’ increasingly promoAng the need for ‘global skills’. This has been emphasized in two recent reports commissioned by the BriAsh Council and Think G loba l ( the Deve lopment EducaAon AssociaAon). The first report, “Cul$va$ng a Global Outlook for the Global Economy”, reveals that learning about global issues at school equips young people with the skills they need for the best graduate careers. All teachers surveyed in the report agreed that helping young people to think criAcally and creaAvely about global issues improves their academic aQainment. The report proposes that elements of global learning should be included in all syllabuses, no maQer what subject, so that students become more globally aware.
Roger Clarke, Chair of Think Global, said: “Businesses urgently need people with an understanding of the wider world. Yet even those students lucky enough to go to university can sAll have a large gap in their awareness. It is crucial that we help students
to start thinking globally”. The report h i gh l i ght s Cambr idge IGCSE G loba l PerspecAves as a qualificaAon that helps schools prepare students to enter the global economy. The learning framework of Global PerspecAves and the exposure to many diverse cultures gives our students at RIS the sk i l l s they need fo r success in an interconnected world. Here at RIS our students are pu_ng global thinking into
acAon. Our future developments will include internaAonal relaAonships, connecAng with each other around the world. Much of this work requires learners to interact with people from other countries and cultures and think criAcally about a range of global issues where there is always more than one point of view. Modern technology including online video conferencing and the use of Skype, as well as email and online forums, will enable RIS students to bring learning together, regardless of distance. This is a huge benefit as it is not always possible to run exchange programmes where learners travel to each other’s countries. !So what have our students been doing? !The Global PerspecAves learning process – research informaAon, quesAon, reflect and plan, present and take acAon – is a process that you need to repeat and pracAse. Becoming good at this sort of learning is like ge_ng beQer at a sport or at playing a musical
instrument. Successful footballers don’t say, “No, I’m not going to pracAce kicking the ball into the net; we’ve already done that.” So even if you have already covered a skill, studying it in more depth each Ame and conAnued pracAce will improve your ability to use that skill effecAvely. So far we have covered areas such as educaAon, poverty, cultural diversity and more recently we have invesAgated how global conflicts can move towards global resoluAons. Our students are currently focused on how the United NaAons, the European Union and other key stakeholders are involved in the delicate situaAon in Crimea. Our next focus is how these decisions and outcomes will influence future global decisions in places such as Venice and Catalonia. Our students’ end of year target is to idenAfy an area for independent study uAlizing their criAcal, creaAve and reflecAve skills to produce a porfolio for assessment. Hopefully some of these will be available in future issues of the school magazine. !
If Global Perspec$ves is a course that interests you why not take the opportunity to speak to our students or refer to the Cambridge website.
Global Perspectives Helping students become more globally aware in an
increasingly interconnected world
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BY JOHN BIRCH!MIDDLE SCHOOL LEADER /
TEACHER OF GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES
Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
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he Grade 6 Exhibition is a celebration of you as a learner. Preparing for and during the exhibition you
show off the skills you’ve learned throughout Elementary School. You can choose a global or local issue that you care about, for example, con7lict resolution or poverty. On the day of the Exhibition, you present your topic to all of the Elementary School and your parents so they can see how well you have worked and what you care about in this world. When preparing for the Exhibition you need to work on a variety of things as part of your research like doing interviews and creating presentations. During this process your teacher doesn’t tell you what information to look for -‐ you have to do this on your own, with help from the mentors (teachers). Each group has a mentor to help you with the subject they know most about and ask you questions they think you should have
answered. You have to meet with mentors to discuss what you’ve done each week. The 7irst step in preparing for the exhibition was, “choosing the issue”. It was a process where we needed to decide our topic; if we wanted to do it in groups or alone; and what the main issues would be. Everybody did a great job and we were enthusiastic to start the process. As a homework task, we also had to report what we did to our parents and talk about what we would like to use for the Exhibition. Everything went well and we received a lot of information from our parents. Before we actually started the research, we needed to write a document listing all the reasons why we choose our topic, which Ms Maia had to approve later. Ms Maia said that all our reasons were excellent, so we started our research, which is continuing to progress in an excellent direction. !BY TRISTANO CAMPELLO DELLA SPINA, MARIA
DE FEO, OLIMPIA JOSI TODINI, THOMAS NARDINIGRADE 6 !
At the end of Grade 6 all students parJcipate in the Primary Years Programme (PYP) ExhibiJon. It is a significant event in the life of a PYP student and the school; an opportunity to exhibit the aSributes of the IB Learner Profile that the students have been developing throughout their learning with the PYP and to celebrate their transiJon from Primary to Middle school. A few students in grade 6 tell us about their preparaJons so far! The ExhibiJon will take place in May.
Grade 6 Exhibition:
Elementary learning journey
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Playing outside is a vital part of childhood that helps children’s physical and educa6onal development, social well-‐being and health. Outdoor play should give children the opportunity to use their imagina6on, to communicate, share, collaborate, learn and exercise. They should be given the opportunity to assess risks, tackle new challenges and master new skills. The area they play in should help them to make connec6ons to their peers, to their local community and the environment. To achieve these aims many forward thinking schools around the world are spending their budgets on the demoli6on of concrete playgrounds and metal play equipment, which does nothing to s6mulate a child’s imagina6on, replacing them with designer built nature based play gardens, such as the Elementary school has in our new premises. Our nature-‐based garden will provide children with free play areas for ac6ve games and exercise; quiet areas where children can read, play board games and interact with nature through art; social play areas to encourage coopera6on skills and role play and exploratory nature areas incorpora6ng sensory gardens, experimental music areas and wildlife inves6ga6on sta6ons. The many benefits that children gain from exposure to and engagement with nature, are well documented. Current research claims that:
children who play regularly in natural seGngs are sick less oHen. Mud, sand, water, leaves, s6cks, and pine cones can help to s6mulate children's immune system as well as their imagina6on; children who spend more 6me outside tend to be more physically ac6ve and less likely to be overweight; children who play in natural seGngs are more resistant to stress; have lower incidence of behav ioura l d i sorders , anx iety and depression; and have a higher measure of self-‐worth; children who play in natural seGngs play in more diverse, imagina6ve and crea6ve ways and show improved l anguage and collabora6on skills; symptoms of ALen6on Deficit Disorder are reduced aHer contact with nature; and bullying behaviour is greatly reduced where children have access to diverse nature-‐based play environments.
By providing children with a natural play environment which encourages them to use their own ini6a6ve, explore possibili6es and take chances, we are providing them with opportuni6es to learn, develop their social skills and improve their health. A healthy popula6on who can interact with others and care for their environment is an important pre-‐condi6on for a sustainable future. !
PATRICIA MARTIN-‐SMITH EARLY YEARS / ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL
Some of the topics and issues Grade 6 students’ will be exploring as part of their ExhibiJon include: endangered animals, the protecJon of natural habitats; racism; and equal opportuniJes.
Our nature-based play garden
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he last thing Anastasia remembered was leaping blindly toward the razor-sharp claw of the beast and towards the scarlet gem. Now she lay triumphantly, ring in hand, watching a stone hybrid between a gigantic crab and an elephant crumble to dust before her. She felt her hand grow warmer and warmer as she clasped
the ring in her fist. Her body pleaded her to let go but her mind yearned to know what would happen if she held on. Other than charring her flesh she felt it consuming her inside, her soul. Finally with a last sizzle everything was still again. James and Jeremy looked shaken as they blinked their eyes. “It felt like an inferno and the light was blinding, I must come to believe she activated it,” whispered James as he fiddled with his goatee. “Each ring has a function that can be triggered by one specific emotion. Anastasia, what did you feel?” Asked Jeremy, still in a whisper. “I felt like the ring’s power was overwhelming me, devouring me, but I was too curious to know what would happen if I let go,” she muttered in response. “Curiosity, that’s the answer, isn’t it? The old, bearded man back at the club’s headquarters knew I would be needed for this, but how?” “Laster knows many things and he is not old, but ancient, we think he has lived in many eras but there are tons of theories on him, his lifeline is clouded, a mystery,” responded James defensively. Anastasia didn’t like so much secrecy, especially from the man she was working for. He had asked her to enter his society, he had given her confidence, he had sent her on a quest to retrieve a magical ring for him and he had asked her to risk her own life. And yet she didn’t have the right to know who he was? Still, she didn’t have a choice, arguing didn’t come naturally to her. The way back to town was smooth, there were no assaults and the mines they were in did not collapse over them. When they reached the entrance of the headquarters, a statue of a wolf, Anastasia was fascinated to discover how it opened. When she had entered previously it had been night and there had been a lot of confusion so she hadn’t clearly understood anything. They advanced towards it but as James pressed his warm hand against the elegant marble muzzle in the middle of the plaza Jeremy was blasted backwards by a jet of turquoise light. Tumbling down onto the tiled pavement he unsheathed his glinting iron blade but as he couldn’t detect his enemy’s position he was struck again. Anastasia was petrified, counting on James to unlock the entrance but soon he was forced to release the statue to duck a glowing, violet beam. She dove to find cover behind the marble wolf as one blow was directed at her. Her companions were trying to advance in the directions of the assaulter but in vain, after every pace they were forced to retreat desperately. Behind the bulwark Anastasia twiddled with the ring, was it just valuable or could it actually make itself useful? Her hands shook terribly as she pressed the smooth ruby. She heard it click and again it started burning, then the gem went ablaze and scorching flames started dancing in her palm. An underground force shook the plaza and it all erupted into an firestorm. Drained and exhausted Anastasia crumpled to the ground. When she woke up, her forehead was damp with sweat and she lay in an infirmary cot. She hated hospitals, all the plain white, the pungent smell of sticky medicines and of the sick people rotting. This one, magical as it was, was no exception. Maybe it was how they reminded her of the time she had had to spend in one when she was younger, to cure the wounds inflicted to her in the car crash that had taken her parents life. She was still weary but with a spurt of energy she jumped to her feet and left regardless of the nurses and thought, “I am never going to see how the entrance to this cursed place opens!”
WOLF CLUB Part IV
BY FLAVIA UNGARELLI!GRADE 8
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Missed out? !
Click to catch up on: parts one, two and
three!
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he 2014 UN theme for Interna6onal Women’s Day is “Equality for Women is Progress for All”. It emphasizes how gender equality, empowerment of women, women’s full enjoyment of human
rights and the eradica6on of poverty are essen6al to economic and social development worldwide. It stresses the vital role of women as agents of development (www.un.org/en/events/womensday).
As part of the French IB curriculum, students are requested to develop ideas and reflect about discriminatory issues, in a balanced, caring and open-‐minded way. And in my French IB lessons, I have always no6ced quite an interes6ng thing. When I’m about to deliver a lesson with regards to racial discrimina6on in my home country, students are immediately engaged in the topic, which they judge as interes6ng and mo6va6ng.
However, considering the core topic of discriminatory aGtudes, when it comes to
reading and thinking about women/men (in)equali6es in our modern society, two different ini6al reac6ons always come out from my students. Whilst female students are immediately involved in the topic and are eager to know more, male students usually give me a glance, saying something like “why all the fuss Miss? Men and women are different, that’s all”. This is when you encourage your class to think about how being “different” does not necessarily imply being treated “unequally”. Although one cannot deny there are biological differences between men and women, “differences” should not imply “inequali6es”. Looking back at history, women and men were not considered equal. In the patriarchal society, when put up next to strong, dominant males, females were oHen thought as inferior, in terms of their rights. During lessons, we examined the historical and social evolu6on that have changed French society -‐ and the Western world -‐ and that have enabled a process of gradual, progressive change and development in the role of women, socially, economically and ul6mately poli6cally. Women’s suffrage, reproduc6ve rights for women, more equitable pay are some examples of this change. We also looked at the inequali6es s6ll present in
2014, such as the gender pay gap, one of the most blatant examples of inequality as in some companies, women are s6ll being paid less than their male counterparts, for the same job. In class, we also reflected on the reasons behind professional inequali6es between both sexes and how today there are more women in poli6cs (the result of posi6ve discrimina6on). The final assignment was “Equality between both sexes has never existed, and will never exist -‐ comment”. Teaching such a sensi6ve issue is somewhat difficult, because as an IB teacher, you first have to show the quali6es you expect your students to have: keep an open and balanced mind to be able to consider the personal experiences of your students; to respect and listen to their personal views whilst challenging them and without imposing your own personal beliefs. Some students in the final assignment argued that social acceptance of divorced and non-‐married women can be harmful, and that men and women are fundamentally different, thus their different tradi6onal roles in society should be maintained. Some other students recognized the posi6ve advancements usually celebrated on the occasion of Interna6onal Women’s Day, seeing them as posi6ve aspira6ons for today’s society. However, in a balanced conclusion, many of them (both male and female) recognized that in a society, promo6ng a beLer life and beLer rela6onships will eventually lead to a more posi6ve personal fulfillment, which, as stated by Ban Ki-‐moon-‐ the eighth Secretary-‐General of the United Na6ons, is “essen6al to economical , soc ia l development worldwide”. I personally par6cularly like when he says: “I also have a message for my fellow men and boys: play your part. All of us benefit when women and girls -‐ your mothers, sisters, friends and colleagues -‐ can reach their full poten6al”. Both genders can and should cooperate instead of some6mes figh6ng against one another. It has been interes6ng to work with young people on this topic, as today’s genera6on will have the right and responsibility to work on our future’s most important social, economic and poli6cal issues.
“Equality for women is progress for all”
BY MARINA BRUNET!IB CAS COORDINATOR & TEACHER OF FRENCH
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International Women’s Day is celebrated each year on 8 March. In some regions of the world, the day is an occasion for men to express their love for women in a way somewhat similar to Valentine’s Day. In other regions, the political and human rights theme designated by the UN runs strong. Schools may want to take this opportunity to celebrate this UN Day to encourage political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide and to reflect on what can be done next. !
Women allowed to vote in 1944
(France).!
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RIS report is a monthly publication by Rome International School.!!Registration!Registrazione n. 476 del 31/12/10!!Direttore Responsabile!Maria Corbi!!Editor-in-Chief!Tania [email protected]!!Graphic design!Tania Gobena!!Rome International School!Via Panama 25!00198, Rome !+39 06 84482650/1 [email protected] www.romeinternationalschool.it facebook.com/romeinternationalschool!
A few weeks ago, an important society came to visit our school and talk to us about their work. UNICEF is an organisa6on that helps people to re-‐build their lives and communi6es when big problems have passed through their lives. For example, in the Philippines, there was an enormous tsunami that caused a lot of destruc6on. The doctors, volunteers and the workers from UNICEF helped that community and they are s6ll helping them to re-‐build everything as it was before, also providing them with medicine and food. We heard that UNICEF also receives assistance from schools like ours and that fundraising events are useful because they
help to buy the necessary services to assist communi6es and children in need. As an organisa6on, UNICEF helps by providing assistance within these areas: child protec6on, educa6on, health and nutri6on, HIV and AIDS, social policy, and water, sanita6on and hygiene. Hearing about the important work this organiza6on does, I strongly believe that all of us thought that what they are doing is amazing. One of the representa6ves explained to me that he is in favour of organising fairs or events as a way of fundraising for communi6es in need.
To learn more about the organiza6on’s work visit www.unicef.it.
RIS report
BY SOFIA VITTORI!GRADE 8
Un monde sans différence n’est pas intéressant. Il suffit de penser un monde avec des personnes toutes habillées de la même manière, qui pensent de la même façon, et avec les mêmes passe-‐temps….Ce serait ennuyeux, non?
Il y a beaucoup d’avantages à avoir une société mul6culturelle. Avoir des cultures différentes au sein d’un même pays, cela veut dire l’opportunité d’avoir différents points de vue, de créer de nouvelles connaissances et de s’ouvrir à de nouvelles perspec6ves. Et cela est toujours enrichissant pour qui a l’esprit ouvert. Vivre dans une société mul6culturelle nous permet d’apprendre de nouvelles choses, faire des ac6vités qui nous n’aurions jamais pensé faire, par exemple, goûter les plats typiques d’un autre pays ou écouter un différent type de musique. De plus, nous pouvons apprendre de nouvelles langues. Mais pour bénéficer de tous ces avantages, il faut tout d’abord à vivre dans un monde sans préjugés. D’autre part, une société culturelle a des limites. Elle peut inciter à la violence verbale et physique, au racisme, à la ségréga6on. La
discrimina6on est malheureusement encore aujourd’hui l’un des problèmes les plus difficiles à résoudre, qui existe dans tous les domaines de la société: l’école, la poli6que, le sport, les réseaux sociaux. C’est un problème que nous devons nous efforcer de résoudre, car il est destructeur et provoque des malaises sociaux et des émeutes. Ce n’est pas si facile surtout dans un contexte de crise, où l’étranger est pris comme bouc émissaire pour tenter de trouver une cause aux difficultés. Dans l’ensemble, je crois qu’une société mul6culturelle est l’un des meilleurs moyens de surmonter les problèmes de préjugés, mais c’est une étape complexe. Toutefois, une fois dépassée ceLe limite, on devient plus respectueux envers l’Autre et nous apprenons à vivre ensemble en harmonie. Les parents et l’école devraient permeLre de dépasser l’ignorance personnelle et la peur de l’Autre, et développer une meilleure confiance en soi-‐ afin de ne pas se sen6r supérieur.
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«Ce n’est pas parce qu’il y a effectivement des différences entre les hommes qu’il faut conclure à la suprématie des uns et à l’infériorité des autres. Il ne faut pas confondre différence et inégalité.» Jean Rostand (1894-1977), French Biologist & Philosopher
Une société multiculturelle est-elle une source de richesse ou de
problèmes?
BY VIRGINIA CABELLA!GRADE 13
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