Interest in the Reggio Emilia approach is growing every year around the world: more and more educators consider this approach to education to be the most progressive. In Reggio Emilia, a city in northern Italy, all kindergartens operate in accordance with this approach. Preschools and schools from Europe, the USA, and Australia are adopting this experience.
We spoke with Cristian Fabbi Reggio Children International Center President about the ‘hundred languages’ that every child possesses, the importance of continuous research and experimentation, why a classroom should look different in June than it does in October, and, finally, how the Reggio Emilia approach can transform and make the urban environment more comfortable and safe. Mr. Fabbi has over 25 years of working experience and received his higher education in Reggio Emilia.
Cristian Fabbi, President of the Reggio Children International Center
The Reggio Emilia approach is a systematic approach to preschool child development. Reggio pedagogy originated in the city of Reggio Emilia, where, shortly after the end of World War II, kindergartens began to open based on new principles of upbringing. The approach’s author is the psychologist and educator Loris Malaguzzi, who relied on the most progressive ideas of his time.
Malaguzzi’s main idea was that every child has ‘a hundred languages‘ for self-expression, and the task of educators is to help children learn to use all these languages. Cooperation between children and educators, freedom of choice, constant research, creativity, learning through the environment — this is what Reggio pedagogy is based on. Today, the Reggio Emilia approach is used in municipal kindergartens in Italy, Germany, other European countries, Australia, as well as in private kindergartens in the USA and Canada.
Loris Malaguzzi. Photo from the archives of the Reggio Children International Center
Participation, choice, continuous research: the principles of the Reggio Emilia approach
— First of all, please tell us about the main principles of the Reggio Emilia approach for those who are not yet familiar with them.
— The first principle is participation and co-participation. This refers both to the participation of children in the learning process and the choice of educational direction, and to the active involvement of parents in pedagogical reflection. This principle is directly related to the history of the formation of the Reggio Emilia approach. After World War II, an active group of women gathered in the town who, on the one hand, really wanted to work full-time, and on the other hand, dreamed of a quality education for their children, almost from the cradle. Moreover, at a time when Italy had just gotten rid of dictatorship, these mothers dreamed of raising ‘free citizens’ — citizens who would be able to take initiative, cooperate, and take responsibility not only for themselves, but also for their community, their city. Therefore, they decided to create such an educational institution for kids where children from an early age could use their ‘100 languages’ to express themselves.
Children at a Reggio Emilia kindergarten and the Reggio Children center. Photo: Reggio Children center
A second principle is attention to children’s rights. In the broadest sense, this means that children are listened to and heard. And they are given the right to make decisions about what they would be more interested in doing and what to study in a particular period of time.
— Let’s focus on this principle in more detail. The narrative that children should choose for themselves is quite common today. But where is the line drawn? Can three-year-old children decide what is best for them and how? Isn’t there a danger in this?
— I understand what you mean. But when we talk about choice, we are talking specifically about the ability to make collective choices. Freedom of choice does not mean complete anarchy, on the contrary, the choice should be discussed with both children and adults. We are talking about the ability and intention to negotiate, to argue for your choice, about the ability to convince, to enter into cognitive conflict and find a way out of it. In our age of individualism, we must find ways of coexisting in a community, ways of fostering community.
— What other principles can be considered fundamental?
— Constant and continuous professional development. As an educator, you yourself must constantly be in the status of a researcher. We are talking about the ‘hundred languages’ of children, which means that the teacher also does not have the right to just read, count, or write. He must constantly change his languages: sometimes it can be sculpture, sometimes singing, then dancing, then embroidery or something else. The secret is that you have to find a balance between all these elements, and even in a specifically prepared environment. This is constant research. Therefore, another keyword for us is research/experiment.
And finally, the process must be transparent. Every step, every type of activity must be documented so that everyone can observe the educational process and its progress.
Children’s works and fragments of research at the Reggio Children Center
— Is it easy for children who have experienced the Reggio Emilia philosophy to adapt to a regular school later on? For example, I know that children after Waldorf school often find it difficult to find their place in a typical university environment: they may feel bored, overwhelmed by the crowds, or encounter other challenges. But if Reggio Emilia focuses only on preschool, how do children adapt to school afterwards? Are there any difficulties?
— You know, the age from 0 to 6 is a fundamental phase of human development, one might say, the foundation-building stage. And we are forming the base for subsequent learning. Our goal is to help the child find his own way of learning so that later it will be easier and more interesting for him to learn. Having found such a way, he easily adapts to any system — it doesn’t matter if it’s traditional or experimental. It seems to me that more difficulties may arise for parents. This is where the problems can be.
— What kind of problems?
— Parents who were not raised within the framework of the Reggio Emilia approach may not be used to think in a circular and systemic way of thinking. They think in patterns: ‘You need to get the right education, then a well-paid job, then work in your specialty…’. They might not be used to support children in the development of ‘a hundred languages’ because they themselves do not know about them. Such parents might have resistance: both to the ways of knowing the world and to the child’s choice of further path.
— Could you characterize the children who were brought up within the framework of the Reggio Emilia pedagogy? What are they like? How do they differ from children who attended preschools with other systems or did not attend them at all?
— The children attending our preschools ask a lot of questions and are not afraid to ask them. They constantly offer teachers a variety of creative and unimaginable, ideas. I would also venture to suggest that these are more creative children, more imaginative, since they are used to know how to use many ‘languages of expression’, languages of description. Of course, it is very difficult to do a longitudinal study and identify exactly what and how influenced the development of the child — too many factors would have to be taken into account.
Children in the Reggio kindergarten and the Reggio Children center. Photo: Reggio Children Center
— You’re probably often asked how Reggio Emilia is fundamentally different from the Montessori system…
— That’s true. But Montessori is still a method, not an approach. Montessori prescribes specific types of activity in a certain age range; we do not have rigidly defined courses and programs. I have a lot of respect for the Montessori preschools and for the ideas of Maria Montessori. Somehow, Reggio has taken some good ideas from Montessori. Bit I think that the “systemic revolution” influenced Reggio in thinking more as an approach.
We have to consider that, the Montessori system was developed 120 years ago; it was the first such experience, and for its time it was simply brilliant. We are very grateful to the Montessori system and in no way consider ourselves its competitors, but rather successors or, if you like, modernizers.
— The Reggio Emilia approach was originally developed for preschools. Can it be extended to school?
— A lot of elementary school teachers come to our center for professional training. They want to know how we work with preschool so that they can adapt something from this for elementary school as well. We can say that there is a kind of ‘progressive hybridization of the system’, and I think this is very good!
For example, in Sweden some primary schools are already implementing the principles of the Reggio Emilia approach. There are several schools in the USA and in other countries where the Reggio Emilia approach continues in other levels of education as well. Since this is precisely an ‘approach’, some of its elements can be applied always and everywhere. Take, for example, the educational principles of UNESCO: they have a lot from Reggio Emilia, although this is usually not even mentioned.
Teachers at workshops at the Reggio Children center. Photo: Reggio Children Center
The Reggio Emilia Approach and the Educational Environment
— One of your slogans is: ‘The environment is the third teacher.’ What does this mean to you?
— First of all I wouldn’t call it a slogan, although i understand what you mean. I prefer to call it an awareness. The environment is indeed a very significant thing for us. It is able to provide a challenge for children; in addition, the aesthetics of the environment directly affect the learning process. But for this, the environment, or context, must be ready to ‘receive’ children. Even if the space remains the same, the context must change depending on the projects and circumstances. What the classroom looks like in June should be different from what it looks like in November; when you, for instance, research about biology, the classroom should look different from when you research about architecture. This is what we, in particular, expect from schools that are inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach.
Reggio Kindergarten in Reggio Emilia
— It is very interesting to know your opinion about the principles of design. If I want to create a Reggio Emilia school, how should this be ‘seen’ within the walls? In the interior? In architecture in general? So that a person, entering the school, immediately reads: ‘Oh! This is a Reggio Emilia school!'”
— You know, we have a wonderful book, ‘Children, Spaces, Relations’: it sets out all our thoughts on creating an environment. The main idea is to bring together many different elements to form a context. In addition, it is important that the aesthetics are not ‘infantile’: no overly bright colors and images of Mickey Mouse. You need to look for harmony in everything: in colors, materials, light, pieces of furniture.
The building must have space for different types of experiences, different projects: for reading books, for construction, for theater — in a word, there must be an opportunity to take into account those same ‘hundred languages’.
A striking example of the Reggio Emilia approach to the environment is one of the first kindergartens in the city of Reggio Emilia: the building seems to be immersed in the forest, and the main visual accent is a giant, fairytale tree: all this immediately sets the atmosphere and emphasizes the connection with nature.
Geography of the Reggio Emilia Approach
— Does everyone in your region follow the Reggio Emilia approach?
— In the city of Reggio Emilia — yes, the majority of preschool institutions operate inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach. In the region — probably about 50% are inspired. In Italy, preschool education is overseen by local municipalities (unlike school education, which is managed at the federal level). Therefore, each region has the right to choose any approach to preschool education that they like — including ours.
— And in general in Italy and in the world? How often and from where do you get requests for training and consultations?
— Oddly enough, we are more popular in the world than among Italian cities and municipalities. Although in Italy, after the Covid pandemic, our relationships have grown significantly. I still can’t come up with a logical explanation for such a sharp rise in popularity: perhaps it is now that a generational change of teachers is taking place in Italy, and young teachers are much more interested in the Reggio Emilia approach. In addition, I notice that revolutionary changes are now taking place in education in general — and we are very happy to be to some extent part of these changes.
— Do you want to influence education all over the world?
— To be honest, no, I don’t expect the Reggio Emilia approach to spread all over the world. Yes, that would be unnatural: each country has its own culture, its own traditions, its own values and rituals. It is quite another matter when Reggio enters into dialogue with other approaches and other cultures: I like this idea. We are against ‘duplicates’ and blind copying, we would like to be in dialogue.
— Do you issue any licenses to kindergartens and schools that apply to you for the right to use the Reggio Emilia approach, do you certify them in any way?
— Since this is a government program, we do not have any rights to it or certificates that we could issue to schools and kindergartens. In fact, anyone who wants to declare that they adhere to the Reggio Emilia approach can do so, and we have no right to prohibit it. In addition, ‘Reggio’ is the name of the city. How can I forbid someone to use the name of the city? No way. But our task is to make this approach accessible specifically for the public system, which would be based on the principles of community.
Education is a Universal Value
— Today, Italy is one of the most advanced countries in terms of inclusion. In 1974, a law was passed there stating that children with special needs should be educated in the classroom with everyone else. How is the Reggio Emilia approach related to this? Was Loris Malaguzzi somehow involved in this?
— Of course. Our preschool institutions were among the first where children with special rights began to attend together with all other children, and a separate teacher was assigned to the special ones. This was the start for all of Italy.
— We have already touched upon the topic of evaluating the ‘efficiency’ of the Reggio Emilia approach…”
— Yes, I am quite often asked to tell: how to measure efficiency? How to take measurements? Especially often such requests come from universities. But it is difficult to come up with a truly effective assessment tool: too many factors influence children.
— Continuing on this topic — how do you generally feel about the idea of standardized education? How do you assess the idea of international tests in schools, for admission to universities, when moving from stage to stage?
— I can’t stand them, to be honest. We refuse this kind of thing because these tests violate the rights of the child. Let’s take a look at least from the point of view of neuroscience: it tells us that until the age of eight, the brain of each person develops very, very individually. What one child can do already at 4-5 years old, another will learn to do only by 8-9 — and this is normal. For three years now, I have been helping UNESCO to change the preschool program precisely from the point of view of this idea. I am not against measurements as such. But when we talk about measuring the educational process and the child’s abilities — there is something flawed about it.
— Then how to assess abilities? How, for example, to conduct entrance examinations at the university?
— I am convinced that every person should have access to university. At a minimum, there should be such an opportunity. I understand that this sounds utopian — but this is our idea, the idea of education as a ‘universal’, social value! If you want to go to Harvard, you should have that opportunity; yes, if you don’t do well there, maybe you shouldn’t stay, but why not at least try?
I myself was not a brilliant student at school — and at the university I improved. If I had to take some general exams for admission to university, I probably wouldn’t have even entered. But we had a different system — and already at the university I proved myself.
The Reggio Emilia Approach as a Way of Forming an Urban Community
— You always emphasize that the Reggio Emilia approach is focused on mass learning and is optimal for public education. Why?
— If you really want the country to grow and develop economically, socially, and culturally, you need to invest in public schools and public education. There is simply no other way! Private schools are not for everyone, and they should not be for everyone. My daughter goes to a regular public school and will continue to go there: only this will give her an idea of what our city is, who lives in it, and what they do. Therefore, I insist that the Reggio Emilia approach is necessary primarily for public general education.
— You also said that the Reggio Emilia approach — no more, no less — helps to nurture a real urban community…
— Yes, exactly! I am very interested in observing collective results. A good result for me is a city where you can walk late at night and not worry about your safety. In which there are enough opportunities for work, and for business, and for volunteering.
— We have probably come to the main question. How do you assess the impact of the Reggio Emilia approach on the urban community as a whole? Is Reggio Emilia different from other cities in Italy? And is this related to the preschool education of citizens?
— Definitely! Our city has one of the highest percentage of women working full-time. The largest number of volunteer organizations. A large number of small companies — small businesses are flourishing. Economic and political stability, low unemployment. And security, when you can walk late at night and not be afraid.
This is how I see the development of the education system: when it works for the benefit of the community, for the benefit of the city and, as a result, for the benefit of the state. And whether any of the children will become a super-leader, the founder of a large corporation, and so on — this is already a personal choice of everyone. Freedom for me is the opportunity to do exactly what you feel called to. The state education system should provide such an opportunity, and then the choice is up to the person — to use it or not.
As an educator, I think primarily not about an individual, but about the social system as a whole. That is why I do not want to ‘measure’ children and their abilities. I want to ‘measure’ my city and see that people here have the opportunity to do what they want to do. Maybe this will sound utopian, but if it were like this in every city, we would have no unemployment, no poverty, no wars, peace and dialogue as the way of being.
November 2024
