The Zurich educator Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746–1827), the Franciscan friar Grégoire Girard (1765-1850) from Fribourg and the Alsatian pastor Jean-Frédéric Oberlin (1740-1826) are today considered three eminent figures of Enlightenment pedagogy. Although their ideas are sometimes perceived as being far removed from today's schools and more recent pedagogical experiences, ideas such as intuitive teaching, i.e. starting from the intuitions and reflections of the children themselves, or the use of visual and tactile aids to make the teacher's explanations less abstruse, can be traced back to these men. Not to mention the fact that Oberlin can be considered the inventor of what we today call nursery school.

The exhibition Pestalozzi, Girard and Oberlin, on display at the DFA/ASP until 16 April, retraces the lives, travels in Europe at the time and pedagogical visions and intuitions of these three important figures, who lived at the turn of the 19th century. The materials on display include various information panels (in French) and illustrations, as well as objects and educational activities to be experienced interactively. The exhibition also includes a small additional section, created from books from the DFA/ASP Library, which will illustrate how the thinking of Pestalozzi and Girard has been received and reworked by educators in the Italian-speaking world and in particular in the Canton of Ticino. 

The exhibition, organised by the Centre de recherches et de documentation Pestalozzi in Yverdon, the Musée Jean Frédéric Oberlin in Waldensbach and the Cercle d’études Grégoire Girar, is open to the public from Monday to Friday (8:00 am to 5:00 pm) and is located on the first floor of Building A (Piazza San Francesco 19).