Educational Planning and the Local Community: The CoDesign of the Individualized, Personalized, and Participated Life Plan for People with Disabilities

Abstract

The article that follows originated from an analysis of the evolution of the laws, of the pedagogical approach and the territorial changes that involved the Life Plan for people with disabilities. This analysis begins with a legislative overview with the aim of clarifying the distinction between the «Progetto Individuale» (L.328/2000) and the Life Plan participated and individualized, as introduced by the D.Lgs. 62/2024. Our goal is to call the attention on how this new regulatory framework establishes the right of people with disabilities to shape their own life choices in a participated and personalized way - according to their needs and dreams, according with the bio-psycho-social model of the ICF and the principles of the UN convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (2006).

This paper pays particular attention to the role that the school impersonates as the first space for co-design, to the role of the educators as a bridge figure that connects schools, families and local communities. It also highlights the importance of the educational continuity and the strategical role of the so called “Cooperative Sociali” in building support networks, promoting lifelong learning, and fostering the inclusion of people with disabilities in the labour market. The analysis of the best practices involving local and territorial corporations shows how co-design represents one of the most effective tools for combining normative frameworks with educational praxis, thus facilitating the transition to adulthood and a complete self-determination.

 To sum up, this article wants to offer a critical reflection on the need to translate the principles enshrined in the D.Lgs. 62/2024 into concrete and perpetuous practices, so that the Life Plan does not remain a mere declaration of intent, but able to become a practical pedagogical process of self recognition, participation and active citizenship.