Italy Revives Policy of Failing Pupils with Bad Conduct to 'Bring Back Respect'
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Loading... - Auton Clarke
- 15 Oct 2024
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Italy has reintroduced a measure to fail students based on their behavior, aiming to tackle rising aggression towards teachers. The "grades for conduct" policy, reminiscent of a law implemented by Benito Mussolini's fascist government in 1924, empowers schools to fail students solely due to their misconduct.
Under this new policy, middle school and high school pupils who score five or less out of ten in conduct will fail the year, even if their academic performance is satisfactory. High school students who score six on conduct will have to take a civic education test. Behavioral marks will significantly impact the sitting of the crucial maturità school-leaving exam.
Giuseppe Valditara, the education minister in Giorgia Meloni's far-right government, stated, "The grades-for-conduct reform restores the importance of individual responsibility, makes respect of people and public goods central, and restores the authoritativeness of teachers." Meloni has previously expressed that the change would "bring back respect" in schools.
The law, supported by ANP, Italy's association of headteachers, follows a more than 110% increase in aggressive incidents towards teaching staff since the beginning of the year compared to 2023. Fines ranging from €500 (£415) to €10,000 have been introduced for acts of aggression or violence towards school staff.
The original Mussolini-era measure remained in place until the mid-1970s before being abolished in elementary and middle schools after student protests. It underwent modifications over the years before being removed in all schools in 2000.
The package of measures, already approved in the senate, passed in the lower house with 154 votes in favor, 97 against, and seven abstentions. Critics argue that the conduct rule marks "a return to a time that we would prefer to forget."
Supporters of the new policy, including ANP President Antonello Giannelli, view it as a positive step towards addressing undisciplined behavior in schools. Giannelli stated, "It is right that students are called to reflect on their responsibilities as a consequence of their actions."
However, Tommaso Martelli, the coordinator of a national student union, criticized the move as aimed at "reinforcing an authoritarian and punitive culture." He added, "The possibility of being failed for violations of the rules now makes the grades for conduct measure something that can be used as a further repressive tool in our schools."
Anna Ascani, a politician with the center-left Democratic party, expressed concerns about the conduct rule, stating that it marks "a return to a time that we would prefer to forget."
As Italy implements this new policy, it remains to be seen whether it will effectively address the issue of aggression towards teachers and promote a more respectful learning environment.
