In Italy, the piloting of the TSITour platform started in May 2021 with the collaboration of 13 VET students in the social and welfare area from the IIS DANILO DOLCI in Partinico. Students have been very interested in dealing with topics such as the inclusion of the elderly person, which is part of their curricula aimed at being future professionals in the field of social inclusion.
Between May and June 2021, the students completed the 4 modules on the platform, partly with the support of the CSC staff and partly independently. So far, the feedback on the platform has been very positive, it was considered clear and easy to use.
By June, the pilot test of the training platform came to an end the students and the teacher in charge of the class were very helpful in identifying contacts in the social and tourism fields useful for the implementation of their project ideas.
Since there are still restrictions in Italy due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, it was not easy to put into practice the piloting activity, but thanks to the synergies the social associations AUSER – LIBERA UNIVERSITÀ POPOLARE ‘DANILO DOLCI’ and SALUS – VILLA LOIDE, and organizations active in the tourism and cultural sector SETER – OSSO ANIMAZIONE and ACCADEMIA DELLA CULTURA, the project ideas have been successfully implemented. As organizations active in the Partinico area, their contribution was very useful and motivating for all the participants.
The 13 VET students, divided in two groups, devised two itineraries that were followed by them with the elderly as tourist guides and with the support of the CSC staff and organizations active in the tourism sector:
- Partinico of the past: the students visited places of historical, geographical and cultural importance for the inhabitants of Partinico, linked to past events
- Traditions of Partinico: the students visited places linked to folkloric and cultural traditions of the city of Partinico, of which the elderly storytellers have a large memory linked to events of their youth
So far, the participants’ feedback was very positive, and the activities have been a source of profound exchange and interaction between generations.
The pilot activity was the perfect demonstration of how social and intergenerational inclusion can be a truly enriching experience: the people present were able to learn and know new things about the places, history, culture and tradition of the city, which are kept in elderly people’s memories.
The results of the activity will be useful for the creation of the final publication of the TSITour project.
