Abstract

The article presents an overview of the pedagogical culture lying at the bottom of the planning of different types of educational services provided in l.r. 1/2000, as amended in l.r. 8/2004. It is then highlighted the influence that, starting from the 70s onwards, prominent figures, such as G.M. Bertin and P. Bertolini, had on the political thinking of local administrators in Emilia-Romagna. This process lays the foundations of the cultural and political background that characterizes the policies of Emilia-Romagna Region, which has always considered essential three principles: quality of the welfare state, child-centered policies in the field of educational services and participation as a construction tool of an educating community in which parents can play an active role. The author, finally, highlights how European educational and pedagogical models have been accepted and declined in the approaches proposed by the educational services for early childhood in Emilia-Romagna, giving rise to a socio-educational system, aimed at integrating three fundamental dimensions at the basis of the social and individual identity: the cognitive, the emotional and the relational spheres, strongly reciprocally integrated. This represents the condition for the formation of forthcoming citizens open to change.