Roughly 100 early childhood educators affiliated with Jewish communities in the United States withdrew from a planned study trip to Italy after organisers asked them to sign a written statement on Israel's actions in Gaza — a development that has placed an ongoing academic partnership between American and Italian educational institutions under noticeable pressure.
The Paradigm Project — a US-based professional development network serving early childhood educators — had arranged for a cohort of Jewish education professionals to travel to Reggio Emilia, in northern Italy, between October 11 and 16, according to initial coverage by a news outlet. Within the programme, teachers were scheduled to examine the Reggio Emilia Approach — a child-centred educational philosophy built around curiosity, creative expression, and learner agency — and draw from its principles and methods to reshape practice inside their own classrooms.
Rooted in the northern Italian city of Reggio Emilia and shaped by the reconstruction period after World War II, the philosophy positions children as agents who drive their own learning rather than as passive recipients of instruction. Educators working within this model are guided to observe what genuinely captures children's attention, then shape the learning environment around those observed interests — prioritising hands-on activity, peer collaboration, and open-ended inquiry over fixed lesson plans mapped out in advance.
Questions about the visit intensified once participants learned that joining the programme was contingent on signing a declaration distancing signatories from military conduct in Gaza, along with children's rights violations and human rights abuses in occupied territories and beyond — a condition that came to wider attention after a screenshot of the document was broadcast by a media outlet.
Weeks before the delegation was due to arrive, a group of parents connected to Reggio Children — the body responsible for overseeing the educational philosophy and a longstanding partner of the Paradigm Project — raised formal opposition, contending that certain members of the visiting party had ties to the Israel Defense Forces.
Reports indicated that Reggio Children had organised a protest directed at the visiting delegation, with the participants' Jewish background and connections to Israel cited as the basis. Reports also indicated that Reggio Children had prepared a document for touring groups calling for the exclusion of military influences from educational settings. Separately, the Paradigm Project informed educators through an official statement that the visit had been called off and that Reggio Children had been notified the trip would not proceed as originally arranged.
In its statement, the Paradigm Project described a "calm, open setting" as a necessary foundation for educators to engage fully with the professional learning experience, noting that prevailing conditions posed a challenge to what the programme aims to achieve. The network draws early childhood practitioners from across the United States.
According to the statement, the group's stated purpose in making the trip was to study the Reggio Emilia Approach and carry those insights back into their work with young children. The Paradigm Project also indicated that discussions about restructuring the arrangement remained under consideration, and that it wished to preserve ties and leave room for a revised format and continued joint work in the future.
