The Museum of Education houses a collection of books, toys, photographs, notebooks, teaching aids and school furniture, registers and school reports, graduation diplomas and parchments, pens and inks. The collection, however, has not been assembled by chance. Rather, the items have been carefully selected to tell the story of how our younger generations – from their youngest years to their entry into adulthood – have been educated over the course of the last two centuries.
Founded in 1993, the museum is essentially an expression of the University of Padova’s particular and long-standing vocation for the history of education. It boasts one of the most extensive collections in Europe, and includes a number of entirely unique nineteenth-century pieces – such as the calligraphy notebook of the teacher Vincenzo Sproviero, and Ida Pilotto Sottini’s device for blending colours – as well as objects from the early years of the twentieth century, such as a model roller coaster, and a real puppet theatre. The museum also houses a large number of manuscripts (notebooks, certificates, diaries etc.), visual sources (photographs, wall charts, slides etc.) and printed materials (books, magazines), which have drawn – and continue to draw – researchers from all over Italy and around the world.
As such, the museum works on three levels: it is a valuable resource for academics seeking to expand the understanding of the history of the education system in their respective field of research; it provides a hands-on learning workshop for both fully-fledged and trainee teachers; and it engages with the local population, schools in particular, via a range of outreach activities.

Museum of Education
Via degli Obizzi, 23 – 35123 Padova
Part of the Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Education and Applied Psychology (FISPPA)
Tel. +39 049 8274662-2050
e-mail: museo.educazione@unipd.it

Museum technician: Fabio Fignani
Via degli Obizzi, 23 – 35123 Padova
Tel +39 049 8274662 – fax +39 049 8272050
e-mail: fabio.fignani@unipd.it

Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Education and Applied Psychology (FISPPA)
Piazza Capitaniato, 3 - 35139 Padova
Tel. +39 049 8274534 - fax +39 049 8274719
e-mail: dip.fisppa@unipd.it

Head of Department: Prof. Egidio Robusto

Departmental delegate to the museum: Prof. Carla Callegari
Tel +39 049 8271718
e-mail: carla.callegari@unipd.it