Close-ups

Let’s talk about you: what is your background, what do you teach, and what are your research interests?
My name is Massimiliano Costa, I am a full professor of general pedagogy and besides the basics of general pedagogy I teach all those aspects that define and qualify training processes and practices in schools and workplaces. Understanding how to empower and develop the talents of young people and adults in the intelligent machine society (among robotics, AI and smart learning) is the main focus of my studies at the moment. I co-ordinate the PhD Educational Sciences curriculum and direct the International Centre for Educational Research Studies (CISRE), and as the Rector's delegate for education I strive to make education a defining strength of my university.

Tell us about your academic path.
My academic background is special and is culturally rooted in my family history. I have a mother who was a teacher and a grandfather who was a businessman and a partisan who raised me with a deep ethic of work and education as an opportunity to combine participation and social welfare. The result is a degree in business economics from Ca' Foscari and an academic career as a researcher centred firstly on educational policies (Scuola Specializzazione degli Insegnanti del Veneto - Veneto Teachers' Specialisation School), then as an associate and now as a full professor on disciplinary principles (General Pedagogy) and adult education processes (Labour and Adult Pedagogy, Education Economics).

What are your professional references?
Many people in my life have given me an opportunity, but I only have one name in my heart as a professional reference: Prof. Umberto Margiotta, a demanding and affectionate teacher who, over many years of cooperation, research and projects, has taught me not only scientific and methodological rigour, but also the love of challenge, educational novelty and complexity. His studies on the theories of education, on the link between education and talent, on teacher training, are a unique heritage in international pedagogical sciences. As Alexander the Great said about his teacher Aristotle: "I am indebted to my father for living, but to my teacher for living well".

What has given you the greatest satisfaction in your career?
Every time a student thanks me, not for a class, but for making them more confident in their abilities and talents. We work to advance science but, above all, to train the young adult citizens of tomorrow in critical and responsible awareness. On a professional level, I must also mention my first research fellowship, the national pedagogy prize, or when, in the run-up to Christmas, they confirmed their intention to offer me a position as a full professor. A great satisfaction that has become a great responsibility to carry on the Venetian school of pedagogy established by Umberto Margiotta.

Can you offer any advice to researchers in the early stages of their career?
Practice talent, creativity and desire by researching to give an extra chance to sustainable and fully humane development. In a society of complexity, innovation, but also of great inequalities, research in educational sciences must be able to express not only methodological and scientific mastery, but also and most importantly a passion for pedagogical militancy that can be summed up in Mandela's words: Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.