The government approved two implementing decrees on the reform of the education and training system

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On 24 March 2005 the Italian government approved two legislative decrees implementing the reform of the school and training system. The two decrees have raised the age limits for compulsory education and training to 18 years of age and introduce the possibility for the students aged between 15 and 18 of alternating school and work periods.

On 24 March 2005 the Italian government approved two legislative decrees implementing the reform of the school and training system introduced by Law 53/2003, known as the Moratti reform (IT0304106F), named after the current Ministry of Education Letizia Moratti. The two decrees have raised the age limits for compulsory education and training and have introduced the possibility for the students aged between 15 and 18 of alternating school and work periods.

The first decree regarding the duty-right to education and training has raised the aged limits for compulsory education to 18 years. Young people will have to attend school for at least 12 years compared to the previously 9 and achieve, at the age of 18, a title of vocational qualification or an high school diploma. The vocational qualification may also be achieved through an apprenticeship contract.

The parents will be responsible for the fulfilment of the school-training obligation of their minors while Municipalities, school managers and Provinces will be responsible for controlling the parents’ fulfilments. A National students’ register (Anagrafe nazionale degli studenti) will be set up at the care of the Minister of Education to verify students’ school attendance and to fight school dispersion and drop-outs. Sanctions for default will be applied in compliance with the regulations currently in force.

The Minister of Education and the Ministry of Labour will jointly monitor the application of the decree and will draft a tri-annual relation for the Parliaments.

The second decree has introduced the possibility for students aged between 15 and 18 - attending both vocational training schools and high schools - of alternating school and work periods. This school-work alternating system will provide the possibility of obtaining training credits. The school or training institution will also be able to issue a certificate attesting the competences acquired by the students. This certificate will be useful to continue the studies or to enter the labour market.

The school institutions will be responsible for planning and activating the school-work paths by signing agreements with companies, employers’ associations, chambers of commerce, public and private bodies and with volunteers’ associations. The work experience could also take place outside the school calendar.

In support to the new system the decrees identified a double tutoring system: a teaching tutor chosen within the school institution and a tutor chosen within the company/association hosting the student.

A National committee for the development, monitoring and evaluation of the school-work system will be set up.

The government has allocated EUR 11.8 million for 2005 and EUR 15.8 million for 2006 for the implementation of the first decree and EUR 10 million for 2005 and EUR 30 million for 2006 for the implementation of the second decree.

According to the Ministry of Education the measure on the right to education will contribute to a substantial reduction of school drop-outs and will have 'positive effects on each student and, more in general, on the country’s educational system. All the national and international statistics agree on the fact that the highest are the levels of education and training the most qualified and better remunerated are the jobs'.

Italy’s main employers’ confederation, Confindustria, expressed also its satisfaction for the two implementing legislative decrees. According to Confindustria the approval of the school-work decree makes the Italian education system more European. Gianfelice Rocca, vice-president of Confindustria responsible for Education matters, underlined that 'thanks to the decree Italian students will enjoy more rights because their learning path will continue also outside the school institutions, an extremely important step to make them closer to the enterprise world and to increase Italy’s competitiveness'.

The trade union, on the contrary, expressed a negative view of the decrees approved. The sectoral trade union organisation affiliated to the Italian Confederation of Workers’ Unions (Confederazione Italiana Sindacato Lavoratori, Cisl), Cisl Scuola, believes that the approval of the decrees will only increase the malaise of the school system and the confusion of young people. According to the secretary general of Cisl scuola, Francesco Scrima, the regulatory framework proposed on the right to education is too generic and the second, regarding the school-work alternation, 'does not contain the premises necessary to guarantee in each Italian school the implementation of the system, given the strict selection for having access to the work-school path and the limited resources allocated and programmed. Moreover, the decree does not contain neither the necessary indicators nor the criteria nor the rules for the correct identification of the venues where the school-work alternation should take place and does not contain precise guarantees for a correct identification of the profile and the requirements of the companies which should host the students'.

Enrico Panini of the sectoral trade union organisation affiliated to the General Confederation of Italian Workers (Confederazione Generale italiana del lavoro, Cgil) Flc-Cgil voiced also many criticisms regarding the decrees and expressed his concerned about the possibility of 'pushing young people towards an anticipated entrance into the labour market and is afraid that the measures approved could contribute to increase social differences in our country'.

Fonti: Conquiste del lavoro 25 marzo 2005, http://www.istruzione.it/

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