Education and Training Monitor 2023

1. The teaching profession

The Italian education system is faced with a shortage of qualified teachers, fuelling a steady increase in the number of temporary contracts. In recent years, only half of the vacant posts available at the start of each school year could be filled with permanent appointments. This is due to a lack of candidates with the required qualifications in some subjects. In the school year 2021/2022, out 125 000 available posts, only 73 000 could be filled with teachers on a permanent contract. In the same year, the number of substitute teachers on temporary contracts reached 225 000, or almost a quarter of the total, up from 135 000 in the school year 2017/2018. Most temporary teachers have no automatic right to fill the same post the following school year. Consequently, the turnover rate is high, which negatively impacts teaching continuity.

There is a substantial geographical and subject mismatch between the supply of qualified teachers¹ eligible for recruitment on a permanent contract and the staffing needs of schools. The result is shortages in some subjects and regions and oversupply in others. Shortages are most acute in disciplines like science and maths, foreign languages and learning support, and affect mostly the north of the country. Conversely, eligible teachers waiting for recruitment tend to be qualified in humanity subjects and reside in the south of the country (Gavosto, 2022).

Italy’s demographic decline, while significant, is unlikely to compensate for teacher shortages. Italy’s school population is projected to shrink by 15.4% by 2040 (EU average 9.7%)². While it is not easy to translate class reduction into lower teacher requirements, a raw estimate suggests that the demand for teachers in Italy is declining by at least 10 000 units per year. Awareness of the need to plan for future demand has induced the Ministry of Education and Merit (MIM) to request EU support through the EU’s Technical Support Instrument (TSI) in building a forecasting model for the country needs in the coming years³.

A high share of teachers in Italy are approaching retirement age⁴, which risks exacerbating existing shortages. In 2021, over a third of schoolteachers (ISCED 1-3) were 55 or older, and therefore likely to retire within the next 10 years. Over half of all schoolteachers were over 50 while only 6.5% were under the age of 35 (see Figure 1). The different age structure within each educational level creates a different extent of shortage that cannot be compensated across levels, since the transition from one educational level to another requires obtaining a specific qualification.

Figure 1: Schoolteachers (ISCED 1-3) by age group, 2021

The procedures for selecting and hiring teachers were repeatedly modified over the last decade, but have so far not succeeded in ensuring a reliable supply of qualified teachers. Long waiting times⁵ and no clear prospects for tenure tend to result in adverse selection, as many graduates on temporary contracts who have better job options decide to leave the profession⁶. A recent reform of initial training and recruitment for secondary schoolteachers aims to address some of these issues by introducing a specific initial training for aspiring secondary school teachers⁷ as well as a clear path to tenure (European Commission, 2021). Once fully implemented, the new system could help improve the attractiveness of the teaching profession by removing some of the current bottlenecks in accessing the profession and help to renew the teaching force. In the short term, however, the choice to prioritise the stabilisation of long-term temporary teachers could delay the effectiveness of the reform.

Teachers’ salary progression is slow, with modest increases based on the length of service. On average, Italian teachers (ISCED 2) earn about 27% less than other tertiary educated workers (OECD, EAG). They need to work for 35 years to reach the top salary, which is approximately 50% more than the starting salary. Over the years, the government has introduced different possibilities to diversify teachers’ work (see Section 3). However, implementation is to a large extent a matter of school autonomy, both in terms of roles and compensation mechanisms. The previous government also introduced a merit-based wage increase of 10% for the best teachers, after having attended training courses⁸ for three years and having successfully passed the relevant exams (European Commission, 2022).

Other factors contribute to teachers’ job satisfaction. According to the 2018 OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS), the proportion of teachers satisfied with their job is the second highest in the EU, standing at 96% vs 89.5%. Overall, 87% of teachers say that if they could decide again, they would still choose to become a teacher (compared with an EU average of 77.6%). However, only 12% believe that teaching is a valued profession in society (OECD, 2019). This apparent contradiction can in part be explained by the attractiveness of the profession in terms of job security and scope to reconcile private and professional life.

School leaders are relatively well paid. They have a career profile that is distinct from teachers and a different statutory salary scale. School leaders (dirigenti scolastici) are selected and recruited through ad hoc public competitions open to teachers with at least 5 years’ teaching experience. In 2018, the government aligned the professional status of school leaders to that of public administration managers. This is reflected in their remuneration. While head teachers’ salaries are still lower than those of other public managers, they are now significantly higher than those of teachers (between 50% and 100% higher, depending on seniority⁹).

2. Early childhood education and care

Participation in early childhood education (ECE) is declining and now stands below the EU average. In 2021, 91% of children between the age of 3 and the starting age of compulsory primary education participated in ECE compared with the EU average of 92.5%¹⁰. Overall, average participation has shrunk by 6.3 pps. since 2013 while in the EU it has increased slightly (0.7 pps.). The drop is most evident among younger children where the proportion of 3-year-olds in ECE fell by 4.9 pps. in 2021 compared with the previous year, but. However, participation has also dropped for 4- and 5-year-olds (by 3.5 and 2.7 pps. respectively)¹¹.

Less than a third of children below the age of 3 participate in formal childcare. In 2022, the proportion of children aged 0 to 3 enrolled in formal childcare stood at 30.9%, below the EU average of 35.7%¹². Although overall childcare is improving, national data¹³ show that it remains highly unequal across the country. Wide differences exist between the north and the south, and also between urban and 'internal areas'¹⁴, where a low and fragmented demand has traditionally hindered the development of childcare services.

Tackling imbalances in participation and service provision remains a priority. The government is investing in expanding early childhood education and care (ECEC) infrastructure supported by the national recovery and resilience plan. The objective is to raise overall participation rates and to reduce territorial disparities in providing ECEC. Full implementation of the plan could help progress towards the national target of 41.7% by 2030 set by the new Barcelona objectives. It would also be a key factor in implementing the integrated system of education and care from 0 to 6 years, which recognised the educational nature of childcare services, as opposed to a purely social service¹⁵. The government has also renewed the “nursery bonus” (bonus asili nido, first introduced in 2017) for 2023 – a government contribution which helps families pay their ECEC fees. The contribution ranges between EUR 1 500 and EUR 3 000, depending on family income.

3. School education

Early school leaving continues its downward trend, but remains above the EU average, particularly among pupils who were not born in Italy. The proportion of early leavers from education and training (ELET) in the 18-24 age group was 11.5% in 2022. This was down from 12.7% the previous year, confirming the downward trend that has been observed over the past decade¹⁶. While below the national target of 16%, the ELET rate remains above the EU average of 9.7% and still far exceeds the EU-level target of less than 9% by 2030. Boys are more likely than girls to leave school early (13.6% vs 9.1%), with a wider than-average gender gap (4.5 pps. compared with the EU average of 3.1 pps.). At over 30%, the rate of early school leaving among 18– to 24-year-olds not born in Italy is more than three times as high as that of those born in Italy (9.7%), and considerably higher than the EU average of 22.1%.

Basic skills proficiency is still not back to pre-pandemic levels. The results of the 2023 Invalsi standardised student testing remained largely stable compared with 2022 and 2021. This confirms that the learning loss caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been curbed but not yet reversed. A worsening of results for primary school pupils gives rise for concern.

Italian fourth graders’ literacy skills worsened between 2016 and 2021, in line with international trends, but remain above the EU average. In the 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) fourth-grade pupils scored on average 537 points compared with an EU average of 527¹⁷. Similarly, the share of low performers (17%) is lower that the EU average (23%) while those performing at the advanced benchmark rank equally (8% for both Italy and the EU average). Reading skills has worsened significantly since 2016, reversing the progress achieved during the previous five-year period¹⁸. The same trend can be observed at international level, suggesting that the school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 may have played a role.

Differences in performance between girls and boys and between socially advantaged and disadvantaged children in fourth grade are relatively small. Girls outperform boys by 7 score points, which is considerably less that the EU average of 12 points – but more than twice than in 2011, when the difference was statistically insignificant, at just 3 points. Socio-economic status is positively associated with reading performance. However, the difference tends to be on the lower end of the scale (64 points compared with an EU average of 80), suggesting that Italy's primary education system is relatively fair and effective compared with subsequent levels, where performance differences based on socio-economic status tend to grow¹⁹.

The spread of bullying and unhealthy situations gives rise for concern. There is a negative association between exposure to frequent bullying (reported by 11.8% of children) and lower performance in reading. Frequently bullied children score an average 50.6 score points less than those who report no exposure to bullying. Similarly, children who are exposed to cyberbullying ²⁰ tend to have a weaker reading performance than those who are not. In terms of well-being, a significant proportion of children often experience unhealthy situations, such as feeling tired (44%) or hungry (53.1%) when they arrive at school. While the data can give no indication as to the root causes, it does suggest that many children experience conditions which can have detrimental effects on their well-being and learning. Those conditions are also negatively associated with reading performance, in particular feeling hungry (22.4 points difference). These findings suggests that any effective policy aimed at improving basic skills proficiency needs to consider a variety of factors beyond the purely pedagogical.

There will be a new system of orientation and guidance in secondary schools from September 2023. The system is based on a personalised approach helping each student identify their strengths and weaknesses, skills and interests. The process will be carried out through orientation modules of at least 30 hours, with the results recorded in a digital portfolio (E-portfolio) detailing each student’s educational background and the skills and competences acquired over the years. The E-portfolio is intended as a tool that evolves the students, accompanying them on their individual learning path. Central to the measure’s success are the new roles of “tutor teacher” (docente tutor) and “mentor teacher” (docente orientatore). The tutor teacher will help to develop personalised learning paths, ensuring that weaker students are not left behind and enabling stronger ones to fulfil their potential. The mentor teacher will provide information and guidance on the different educational, vocational and employment opportunities on offer to enable students and their families to make informed choices as regards future directions. If properly implemented, the new system could help reduce early school leaving, improve student achievements and reduce skills mismatches. The magnitude of the action has the potential to accomplish the objectives²¹. However, it will be important to ensure that tutor and mentor teachers are properly equipped to provide effective and unbiased guidance²².

4. Vocational education and training

Participation in vocational education is near the EU average, but fewer VET students benefit from work-based learning²⁴. In 2021, the proportion of upper secondary students enrolled in VET was 51.9%, 4 pps. less than 2015 but still above the EU average of 48.7%²⁵. By contrast, only just over a quarter of recent VET graduates (25.9%) benefited from exposure to work-based learning during their studies, well below the EU average (60.1%) and far short of the EEA target of at least 60% by 2025 (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Exposure to work-based learning in people aged 20-34 in ISCED 3 and ISCED 4, 2021 and 2022

Italy has prepared a comprehensive national implementation plan in response to the 2020 Council Recommendation on VET and the Osnabrück declaration²⁶.Its objectives include: improving the VET's appeal, the skillsets of professionals in the regional training systems, the flexibility of training in line with individual needs; the training in digital skills, the dialogue between education and the labour market and the development of territorial networks and pacts, and expanding dual VET. If properly implemented this could contribute to the effectiveness and labour-market relevance of the Italian VET system.

5. Higher education

The proportion of young adults with a tertiary educational qualification continued to grow in 2022, albeit slowly. In 2022, 29.2% of Italian 25-34-year-olds had a tertiary educational qualification compared with the EU average of 42%. The tertiary educational attainment rate is particularly low among the population not born in Italy, whether EU-born (14.5%) or born outside the EU (12.6%), reflecting a continued difficulty in attracting highly qualified people. Women are more likely to hold a tertiary qualification than men (35.5% vs 23.1%), in line with the rest of the EU, but with a slightly wider gender gap (12.4 pps. compared with 11.1 pps.).

The share of STEM graduates remains comparatively low, particularly among women. Among 2021 graduates²⁷ fewer than a quarter (23.9%) obtained a STEM qualification, compared with an EU average of 25.4%. The proportion of ICT graduates was particularly low, at just 1.5% as compared with the EU 4.5% average. At 57.7% women represent most of the 2021 graduates, but they only account for 9.3% of STEM graduates and 0.3% of ICT graduates.

Tertiary graduates’ employment rate continued to grow, reaching a 10-year high. In 2022, the employment rate of recent graduates²⁸ (1-3 years) in the age group 20-34 reached 74.6%²⁹, up more than 7 pps. on the previous year. This is in stark contrast with the employment rates of upper secondary school graduates, both VET (60.7%)³⁰ and general (39.8%)³¹.

For the first time, 2021 saw a reversal in the flow of young graduates abroad due to a generalised decline in expatriations. According to national data³², the number of young adults aged 25-34 who moved abroad in 2021 shrunk by 21% compared to 2020. The number of young graduates in the same age group decreased proportionally (by 14 000, or -21%), leaving the share of graduates out of the total number of young expatriates virtually unchanged (from 45.6% in 2020 to 45.7% in 2021).

Significant resources have been invested in supporting student access to tertiary education, but differences still exist across regions. All students with a household income indicator (ISEE) below EUR 30 000 are exempted from tuition fees. In addition, during the academic year 2021-22, a total of 238 357 scholarships were disbursed, covering 97.9% of those entitled. But while the resources invested in supporting students from disadvantaged backgrounds have significantly increased over the last five years, there are still regional disparities in terms of coverage which is almost universal in central and northern Italy but still insufficient by 10 pps. on island regions. Also, resources per beneficiary differ and reflect allocating decisions by regional authorities as well as the financial situation of local families (Mariani and Torrini, 2022). There are also regional differences in terms of income thresholds for scholarship eligibility, availability of student housing and additional services (canteens, libraries). The adoption of minimal levels of service by the central government could help to reduce this degree of variability.

The government has taken steps to make access to academic careers more predictable and therefore more attractive. Once a candidate obtains a tenure track position as assistant professor through an open competition held at local level, they are (almost) guaranteed promotion to associate professor within six years if they qualify for professorship at national level (abilitazione nazionale, based on publications only). If, however, they fail obtain the national qualification, they are no longer able to pursue an academic career. The “up or out” principle aims to curb the creation of senior assistant professors with limited research capabilities.

6. Adult learning

Participation in adult learning is growing, but challenges remain. In 2022 the participation rate in education and training for people aged 25-64 was 9.6%, a significant increase compared with 2017, when it was 7.9%³³ Women are almost as likely as men to participate in adult learning, with a gender gap of just 0.5 pp. compared with 2.1 pps. on average in the EU. If this positive trend continues, Italy could reach the EU average rate of participation³⁴ in a few years. However, there are no specific policies to train adults with no or low qualifications, which limits their access. Above all, e-learning as a learning method has spread in companies, but the digital divide and the limited quality of digital education content and platforms hinder its widespread diffusion. Despite progress in quality assurance arrangements, limited focus on the quality of learning outcomes remains.

Recent initiatives to develop the VET system, the re-entry into training of NEETs and active labour market policies (ALMPs) could have a positive impact. The national Recovery and resilience plan is activating significant actions for digitisation and digital education, training in public administration, strengthening employment centres and ALMPs. ESF+ continues to invest in programmes such as the national Youth, women and jobs programme and initiatives to train workers in digital and green skills. It will also continue to invest in modernising employment services and ALMPs as well as regional programmes and their initiatives to adapt to change, such as digital literacy vouchers for entrepreneurs with small and micro businesses.