William Grandi

Final Dissertation and Thesis Supervision Guidelines

Students are asked to exercise the utmost care when choosing a supervisor and a subject area for their final dissertation or degree thesis. Undertaking such a project requires substantial effort, commitment, and genuine interest not only on the part of the student but also on the part of the supervisor. Once this process has begun, it is essential that agreed deadlines be respected and that students demonstrate consistent research engagement, intellectual curiosity, and a willingness to deepen their understanding of the chosen topic.

It is also essential that, when requesting thesis supervision, students already possess a preliminary bibliography on the subject and have read at least some of the relevant books and/or scholarly articles.

Topics for theses related to the course Popular Science Literature for Children and Adolescents (Master’s Degree Programme in Teaching and Communication of Natural Sciences, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences) must be agreed directly with the supervisor and selected during the internship period.

With regard to final projects connected to the course Narrative Pedagogy in Early Childhood (Bachelor’s Degree in Educational Sciences for Early Childhood Services) and theses related to the course Young Adult Literature in Learning Contexts (Master’s Degree in Pedagogy, Department of Education Studies), priority will be given to historical and theoretical research focusing on the study of narrative representations.

For students enrolled in the programmes Educational Sciences for Early Childhood Services and Pedagogy, the preparation of the final project or thesis requires the ability to:

• Conduct a historical and theoretical analysis of the chosen topic. This involves defining a corpus of texts and/or other documentary materials to be examined, compared, contextualized within their historical framework, related to relevant cultural contexts, and analysed in terms of their structural features, always in relation to the chosen research topic.
• Develop an accurate historical framework within which to situate the subject of the dissertation.
• Reconstruct and analyse the narrative, literary, metaphorical, and imaginative dimensions related to the chosen topic.
• Provide a pedagogical interpretation of the topic under investigation by reflecting on its relevance to the professional practice of educators and pedagogists; its significance for understanding childhood and/or adolescence; its impact on young people's imagination; its connections with educational and school settings, as well as with informal and family-based learning environments; and its continuity and/or discontinuity with pedagogical thought and traditions.

The expected level of depth and complexity varies according to the degree programme:

Bachelor's Degree in Educational Sciences for Early Childhood Services

The topic should be clearly defined and appropriately limited in scope. Research will focus on a selected corpus of essential texts and will require an interpretation closely grounded in established scholarship. The objective is to demonstrate a solid grasp of the theoretical foundations of an important educational issue.

Master's Degree in Pedagogy and Didactics and Communication of Natural Sciences

The topic may address broader and more complex issues in order to develop an analytical perspective that is as comprehensive as possible. Research will therefore engage with a wider corpus of texts and documentary sources, enabling the candidate to explore the chosen topic in greater depth. Historical, theoretical, and pedagogical frameworks must be clearly elaborated and critically discussed. Furthermore, students are expected to develop their own reasoned interpretations, supported by sound academic and scientific sources.

Suggested Thesis Topics

• Analysis of the works of an author, a group of authors, an illustrator, or narrative products (films, television series, novels, cartoons, role-playing games, video games, etc.) that have had a significant impact on children and/or adolescents.
• Analysis of a narrative genre that is particularly relevant to younger generations.
• Study of representations of childhood and/or adolescence in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of educational relationships in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of family structures and kinship relationships in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of non-familial relationships between children/adolescents and adults (e.g., mentors, teachers, and similar figures) in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of peer relationships (friendship, love, competition, bullying, solidarity, etc.) in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of the relationship between young people and nature in specific narrative works, including possible reference to youth movements or cultural currents (e.g., Boy Scouts, Wandervögel, hippie culture).
• Study of representations of “liminal” figures of childhood and adolescence (such as the wild child, the monstrous child, the rebel, the outsider, the wanderer, etc.) in specific narrative works.
• Study of representations of fantastic beings (fairies, goblins, witches, dragons, monsters, wizards, etc.) in narratives intended for young audiences, including their history, characteristics, and functions.
• Analysis of representations of “challenging” themes and questions (death, orphanhood, sexuality, illness, disability, the body, abandonment, poverty, migration, violence, etc.) in relation to childhood and adolescence in specific narrative works.
• Analysis of educational projects that have already been implemented, documented, evaluated, and made publicly available, focusing on the relationship between narrative practices and educational needs.