The Teaching of History and Geography in Italian Schools and the Creation of Stereotypes

In this contribution I briefly analyse the history of the teaching of History and Geography in Italian schools between the unification of Italy (1861) and nowadays, and how the structure of these subjects led to the creation of stereotypes both regarding the past and the contemporary world. The setting up of the way of teaching the two subjects has a significant impact on the presentation of the cultures of the past and of not European cultures. One worrying aspect is the effacement of female figures of the past, whom, on the contrary, it might be very interesting to study and analyse with contemporary eyes in order to identify and eventually challenge the stereotypes they contributed to create. I also present briefly some considerations about the literature for children, that is also very important for the storytelling about the world presented to children and teenagers.