The Modern Argonauts
A Multicultural Educational Programme Preparing Young People
for Contemporary Challenges through an Innovative Use of Classical Mythology
ERC Proof of Concept Grant (2023–2025)
Irene Di Gioia, MA
Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Germany
and
Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Italy
e-mail: irene.digioia@stud.uni-goettingen.de
Irene Di Gioia was born in Montepulciano, Italy, on the 14th of October 1997. Since childhood
she has always listened to classical stories told by her relatives, but when she was in middle school,
her sister Giuditta who was going to liceo classico started telling her Greek myths and Irene
got completely captivated by the extravagant dynamics of this magical past.
After going to liceo classico herself, Irene studied Lettere classiche (Classics) in Bologna
where she started learning foreign languages as well (German and French). Learning modern languages while
learning also ancient ones made Irene realize that teaching languages was what she wanted to do her whole life.
That’s why she studied Didattica della lingua italiana a stranieri (Italian as a foreign language)
in Siena in her master’s.
Right now, Irene is doing her Ph.D. in Didactics of ancient languages with focus on ancient Greek at the University
of Göttingen in Germany in co-tutelle with the University of Bologna. At the University of Göttingen,
she is also teaching Italian to university students at the university language centre.
Her Ph.D. research focuses on the use of digital game-based learning to learn the ancient Greek language, culture, and literature with a focus on inclusivity. Since 2023 she is also a member of the examination board of the exam Didattica della lingua greca con laboratorio at the University of Bologna and part of the project The Modern Argonauts at the University of Warsaw.