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MOtivation to STudy
Start date: Dec 1, 2009,

MOST aims to improve teachers’ competence and skills to strengthen pupils’ motivation to study, in particular those with socioeconomic disadvantages by developing a model of motivation based on cultural psychology (Bruner, 1997), which overcomes the cognitive approach oriented to the individual dimension. Cultural psychology sees the lack of motivation and difficulty to study, mainly as a result of a missing integration of disadvantaged pupils into the school context, which tends to reproduce original socioeconomical differences. Bruner states that learning, remembering, speaking, imagining are all made possible by participating into a culture. The proposed model promotes an approach based on a pro-social behaviour favouring a cooperative learning that creates the opportunity for sharing differences; this valorizes pupils’ daily life and facilitates the process of sense-making, in which both pupils and teachers feel to have an active role, resulting in an enhanced personal identity and sense of belonging, both fundamental to cognitive processes. The partners of MOST are Secondary schools, Universities, training centres and association of school directors. The whole work plan contains 4 transversal Work Packages (Coordination and Management, Quality Plan with Internal Monitoring and External Evaluation, Diffusion Plan, Exploitation Plan) and 4 development Work Packages (Initial Research on pupils’ motivation, Design and realization of MOST model including a training Kit for teachers, a VT Course for 25 teachers, Experimentation of the MOST model in the schools). Envisaged outputs and products of the project are: 1) a report highlighting pupils motivational factors, particularly within socioeconomic disadvantaged groups, in secondary schools, based on recent studies in cultural psychology and a collection of current practices adopted in the European educational contexts to strengthen pupil’s motivation; 2) a multimedia kit for teachers’ training containing: (a) a theoretical text reporting a reference model based on cultural psychology and pro-sociality; (b) a methodology guide showing how to apply concepts of cultural psychology to current teaching in secondary schools; (c) video clips exemplifying real or simulated teaching situations, with an interactive hypertext explaining noteworthy images; 3) realization of a two-day experimental training course for 25 teachers of the partner countries and feedback analysis; 4) implementation of the MOST model in current activities by trained teachers in their schools for 6-8 months and feedback analysis; 5) four trans-national meetings among partners for internal assessment corresponding to milestones of the project; 6) a permanent Web site for the diffusion of intermediate and final results and products managed by the promoter to be updated at least for three years; 7) four local Workshops (for each partner country) for diffusion and exploitation of results at the end of project activities; 8) a report regarding the monitoring of the project, dissemination and exploitation. All the products will be available in English and in the language of the partner countries. In terms of dissemination, the kit will be delivered to at least 40 universities and/or teachers’ training centres in the 5 partners’ countries. A capillary info-system will be created to reach schools through at least 100 territorial school districts and at least 10 related associations in the 5 partners’ countries. In terms of exploitation each partner will contribute in its own country to mainstreaming the MOST model contacting peer institutions (horizontal mainstreaming) and governing institutions (vertical mainstreaming) by adopting a cascade model identified and agreed upon, in the kick off meeting. An external independent evaluator will deal with the assessment of the quality of project and short, mid and long term impact on direct and indirect targets.

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