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Italy implements Decree-Law 170/2026 and faces school unrest

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2026-10-05 18:47 UTC → 2026-10-07 06:11 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The Italian government has moved forward with Decree-Law 170/2026, which officially entered into force on October 1. The legislation introduces significant structural changes, including renaming technical and professional institutes to ‘Licei Tecnologici’ and ‘Licei Professionali’ and modifying teaching hours for technical tracks. Central to the decree is the 30% cap on non-Italian speaking students in first-year classes for primary, middle, and high schools, scheduled for implementation in the 2027/2028 academic year. While the government maintains these quotas prevent ‘ghetto classes,’ critics argue the threshold is a political measure that ignores classroom complexity and fails to address systemic issues like teacher shortages and infrastructure decay. Protests have intensified in response to the law. In Milan, city councilors displayed banners reading ‘Qui nessun* è stranier*’ (No one here is a stranger) to oppose the cap. The debate has also centered on linguistic standards. In Salerno, the use of inclusive symbols like the schwa and asterisks in school banners drew criticism from Aurelio Tommasetti, former rector of the University of Salerno. Tommasetti argued that schools should avoid ‘politically confrontational’ slogans and instead focus on mastery of the Italian language as the primary tool for integration. ~~Amidst these tensions, some educators suggest that rather than censoring the non-standard or digital language used~~ Recent analysis by ~~students,~~ Tuttoscuola highlights the uneven regional impact of the upcoming cap. Nationally, approximately 9.1% of Italy’s 365,935 active classes exceed the 30% threshold, affecting 4,295 schools. The impact is most pronounced in primary schools ~~should treat these linguistic variations~~ (13.8%) and nursery schools (12.5%). While Emilia-Romagna is identified as ~~educational opportunities~~ the region most affected, with nearly 20% of its classes exceeding the limit, Sardinia is expected to ~~bridge~~ be the ~~gap between formal instruction and students' lived experiences.~~ least affected, with only 0.5% of its classes—roughly one out of 195—projected to meet the threshold.

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