The Italian government has tightened rules in the education sector with a new decree approved by the Council of Ministers, introducing strict measures on integration, security, and class organization. A major highlight is the absolute ban on students covering their faces at school, outlawing the burqa, niqab, and surgical masks unless required for health reasons. Violations carry fines ranging from €200 to €1,000, applied directly to parents if the student is a minor.
The measure also heavily emphasizes the Italian language as a primary tool for integration. If a child’s academic progress is threatened by language barriers and their family does not speak Italian, parents will be legally mandated to attend free Italian courses, under penalty of similar fines. Alongside this, the decree establishes a 30% cap on students without Italian citizenship who lack adequate educational backgrounds in any given classroom, aiming to prevent the creation of “ghetto classes.”
While the government has allocated €17.5 million to boost language programs and extra funds for textbooks and anti-cyberbullying initiatives, the reform has sparked fierce backlash. Major unions, including Flc Cgil and DirigentiScuola, have slammed the decree as a populist stunt that ignores structural crises like teacher salaries and staff shortages.