--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They taught using an Italian system of…" description: "\"“They taught using an Italian system of experimental education in which the students did whatever the fuck we wanted.”\" — Isabel Allende" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg" --- # They taught using an Italian system of experimental… ![“They taught using an Italian system of experimental education in which the students did whatever the fuck we wanted.” quote by Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg) > ““They taught using an Italian system of experimental education in which the students did whatever the fuck we wanted.”” [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker critiques an Italian experimental education system that allowed students unrestricted freedom, implying chaos and lack of structure. **In simple terms:** Unrestricted student freedom led to chaotic learning environments. Key Takeaway Balance freedom with guidance in education. Themes education freedom structure experiment Italian pedagogy critique Mood critical thoughtful inquisitive Type analysis commentary When to use this quote - designing curricula - implementing project-based learning - evaluating educational outcomes - teacher training workshops Key Concepts pedagogical theory student autonomy Questions to Reflect On - What is the ideal balance between freedom and structure? - How does student autonomy affect learning outcomes? A Different Perspective The approach may neglect the need for foundational knowledge and discipline. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ## Related quotes > [I told the students that whatever they did in class was for the wastebasket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/imogen-cunningham/i-told-the-students-that-whatever-they-did-in-class-was-for-the/) [Imogen Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/imogen-cunningham/) > [I was mostly an indoor girl at university. Where other students did drama or music or sport alongside their degrees, I wrote. I used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-shannon/i-was-mostly-an-indoor-girl-at-university-where-other-students-did/) [Samantha Shannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-shannon/) > [ \[Students\] they did the sonic meditations, I would observe them in their ensembles, and the ensembles improved incredibly. So I knew I had something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-oliveros/students-they-did-the-sonic-meditations-i-would-observe-them-in-their/) [Pauline Oliveros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-oliveros/) > [You need to be experimental. You try things, and it is OK if they don't always work necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronan-keating/you-need-to-be-experimental-you-try-things-and-it-is-ok-if-they-don-t/) [Ronan Keating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronan-keating/) > [In 'Demon's Souls,' we tried to implement some features in a kind of experimental way, not being sure whether or not it would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hidetaka-miyazaki/in-demon-s-souls-we-tried-to-implement-some-features-in-a-kind-of/) [Hidetaka Miyazaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hidetaka-miyazaki/) > [New situations requiring closer contact with the rabbit had been gradually introduced and the degree to which these situations were avoided, tolerated, or welcomed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-c-jones/new-situations-requiring-closer-contact-with-the-rabbit-had-been/) Mary C. Jones > [“Never give up your right to be wrong, and be sure to give others that right too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-fargo/never-give-up-your-right-to-be-wrong-and-be-sure-to-give-others-that/) [Tim Fargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-fargo/) > [At the age of 60, I am less experimental and more mature. I want most of all to convey my understanding of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/at-the-age-of-60-i-am-less-experimental-and-more-mature-i-want-most/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [But, in the name of the experimental method and out of our poor knowledge, are we really entitled to claim that everything happens by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-claude/but-in-the-name-of-the-experimental-method-and-out-of-our-poor/) [Albert Claude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-claude/) > [the attempt to break a habit of years is necessarily experimental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-deland/the-attempt-to-break-a-habit-of-years-is-necessarily-experimental/) [Margaret Deland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-deland/) > [People usually call me for experimental songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javed-ali/people-usually-call-me-for-experimental-songs/) [Javed Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javed-ali/) > [You don't do an experimental film to become rich, so the people who are involved are involved because they enjoy the creative aspect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/you-don-t-do-an-experimental-film-to-become-rich-so-the-people-who/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) > [Post-minimalism implies music that's genre-less. Minimalism was very important because it came at a time when contemporary music had become so complex, so experimental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-beiser/post-minimalism-implies-music-that-s-genre-less-minimalism-was-very/) [Maya Beiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-beiser/) > [If I have to be 'the experimental guy' or whatever, then I'll roll with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flying-lotus/if-i-have-to-be-the-experimental-guy-or-whatever-then-i-ll-roll-with/) [Flying Lotus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flying-lotus/) > [I think the most experimental way to a film is to tell the story the traditional way, because everyone is doing the other thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-think-the-most-experimental-way-to-a-film-is-to-tell-the-story-the/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) ## More by Isabel Allende > [“I am happier when I love than when I am loved. I adore my husband, my son, and my grandchildren, my mother, my dog,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-am-happier-when-i-love-than-when-i-am-loved-i-adore-my-husband-my/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Having a point to start is important. You know that when you decide to write something it's like a commitment. It's like falling in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/having-a-point-to-start-is-important-you-know-that-when-you-decide-to/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Music is a wind that blows away the years, memories, and fear, that crouching animal I carry inside me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/music-is-a-wind-that-blows-away-the-years-memories-and-fear-that/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Everybody has losses - it's unavoidable in life. Sharing our pain is very healing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/everybody-has-losses-it-s-unavoidable-in-life-sharing-our-pain-is/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“The writer and the dreamer have so much in common: They can't control the plot, they are always part of the story or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/the-writer-and-the-dreamer-have-so-much-in-common-they-can-t-control/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [People think that they will sit down and produce the great American novel in one sitting. It doesn't work that way. This is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/people-think-that-they-will-sit-down-and-produce-the-great-american/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“He had a principle: if you lend money and never see the person again, that's money well spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/he-had-a-principle-if-you-lend-money-and-never-see-the-person-again/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“Catholics form a majority in Chile, although there are more and more Evangelicals and Pentacostals who irritate everyone because they have a direct understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/catholics-form-a-majority-in-chile-although-there-are-more-and-more/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“At times I feel as if I had lived all this before and that I have already written these very words, but I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/at-times-i-feel-as-if-i-had-lived-all-this-before-and-that-i-have/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [In 2011, I announced that I was going to retire, and my agent panicked. So she says: 'No, no, no. You have to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/in-2011-i-announced-that-i-was-going-to-retire-and-my-agent-panicked/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I have lived with passion and in a hurry, trying to accomplish too many things. I never had time to think about my beliefs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-have-lived-with-passion-and-in-a-hurry-trying-to-accomplish-too/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I'm surrounded by the scene of aging. I myself am in my 70s and not getting any younger. Although I'm very healthy, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-m-surrounded-by-the-scene-of-aging-i-myself-am-in-my-70s-and-not/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I try to write the kind of books I like to read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-try-to-write-the-kind-of-books-i-like-to-read/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“Intimacy needs time to mature—a shared history, tears shed, obstacles overcome, photographs in an album. It’s a slow-growing plant.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/intimacy-needs-time-to-mature-a-shared-history-tears-shed-obstacles/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [ The idea of the book \["The Japanese Lover"\] came in a conversation that I had with a friend walking in the streets of New… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/the-idea-of-the-book-the-japanese-lover-came-in-a-conversation-that-i/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) [Explore all 552 Isabel Allende quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) Ioannes Amos Commenius > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) H.D. (Hilda Doolittle > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They taught using an Italian system of experimental education in which the students did whatever the fuck we wanted.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Isabel Allende" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-experimental-education-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-experimental-education-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/isabel-allende-266_education_they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-e_2703614.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They taught using an Italian system of experimental education in which the students did whatever the fuck we…” — Isabel Allende", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Isabel Allende", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“They taught using an Italian system...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-experimental-education-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/they-taught-using-an-italian-system-of-experimental-education-in/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```