Education in Italy is compulsory from 6 to 16 years of age, and is divided into five stages: kindergarten (scuola dell'infanzia), primary school (scuola primaria or scuola elementare), lower secondary school (scuola secondaria di primo grado or scuola media inferiore), upper secondary school (scuola secondaria di secondo grado or scuola media superiore), and university (università). Education is free in Italy and free education is available to children of all nationalities who are residents in Italy. Italy has both a private and public education system.
In 2018, the Italian secondary education was evaluated as below the OECD average. Italy scored below the OECD average in reading and science, and near OECD average in mathematics. Mean performance in Italy declined in reading and science, and remained stable in mathematics. Trento and Bolzano scored at an above the national average in reading. A wide gap exists between northern schools, which perform near average, and schools in the south, that had much poorer results. The 2018 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study ranks children in Italy 16th for reading.
Tertiary education in Italy is divided between public universities, private universities and the prestigious and selective superior graduate schools, such as the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa. Bologna University, founded in 1088, is the oldest university in continuous operation, as well as one of the leading academic institutions in Italy and Europe. The Bocconi University, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, LUISS, Polytechnic University of Turin, Polytechnic University of Milan, Sapienza University of Rome, and University of Milan are also ranked among the best in the world.
History
In Italy a state school system or Education System has existed since 1859, when the Legge Casati (Casati Act) mandated educational responsibilities for the forthcoming Italian state (Italian unification took place in 1861). The Casati Act made primary education compulsory, and had the goal of increasing literacy. This law gave control of primary education to the single towns, of secondary education to the provinces, and the universities were managed by the State. Even with the Casati Act and compulsory education, in rural (and southern) areas children often were not sent to school (the rate of children enrolled in primary education would reach 90% only after 70 years) and the illiteracy rate (which was nearly 80% in 1861) took more than 50 years to halve.
The next important law concerning the Italian education system was the Gentile Reform. This act was issued in 1923, thus when Benito Mussolini and his National Fascist Party were in power. In fact, Giovanni Gentile was appointed the task of creating an education system deemed fit for the fascist system. The compulsory age of education was raised to 14 years, and was somewhat based on a ladder system: after the first five years of primary education, one could choose the scuola media, which would give further access to the liceo and other secondary education, or the avviamento al lavoro (work training), which was intended to give a quick entry into the low strates of the workforce. The reform enhanced the role of the liceo classico, created by the Casati Act in 1859 (and intended during the Fascist era as the peak of secondary education, with the goal of forming the future upper classes), and created the Technical, Commercial and Industrial institutes and the liceo scientifico. The liceo classico was the only secondary school that gave access to all types of higher education until 1968. The influence of Gentile's Italian idealism was great,Moss, M. E. (2004). Mussolini's fascist philosopher: Giovanni Gentile reconsidered. New York: P. Lang. pp. 26–73. and he considered the Catholic religion to be the "foundation and crowning" of education. In 1962, the avviamento al lavoro was abolished, and all children up to 14 years had to follow a single program, encompassing primary education (scuola elementare) and middle school (scuola media).
From 1962 to the present day, the main structure of Italian primary (and secondary) education remained largely unchanged, even if some modifications were made: a narrowing of the gap between males and females (through the merging of the two distinct programmes for technical education, and the optional introduction of mixed-gender gym classes), a change in the structure of secondary school (legge Berlinguer) and the creation of new licei, istituti tecnici and istituti professionali, offering students a broader range of options.
In 1999, in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Bologna Process, the Italian university system switched from the old system (vecchio ordinamento, which led to the traditional five-year Laurea degree), to the new system (nuovo ordinamento). The nuovo ordinamento split the former Laurea into two tracks: the Laurea triennale (a three-year degree akin to the Bachelor's Degree), followed by the 2-year Laurea specialistica (Master's Degree), the latter renamed Laurea Magistrale in 2007. A credit system was established to quantify the amount of work needed by each course and exam (25 work hours = 1 credit), as well as enhance the possibility to change course of studies and facilitate the transfer of credits for further studies or go on exchange (e.g. Erasmus Programme) in another country. However, it is now established that there is just a five-year degree Laurea Magistrale a Ciclo Unico for programmes such as Law and a six-year degree for Medicine.
In 2019, education minister Lorenzo Fioramonti announced that in 2020 Italy would become the first country in the world to make the study of climate change and sustainable development mandatory for students.
Primary education
Primary school (scuola primaria, also known as scuola elementare), is commonly preceded by three years of non-compulsory nursery school (or kindergarten, asilo). Primary school lasts five years. Until middle school, the educational curriculum is the same for all pupils: although one can attend a private or state-funded school, the subjects studied are the same (with the exception of special schools for the blind or the hearing-impaired): the students are given a basic education in Italian, English, mathematics, natural sciences, history, geography, social studies, and physical education. Some schools also have Spanish or French, musical arts and visual arts.
Students usually start primary school at 6, but students born between January and March who are still 5 years old can access primary school early; this is called primina and the students doing it are called anticipatari. For example, a student born in February 2002 can attend primary school with students born in 2001.
Until 2004, pupils had to pass an exam to access middle school (scuola secondaria di primo grado), which comprised in the composition of a short essay in Italian, a written math test, and an oral test on the other subjects. The exam has now been discontinued and pupils can now directly enter middle school without any exam.
Secondary education
Secondary education in Italy lasts 8 years and is divided into two stages: middle school (scuola secondaria di primo grado, commonly referred to as scuola media) and high school (scuola secondaria di secondo grado, commonly referred to as scuola superiore). Middle school lasts three years (usually from age 11 to 14), and high school lasts five years (usually from age 14 to 19). Every tier involves an exam at the end of the final year, required to earn a degree and have access to the next degree of education. Both in middle school and high school, students stay in the classroom for most of the time (except PE, which often takes place in the gym), so the teachers are the ones who have to move from one classroom to another during the day.
In middle school pupils can go to school from Monday to Saturday starting school at 8:00 am and finish at 1:00 pm or from Monday to Friday starting at 8:00 am and finish at 2:00 pm but they might start earlier depending on the school's rules, while in high school they attend school from 4 to 8 hours a day, depending on the day of the week and on the rules and type of the school. Usually, there are no breaks between each class, but most schools have 15 to 30 minute break around halfway through the school day or they can also split it in two shorter breaks especially this happen in middle schools. If students have to stay in school after lunch, there's a longer break to let them eat and rest (usually no more than 30 minutes or 1 hour) but the food is not provided by the school.
There are three types of high school, subsequently divided into further specializations. There are some common subjects taught in each of these, such as Italian, English, maths and history, but most subjects are exclusive to a particular type of school (i.e. ancient Greek in the liceo classico, business economics in the Istituto tecnico economico or scenography in the liceo artistico): Liceo ('lyceum') The education received in a liceo is mostly theoretical, with a specialization in a specific field of studies such as: humanities and antiquity (liceo classico), mathematics and science (liceo scientifico), foreign languages (liceo linguistico), psychology and pedagogy (liceo delle scienze umane), social science (liceo economico-sociale), fine arts (liceo artistico). Additionally, some lyceums offer specialized classes (indirizzi) where students may have more hours for specific subjects, receive lessons taught in English, or explore additional subjects. For instance, in the liceo scientifico, there are indirizzo liceo scientifico (or indirizzo tradizionale), with Latin, or indirizzo liceo scientifico-scienze applicate, which includes informatics. Istituto tecnico ('technical institute') The education given in an istituto tecnico offers both theoretical education and specialization in a specific field of studies (e.g.: economy, administration, technology, tourism, agronomy), often integrated with a three or six months internship in a company, association or university, from the third to the fifth of study. Istituto professionale ('professional institute') This type of school offers a form of secondary education oriented towards practical subjects (engineering, agriculture, gastronomy, technical assistance, handcrafts), and enables students to start searching for a job as soon as they have completed their studies, sometimes sooner, as some schools offer a diploma after three years instead of five.
Any type of high school which lasts 4(only a few experiment) or 5 years but it is divided in two: the first 2 years(biennio or ginnasio for the liceo classico) where subjects are mostly similar in each type of school, while the other 3 (triennio) are more specific. After you get access to the final exam, called esame di maturità(official name since 2025-26) or esame di stato(old name), that takes place every year between June and July and grants access to university. This exam consists of an oral examination and written tests. Some of them, like the Italian one, are the same for each school, while others are different according to the type of school. For example, in the liceo classico students have to translate a Latin or ancient Greek text; in the liceo scientifico students have to solve mathematics or physics problems; and so on. An Italian student is usually 19 when they enter university.
Higher education
Italy has a large and national and international network of public or state-affiliated universities and schools offering degrees in higher education. State-run universities of Italy constitute the main percentage of tertiary education in Italy and are managed under the supervision of Italian's Ministry of Education.