Abstract

The preventive system of St. John Bosco implemented in the Salesian schools offers both educative aims and methodology for real educational processes. It is possible to affirm that such an approach is a real part of education in its methodological and practical meaning. Methodological, because it contains knowledge that helps teachers and educators to organize their actions a consistent process oriented toward an educational goal. It also allows educators to reflect on that their actions and to evaluate them according to inner criteria. It is practical because it is not a discipline with a goal to organize knowledge in a theoretical system, but rather it is oriented as a whole towards a concrete intervention and looks for results. This article presents the role of the teacher and educator in the light of the preventive system as it is implemented in schools, and the ethical and professional skills that they should acquire. The paper highlights the possibilities that the professional practice community offers educators for their own professional development.