What ages do children start school/formal
education?
"At age six, children start their formal, compulsory education with Scuola Primara also known as Scuola Elementare
(Primary School)." (Understanding Italy: 2015)
How are children prepared for school? What areas of development does
Italy concentrate on?
Teachers emphasise helping children understand perceptions, how to express their thoughts and feelings, and how to master their capabilities in achieving identity, autonomy, and skills, and therefore guidance in
making decisions regarding instruction and curriculum. The areas heavily focused on are social, emotional and personal development. (Walden University. Patricia McDonald: 2008: Page 130)
(EURYDICE: 2004: Page 3) states that during their time at primary school, children are required to learn Italian, a foreign language,
mathematics, sciences, humanities, social sciences, art, music and physical education. In addition, religious education is an optional
subject.
Statistics on success rates in mathematics, literacy and
science
The OECD league tables was published in 2013, stating the performances in maths, reading
and science across the world for 15 year olds. These results were gathered from 65 countries.