During a press conference, Giorgio Vittadini, the President of the Foundation for Subsidiarity, wholeheartedly supported Stefania Giannini, the Italian Minister of Education, Universities and Research. Vittadini, referring to the Minister\u2019s recent panel discussion, said that he \u201cfor the first time, heard revolutionary things\u201d regarding the public school system, in terms of teachers\u2019 salaries based on merit and on true professional capabilities, as in the corporate world. Vittadini reiterated an idea he has been supporting for years to overcome the current economic crisis: the recovery won\u2019t come from the construction industry, but rather, from education intended as nurture. \u201cOur country won\u2019t jump-start from a brick but from a brain,\u201d he insisted.
\nGiannini did not go into details, nor did she reveal the \u201cscholastic surprises\u201d promised by the Italian Prime Minister Renzi (\u201csurprises, in fact, to remain such cannot be revealed\u201d, she said). However, she made some firm commitments. The first concerns the elimination (\u201cnot a physical one\u201d, she reassured) of substitute teachers. \u201cThis is an adverse mechanism obliging us to follow seniority\u201d she explained \u201cat the expense of functionality. No prior government ever applied this mechanism, so we always end up turning to substitute teachers. This is something we want to eliminate, out of respect for the students, their families, and the teachers as well\u201d.
\nWhen questioned about the ongoing controversy regarding public funding to private schools, the Minister was brief: \u201cWhatever is at the service of the community as a whole and is oriented to the common good is a public service, whether provided by a public or a private entity. I\u2019d like to recall that the European community in the past two years has been urging us to apply the directive about freedom of school choice.\u201d The Minister did not want to add anything else here. \u201cIn this moment, we are fleshing out the human, intellectual, and technical infrastructure of our educational system. The relevant tools and means to carry out such project will be evaluated eventually, but not in this phase,\u201d she concluded.
\nThe topic of funding gave the Minister the opportunity to criticize those sectors that, in our country \u201ckeep demanding scholastic quality, while contributing little to its improvement.\u201d
\nGiannini did not go into details regarding school reform. She only identified secondary schools (i.e. middle schools) as the main the sector needing the most radical changes, \u201cdue to a lack of attention and of updating.\u201d
\n(D.B.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
During a press conference, Giorgio Vittadini, the President of the Foundation for Subsidiarity, wholeheartedly supported Stefania Giannini, the Italian Minister of Education, Universities and Research. Vittadini, referring to the Minister\u2019s … <\/p>\n