A century of typhlo-didactic history

The Royal School of Method for teachers of the blind, established in Rome in 1925, was a defining moment in the history of education of the visually impaired in Italy. Its creation and growth are closely connected to Augusto Romagnoli, pioneer of Italian typhlology. Blind, he had earned a degree in Arts in 1904 and in Philosophy in 1906. In 1912, he began a highly innovative teaching experiment at the Home for the Poor Blind in Rome, founded by Queen Margherita di Savoia in 1876 and located in the papal villa on via del Casale di San Pio V, where the Institute still has its headquarters.

Here, he could put into practice the psycho-pedagogic principles he had presented in his degree thesis in Philosophy, entitled “Introduction to the education of the blind,” with a group of five blind children who had been raised there. His idea was based on the restoration of their physical activity and on active stimulation of their curiosity and intelligence: for five years, he studied their motor and imaginative development, senso-perceptive coordination, ability to learn Braille, and formation of their character, achieving extremely positive results.

For those times, the approach he had developed in his thesis was revolutionary: he asserted that education of the blind should not be limited to learning a trade, but should aim to make them fully self-sufficient, able to move around and get their bearings both physically and morally.

The results of this experiment caught the attention of Education Minister Giovanni Gentile, who, in 1923, invited Romagnoli to prepare a series of legislative provisions for the education of blind youth, and to select, from among the institutes for the blind throughout Italy, the ones that could be considered qualified to be converted into schools to provide compulsory education. Two years later, Romagnoli submitted his report to the Minister, proposing not only to extend the obligation of elementary school to blind minors, but also to create a School of Method for teachers of the visually impaired, to be located at via del Casale di San Pio V in Rome. On November 15, 1925, Royal Decree 2483 officially created the Royal School of Method for teachers of the blind, which Augusto Romagnoli led until his death in 1946. The School became the country’s reference point for training educators specialized in teaching the blind, its key role being typhlo-didactic consultation and professional orientation of educators in the field of visual impairment in Italy (a service it continues to provide today).

The School’s activity was based on the conviction that the blind could be taught and on the need to focus attention on their potentials, rather than considering them passive due to their impairment. Augusto Romagnoli wanted to change the pietistic approach to the blind into a benevolent act, able to reveal and facilitate new and better possibilities for growth. And although he aimed for inclusive education – “the ideal would be for [the blind] to be taught together with their sighted classmates” – he realized that the time was not yet ripe, and so the creation of special schools was a necessity.

Meanwhile, another Royal Decree (no. 3126 of December 30, 1923) extended compulsory education to the age of 14 for blind students deemed teachable. The Decree also mentioned the need to train personnel specialized in the teaching of Braille, indicating approaches that referred explicitly to Romagnoli’s methodology.

With the Ministerial Decree of December 12, 1946, the School of Method was named after Augusto Romagnoli in recognition of his fundamental contribution. Law no. 1734 of December 30, 1960 reorganized the School once again, creating the "Istituto Statale Augusto Romagnoli di specializzazione per gli educatori dei minorati della vista" (“Augusto Romagnoli State Institute specializing in the training of teachers of the visually impaired”). The new structure included nursery, elementary, middle school, as well as a boarding school, all aimed at providing compulsory education to blind students. The specialization courses for compulsory education educators and teachers took two years; one year for physical education teachers (a specialization provided only for the sighted). Law 517/77, which ensured the integration of students with disabilities in schools of all levels as well as the introduction of support teachers, represented a major change in the Italian school system, and therefore for the Romagnoli Institute. Following this Law, the Institute greatly expanded its operations, intensifying its consulting, training, support, and orientation activities provided to schools of all levels. In addition, services for graduates, teachers, and families were increased. The validity and importance of these activities were confirmed by Article 21 paragraph 10 of Law no. 59 of March 15, 1997.

Today, the Augusto Romagnoli State Institute continues its operations under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Education and Merit (Article 64 of Decree Law no. 297 of April 16, 1994), providing its services at no cost to students and schools.

The legacy of the Royal School of Method is certainly essential: not only did it train generations of specialized teachers, it also defined an innovative and inclusive pedagogical approach to visually-impaired students. The contribution of Augusto Romagnoli, a blind professor who transformed his personal experience into a nationwide educational project, is still considered the basis of typhlology in Italy and still promotes new studies and projects. His vision of education that emphasizes every individual’s potentials, overcoming prejudices and barriers, remains an essential reference for the entire school system.

Thus, the history of the Augusto Romagnoli State Institute is that of an institution which pioneered special education in Italy and made fundamental contributions to civic progress and to the social inclusion of the visually impaired. Its innovative and revolutionary method was celebrated on May 21 and 22, 2025 with a National Convention at the Institute’s Palestra Storica in Rome, devoted to the one hundredth anniversary of the issuance of Royal Decree 2483 of 1925.

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