Italian School System
My children are in the Italian school system, I’ve questioned this decision many times since they started and I’m still not 100% sure it was the right choice but as we will probably remain here and I didn’t want to live in a foreign bubble without embracing life in Italy, this decision has remained. I definitely feel that my children have a deeper knowledge than mine in some subjects: maths, history, science and geography, but they lack the practical skills that I gained in the UK school system and are not necessarily taught to debate or discuss things by giving their own opinions. They know a lot about history, famous writers and painters and how to do long division in a way I will never understand. Will this cultural knowledge serve them in life? Probably not in their professional life, but there has been many times whilst living in Italy when I have felt a level of ignorance compared to my Italian friends when discussing things over dinner or an aperitivo and I just hope that I have managed to give my children the best cultural knowledge via school and more practical skills at home.
Both my children were born here so they know no difference but I do, and my experience on how education can be delivered has definitely caused some issues in our family. If you are thinking about sending your children to Italian schools there are various things your need to consider, you will have ups and downs with the decision throughout and it’s not easy by any means but it will definitely bring you closer to understanding Italy and Italian way of life.
Scuola Materna (3 years -6 years old) I have found the Scuola materna to be a fantastic experience and it is free childcare 5 days a week from 8:30 to 3:30 which is definitely not a given in other countries. There is a huge number of educational activities organised but do not expect your children to start learning to read or write. This part of their schooling concentrates to learning to live in a community, understanding the world we live in and discovering new things. The teachers are like second mothers and will hug your child when he/she is upset. You feel part of the school community and it was a very sad day when my children left to go to Elementary school.
Scuola Elementare/Scuola Primaria (6 years old – 11 years old) Children start formal education a bit later than in the UK, and they are definitely ready to go to school except the jump from Materna to Elementare is huge. They go from classrooms with drawings on the walls and colour, sitting on floors for story time and great outdoor areas with toys and games to sitting in rows in an old, dull classroom for hours each day with a timetable full of lessons. They are expected to sit still, listen to lessons and study. There is homework immediately, a lot of text books and a rucksack that adults struggle to pick up, let alone the kids.
Parents cannot enter the school building without permission so you feel quite cut off from the school environment compared to that of the Materna school. There are only 2-3 opportunities a year to speak about your child with the teachers (unless there are specific issues) and communication from the school is like a game of Chinese whispers. That said…you quickly build a community with the other families in the class, and if you are lucky (like I was) you make friends with families that continue even when their time at elementary school has finished.
On a plus side, children are like sponges and pick up how to study and what is expected of them pretty quickly. They adapt (you might take longer)! My son was diagnosed with dyslexia whilst at elementary school and although the school didn’t provide any formal help, it was they who suggested we take him to get tested and once confirmed they implemented the necessary procedures to ensure he wasn’t under any pressure (extra time, no reading aloud in class, no marks off for grammar mistakes). If this happens to your child whilst in Italy, be prepared that you will probably need to go privately to get any help but if you child is certified the school will respect the certification.
Each class has 2 main teachers who will stay with the class for the whole 5 years. One usually does the humanities subjects and the other the scientific ones, although there can also be other teachers who take the classes in English, Music, etc. Having the same teachers for 5 years can be an advantage if the teacher is good but it can equally be a disadvantage if the teacher is bad.
Scuola Media (11 – 14 years old) Scuola Media is a strange period that only lasts 3 years. Its aim is to prepare your children for the Scuola Superiore, so be ready for even more homework and study. It is also a difficult time for children who are becoming pre-teens so I can’t say that it is the easiest experience.
The school my children attended did seem sensitive to this difficult period and tried to introduce some more creative extra curricula activities such as producing podcasts, video making, ultimate frisbee, etc but unfortunately Covid hit and these came to an end. There are usually fun workshops ‘laboratorio’ organised by external providers but a lot is down to what the teacher wants to do so it is really a lottery as to whether or not you have got an active teacher, and also what is allowed by the ‘Preside’ (head teacher).
For some strange reason, text books are provided by the government only at the Scuola Elementare, after this it falls on the families to order and buy the school books. Therefore, expect to receive a long list of books that you need to buy and expect to spend a lot of money (up to €150 per child). Books can be ordered at supermarkets or local bookshops.
At the end of Scuola Media everyone has to do an exam ‘esame di terza media’, this involves an exam in Maths, Italian and English and an oral exam ‘tesina’ where each student has to prepare a presentation/project on a topic of their choice that incorporates different school subjects. Children in Italian schools are quite used to oral examinations which are awfully called ‘interrogations’. I think it is nice that the school system offers this alternative way to testing and it definitely prepares them for speaking in public, which is a skill I didn’t get taught at school in the UK. They probably just need to work on the name so it doesn’t sound so military like.
I should also point out that from the Scuola Media children don’t go to school in the afternoon. They start the day at 8 and finish around 13:30. It is suddenly expected that the family can provide a place for them to stay in the afternoon and there is someone at home to prepare them lunch. Obviously, this often falls on the grandparents (Nonni) and if you aren’t lucky to have those around you better find another solution or teach you kids quickly to fend for themselves.
Scuola Superiore (14 – 19 years old) The Scuola Superiore is very confusing for those who haven’t been brought up in Italy. There are various types of school and you should choose the one that best suits your child. All the schools teach Italian, Maths, History, Geography, Science and English but each type of school specializes in a certain area. The most popular are Liceo Classico (Humanistic subjects with Latin and Greek), Liceo Scientifico (more Science subjects), Liceo Linguistico (at least 3 foreign languages), Liceo Artistico (various artistic subjects). It is generally expected that if you want to go to university, you should attend a Liceo.
Then there are also more technical schools that provide lessons in mechanics, electronics, accounting, tourism, etc and have a part that involves work placements. Finally, there are professional schools that prepare you for a profession (beauticians, hairdressing, food industry).
Liceo is difficult so really only consider this option, if your child is a good student and used to studying. There is a lot expected of them and a lot of tests and interrogations. If your child was a high achiever in Scuola Media, it is likely that their marks will drop at the Scuola Superiore. It is rare for Teachers or Profs to give high grades and their way of teaching is similar to that experienced at university in the UK. They are pretty unapproachable for both the students and the parents and from what I understand as a parent you have to be careful what you say and how you approach the teachers as this can have a knock-on affect on how they treat your child.
At the end of Scuola Superiore there is an examination (esame di maturità) which again is a mixture of a written and oral tests. The good thing about this system is that it doesn’t determine what you go on to study at university so even if your child went to Artistic Liceo they can still study medicine. It might be a bit harder for them than someone who went to a Scientifico Liceo, but it can be done.
I probably haven’t sold the Italian School System by writing this piece but I hope I’ve helped explain how it works and what to expect. If you decide to take this route, your children will be fine but you will probably suffer, it will be frustrating and stressful but they will learn and you attempt to get used to it. You will find other foreigners to share your troubles and questions with and you will find a huge amount of Italians that agree with any criticism you may have, so you won’t be alone. There are still a thousand things I don’t understand, like why is everyone scared of the Preside? Why are teachers not checked to see if they are actually teaching? And why can’t the school year finish at the end of June and start at the beginning of September? This list goes on and on but remember amongst all this you will have a long break in the summer (3,5 months with a lot of homework) and not much time off in between that, except at Christmas. This can work to your advantage, if you want to go home for a while and even though the summer seems dauntingly long, it will pass by in a flash and you’ll be more than ready to start another school year again. Good luck and if anyone wants any help or advice, please feel free to contact me.
Thank you for an informative article