Students with disabilities and DSA
The “L. Cherubini” Conservatory of Florence promotes the inclusion of students with disabilities and DSA who undertake a professional musical path, so that they are put in the condition to follow the lessons in a profitable and rewarding way and can take the exams with suitable methods. With this in mind, the “Cherubini” is constantly committed to raising awareness of the academic community through study and training days, but also in collaboration with local associations, in activating services and in supporting research projects.
To access the services and request the teaching aids required by the relevant legislation, the student must deliver his/her disability certification (L. 104/92) or DSA (L.170/10) to the Teaching Secretariat and contact the Delegate for disabilities and DSA who, during an introductory interview, will be able to identify the specific needs and agree with the student on any intervention methods.
Useful contact details are in the section
Locations and contacts.
Vademecum for students
The “Cherubini” Conservatory was the first Institute of Higher Musical Education to develop a Vademecum that could summarize in a concise way, in the space of a brochure, everything that the legislation provides for students with disabilities and DSA in the Conservatory.
It is a quick reference tool useful for students, families and teachers who want to always have essential information at hand. It contains the main reference legislation and a clear summary of the measures envisaged and the aids that can be used in the educational field starting from the entrance exam and during the study path, both in class and to take the exams.
The Vademecum can be consulted and downloaded here:
Vademecum for students with disabilities and DSA in the Conservatory
Guidelines for teachers
The DSA Research Group, established on the initiative of some teachers of the “Cherubini” with the aim of studying in depth the issues related to the inclusion of students with DSA in the Higher Musical Education courses, has been carrying out constant research in this area for several years, starting in 2016 with a National Study Day dedicated to the state of current knowledge regarding music teaching for students with Specific Learning Disorders. Held at the Conservatory of Florence and registering a considerable influx of participants from different Institutes, the need to study the topic in depth in the higher segments of musical education was highlighted, also thanks to the interventions of experts in the field.
Following the results of the Day, the Research Group has developed some Guidelines which, far from wanting to give an exhaustive and definitive answer to the many questions that teaching DSA raises and the many issues related to it, essentially intend to offer a practical tool of support and guidance for teachers, students and families:Students with DSA in AFAM. Guidelines for teachersIt is an easy-to-consult guide with useful information and, above all, practical suggestions and best practices for lessons and exams, both in theoretical and practical subjects.
The volume, divided into three parts (regulations – role of institutions, teachers and families – teaching proposals) was presented in a Meeting-debate in 2018 in the presence of representatives from Italian Conservatories and Music High Schools during which the need emerged to establish a network between institutions, which nourishes and allows the exchange and sharing of information, materials and experiences on Higher Musical Education and DSA: in this perspective, the DSA garrison of the Cherubini Conservatory of Florence has established itself as a national research nucleus on the subject.
An extract of the text – now in its second reprint with new contributions – can be consulted and downloaded at the link
Students with DSA in Higher Education. Guidelines for Teachers
The volume is on sale at the cover price of €10.00plus shipping costs.
Interested parties can make a request to Prof. Alessandra Petrangelo by sending an email to the addressdsa@consfi.it
Tutoring
The tutoring service is carried out by specially trained students of the Conservatory who dedicate part of their time to supporting students with disabilities or DSA in all the different situations of life in the Conservatory, to facilitate their integration and inclusion. The Tutor can carry out individual collaboration activities, for example helping in the classroom with taking notes and interacting with teachers, transforming teaching material into accessible formats, supporting in exam preparation, and acting as an intermediary with offices and secretariats.
Students with a disability or DSA certification who are interested in having this type of support must make an express request during the period and in the manner communicated by the Delegate for disabilities and DSA in the first months of the academic year. Once the requests have been received, the Delegate, having assessed the different needs also based on any specific requests from the students, organizes the activities in agreement with the Tutors.
Music Screening Test
The DMQ (Dyslexia Music Questionnaire) is an original questionnaire specifically developed by the DSA Research Group for the projectStudents with DSA in AFAM, a nationwide study conducted with educational purposes and scientific criteria among undergraduate and graduate students of various Italian conservatories, the results of which were published in the journal Psicologia Clinica dello Sviluppo (issue no. 2, August 2023).
The questions in the questionnaire are a useful tool for identifying any difficulties in studying and learning in the musical field, with particular reference to reading the score and to some specific aspects of the theoretical-analytical and practical disciplines.
You can complete the self-assessment test independently and confidentially by clicking here:
Teaching aids
The Conservatory has some teaching aids that can be entrusted to the student on loan for use, useful for reading and writing music in the case of visual impairments, software such as BME for the management of the score that can be checked, corrected and printed in black or Braille, and software for file adaptation, including SensusAccess, a self-service service that allows you to convert documents into various alternative multimedia formats in total autonomy, simply through your institutional email.
It is possible to provide additional useful tools based on individual needs, thanks to agreements stipulated with specialized centers that can offer teaching support and specific teaching material appropriately adapted.
For information on how to use and access SensusAccess click here:
The project STUDENTS WITH DSA IN AFAM
Following the initiatives that the Conservatory of Florence has been promoting for many years to encourage the inclusion of students with specific difficulties in the Higher Education study paths, the teachers of the “Cherubini” Study Group have conceived the research project on a national scaleStudents with DSA in AFAM, in collaboration with Prof. Enrico Ghidoni, a neurologist and one of the leading experts in adult dyslexia.
This research is particularly current and of common interest to all Higher Education Music Institutions, given the ever-increasing number of students with specific learning disabilities who enroll in Conservatories. The number of teachers who will find themselves having to teach students who, despite having normal or superior intellectual and musical abilities, may encounter particular difficulties in their study path, for example in deciphering musical notation or in learning through written texts, is therefore destined to increase.
The research project, which took place over three years, involved a group of undergraduate and graduate students with DSA certification from different Conservatories and a group of students without a diagnosis as a control sample, with the aim of developing a screening tool for musical learning difficulties and analyzing the reported difficulties, in order to identify teaching strategies and exam formats that are increasingly effective and appropriate to the specific characteristics of the numerous and heterogeneous musical disciplines. Specially developed questionnaires were administered online, consisting of general questions followed by more specific ones for musical activities and completed by individual interviews.
The results of the research, the first in Italy to have been conducted with a systematic quantitative and qualitative approach, were published in the journal Psicologia Clinica dello Sviluppo (issue no. 2, August 2023).
The project MUSIC STUDY AND DSA. METHODS AND STRATEGIES
The new project Music study and DSA initiated by the Research Group arises from the results of the previous study, which allowed us to formulate some hypotheses on musical learning and study methods in subjects with DSA, and intends to verify what emerged on a larger number of students, involving the pupils of the ten musical high schools of Tuscany, in partnership with the Regional School Office. The project, conducted like the previous one with educational purposes and scientific criteria, is unique in the panorama of research on DSA in the musical field: if the data confirm the hypotheses formulated, it will be possible not only to arrive at the creation of specific tools for the study of music, but above all to build training paths in which the strategies indispensable for some students are usefully adopted by all, in the name of true inclusion.
The Cherubini Research Group
Alessandra Petrangelo, Project Manager, Piano Practice teacher and Deputy Director of the “Cherubini”, Institute Delegate for disabilities and DSA, President of the National Coordination of Delegates for disabilities and DSA of the Music Conservatory;
Roberto Neri, teacher of Electronic Music and Deputy Director of the “Cherubini”, computer engineer;
Francesca Gambelli, composer, head of graphic design at the “Cherubini”, expert in music writing software;
Enrico Ghidoni, neurologist, Anemos Neuroscience Center, Reggio Emilia; S. Sebastiano-Misericordia Foundation, Florence; Italian Dyslexia Association;
Andrea Zingoni, professor and researcher in Computer Engineering and Artificial Intelligence at the University of Tuscia.
National Coordination of Delegates
The National Coordination of Delegates for Disabilities and DSA of the Conservatories was born from the need of the Institutions of Higher Artistic and Musical Education to create a network between Conservatories with the aim of identifying the tools, methods and actions necessary to ensure concrete and complete inclusion of students with disabilities and DSA in their educational paths.
The activities undertaken by the Directors’ Delegates in their respective Institutes, and the fruitful discussion within the Coordination, have led to the development of some common guidelines that can be usefully shared between Conservatories, with the aim of standardizing as much as possible the actions aimed at welcoming and managing students with specific needs, and of raising awareness among the teaching staff on the issues of inclusion. These are indications that propose suggestions and good practices useful for ensuring equal opportunities for all students, to be increasingly inclusive Conservatories.
The Guidelines for Students with Disabilities and DSA in the Conservatory, presented in Rome at the headquarters of the Ministry of University and Research in June 2023, were approved by the Conference of Directors of Music Conservatories in January 2024.
The current President of the Coordination is Prof. Alessandra Petrangelo.
The Guidelines can be found here:
Conservatory Coordination Guidelines
Contacts
- Director’s Delegate for Disabilities and DSA Prof. Alessandra Petrangelo – E-mail: dsa@consfi.it
The Delegate receives by appointment at the Conservatory’s Headquarters.
It has the function of orientation, support and mediation for students, teachers and families in the educational field. It provides information regarding the concessions provided by law during the training course and during the exam and can collaborate with students and teachers in defining the most suitable methods for carrying out tests and exams.
- For registration procedures, sending certifications and other administrative information, write to: inclusione.studenti@consfi.it