Promoting Child Development - a bio-ecological perspective

Michele Capurso Is a researcher and lecturer in Developmental and Educational Psychology at the Department of Human and Educational Sciences of the University of Perugia, Italy. In the past he has worked for 5 years as a primary school teacher at a Paediatric Oncology Ward in Italy. 

He now directs the training progr ams for educators and medical staff of the Associazione Gioco e Studio in Ospedale (AGESO) and is a member of the board of directors of HOPE since 2004.

He has written several books and articles about the psychology of sick children and the educational and play activities that can help young patients and their family cope with the hospitalization.

A complete list of Capurso's works can be seen at the University of Perugia's website

The deep sense of the work of an hospital teacher does not lie only in the chances to transmit subjects’ contents to the child, but it stands on the school’s capabilities to activate and promote forces of human development in the child and in the family system. The bioecological theory of human development by Urie Bronfenbrenner (1979, 2001) helps us identify the main sources of these positive forces through a systemic view of the person’s life and environment. This perspective helps us to look for connections in the everyday life of the person with a medical condition and sees the child as an active subject linked with and active environment. Teachers ability to see and empower such connections will have a positive effect on the child’s and family ability to cope and develop. Everyday teachers planning and acting can therefore take inspiration from Bronfenbrenner’s theory. During the speech, some examples will be showed to see how this theoretic framework can be applied to everyday work and a planning and observation grid will be provided for those who want to test it in their job.