Project evolves and takes on an even more strategic and interconnected role, with five digital skills courses, five edutainment programs for children and 35 lectures for teachers and high school students starting from 14 April
A live school available on universally accessibly platform with a varied programme enabling participants to interact with “Maestri” in Italy, participate in daily lessons on making the most of the Internet and entertain children through quality educational content
"Operation Digital Risorgimento" continues with newly added content, further expanding the grand alliance between institutions, businesses and the third sector launched last November by TIM to promote the spread of digital skills among citizens, businesses and public administrations. "Maestri d'Italia" will start on 14 April to continue the pursuit of the Operation's goals, even in light of the Coronavirus emergency. It comprises the first online school to bring digital culture into Italians’ homes, through public figures and learning formats aimed at children as well as adults, to raise awareness of the full potential of the Internet at this extraordinary time for the country.
"Operation Digital Risorgimento" therefore takes on an even more strategic and integrated role, adding further impetus to the ongoing digitisation process. An open, free and interactive school made possible by combining virtual "places" and an extensive programme of meetings and interactive content lasting about an hour, available live on Operazione Risorgimento Digitale website, YouTube and Facebook channels, on demand on the online learning platforms already taking part in the project (Cisco, Google, IBM and WeSchool) and on all others wanting to take part in the initiative.
TIM’s Chairman Salvatore Rossi said: “In this difficult time we are facing, the importance of digital technology and the skills required to use it and to stay online is growing enormously. The Operation Digital Risorgimento, therefore, could not stop and rather had to accelerate. After enhancing the ability of citizens to connect with each other and with the network, we decided to take a further step: Maestri d’Italia will allow us, in a concrete way, to strengthen the dialogue started with citizens of all ages and in every corner of the country, giving them information and insights offered by leading figures. However, we hope that our original project will soon be back and running on the streets of Italy."
The project will be aimed at all age groups, with lessons and talks on major digital and society topics, enabling citizens, teachers, business owners and children to learn new digital skills, which are now more important than ever. Interaction with the public will be enabled through the use of accessible platforms such as Google Meet, YouTube and Facebook, which allow users to share video, audio and screenshots.
The programme includes a series of more than thirty lessons held by the "Maestri", who will investigate the social and economic impacts of the Coronavirus emergency, all with the aim of creating opportunities for dialogue with knowledge leaders who have stepped forward to help citizens gain an understanding of big issues. Every day the themes of the emergency – from possible new models of development to the changing economy to scientific research – will be addressed in a one-hour talk on YouTube and live on Facebook. The first speakers are: Carlo Ratti, Italo Rota, Ilaria Capua, Roberto Cingolani, Carlo Cottarelli, Roberto Burioni, Stefano Boeri and Makkox.
There will also be five masterclasses (each comprising four lessons) to show users how to make the most of the Internet and its resources, in this extraordinary emergency that limits travel and physical contact. These specific courses on digital skills will be held on Google Meet for teachers who want to know about tools available for digital education, smart workers in the public administration and business, people who want to understand the basics of cybersecurity to help them surf the web safely, and more generally people who want to learn how to use social networks in their work. Five highly qualified teachers will enable participants to understand the great opportunities that technology offers for everyday life: Salvatore Giuliano for digital education, Ernesto Belisario for public administration, Arturo Di Corinto for cybersecurity, Silvia Vianello for social media for work and Giampaolo Colletti on remote working.
Finally, there will be a significant focus on children with an edutainment content programme to help them learn digital skills through play. A morning session lasting about one hour will offer interactive and engaging content on first steps in technology, robotics, scientific experiments, cooking, DIY and chemistry, with traditional disciplines such as science and the environment all addressed through gaming. The aim is to develop skills and creativity and to stimulate all different forms of intelligence in children: spatial, logical-mathematical, social, introspective, linguistic and artistic. The educational content will be developed by experts in the field and personalities loved by children: Codemotion, Fondazione Mondo Digitale, OFpassiON, Maker Camp and Telefono Azzurro.
The "Operation Digital Risorgimento" initiatives relating to the Coronavirus emergency are available at operazionerisorgimentodigitale.it.
Operation Digital Risorgimento is delivered in collaboration with the European Commission and is aligned with the Digital Republic Manifesto promoted by the Italian Ministry for Innovation. As part of the project, major MoUs have been signed with Italy's Minister of Public Administration, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice. The initiative also benefits from collaboration with the Italian State Police and is supported by the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI) and the Digital Industry Federation of Confindustria and the CENSIS research institute.
Operation Digital Risorgimento is delivered in collaboration with the European Commission and is aligned with the Digital Republic Manifesto promoted by the Italian Ministry for Innovation. As part of the project, major MoUs have been signed with Italy's Minister of Public Administration, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice. The initiative also benefits from collaboration with the Italian State Police, is supported by the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI) and the Digital Industry Federation of Confindustria, with the partnership of the CENSIS research institute, Treccani, Fondazione Mondo Digitale, ItaliaCamp, JA Italia, Gruppo Maggioli and Telefono Azzurro.
Twenty-six top-level partners have so far joined the project led by TIM: Google, Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Huawei, ZTE, Samsung, Accenture, Lenovo, Ericsson, Nokia, Engineering, NTT Data, Oppo, Dell, Qualcomm, SAP, Reply, Adobe, Xiaomi, Manpower, Artur D. Little, PWC (PricewaterhouseCoopers), BCG (Boston Consulting Group), Generation (Mckinsey), INWIT and Olivetti. The initiative has also received support from trade associations, the third sector and key players in social innovation.
Rome, 9 April 2020
