TITLE:
The Teaching of Applied Mechanics through Textbooks in Italy
AUTHORS:
Marco Cocconcelli
KEYWORDS:
Applied Mechanics, Italian University, Textbooks
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Historical Studies,
Vol.9 No.5,
December
10,
2020
ABSTRACT: In this paper, the evolution of the teaching of
Applied Mechanics in Italy is detailed. A particular point of view is
considered, that is the textbooks published from the postwar period to the
present day. In the educational process of a student, textbooks implicitly
define the subject of study and are the reference book the student will keep
throughout the career. Despite the foundations of Applied Mechanics date back
to Renaissance, the way it is transmitted to students evolves over time,
especially in the last fifty years. This study does not pretend to be complete
but it correlates the main changes in the textbooks of Applied Mechanics to the
historical changes in the Italian University system. An original classification
is proposed to clustering publications that exhibit the same characteristic
features. In particular, three “periods” are identified: the Masters
(1945-1980), the Schools (1980-2000) and the Courses (2000-today). Each period
is strictly correlated to significant reform of the Italian University system.
It is stressed that the classification into the three proposed classes must be
made based on the contents of the text and not purely on the date of
publication.