The As.Pe.I., Italian Pedagogical Association (Associazione Pedagogica Italiana), founded in Florence
in 1950 by Giovanni Calò in cooperation with some of the major scholars of Pedagogy (Aldo Agazzi, Giovanni
Maria Bertin, Giuseppe Flores d’Arcais), is still active throughout the country, thanks to the coordinated effort
of the numerous local sections.
The distinctive feature of the As.Pe.I is to bring together school teachers of all levels and university
professors in order to improve and renovate the school and any other educational institution, as well as to
enhance studies and researches in the field of Pedagogy and education. To this end, its work is mainly direct to
the construction and the planning of activities like training and upgrading of teachers and every person involved
in education.
The section of Padua has distinguished itself since its founding by the organization of conferences and
refresher courses for teachers of elementary schools. A significant amount of documentation relating to the
activity of this section is currently preserved at the Museum of Education (University of Padua). It is possible to
consult teachers’ meeting minutes, programs for refresher courses, lists of members, notes, lessons plans,
collections of photographs, administrative documents, correspondence with the other sections, and so on. All
these relevant documents, not yet studied, the proceedings of the National congress – including two
symposiums organized in Padua (1956 and 1996) – and the examination of the As.Pe.I. Bulletin have
made possible the reenactment of a very interesting experience of teachers’ association during the second half of
the twentieth century.