Maturity 2025

Cross-cutting matter

Maturità 2025, from digital to the environment: here is how much civic education skills weigh on the oral test

In the interview, the candidate must demonstrate that he/she has acquired the competences as defined in the school curriculum and set out in the activities outlined in the 15 May document.

by Laura Virli

15 June 2025

4' min read

4' min read

In the oral interview, four moments are recognisable, one of which is reserved for the discussion of the civic education paths taken by the candidate in previous school years, and outlined by the class council in the document of 15 May.

The Framework

But why dedicate part of the examination to the teaching of civic education? Well, this subject, transversal to all the disciplines of every curriculum, has once again become compulsory, from pre-school to secondary school, as a result (desired at the time by the entire Parliament) of the implementation of Law No. 92/2019. At the end of a four-year experiment, with Decree 183 of 2024, at the instigation of Minister Valditara, new guidelines for the teaching of civic education were adopted, totally replacing the previous ones, but the number of hours did not change. No less than 33 hours in the school year entrusted to class council teachers, with the aim of providing growing young people with all those useful tools to become responsible and active citizens, to develop digital skills, to promote the development of critical thinking, education in the ethical use of the digital and the fight against mafias, the promotion of health and correct lifestyles, etc.

It is, moreover, a subject, to all intents and purposes, subject to periodic and final assessment, with a subject coordinator in each class assigning the grade on the report card. So much so that, with a mark of less than six tenths in the final exam, one is not promoted to the next class or is not admitted to the State exam. But there is more. During the interview, the candidate must try to demonstrate that he or she has acquired the civic education skills as defined in the school curriculum and set out in the activities outlined in the 15 May document. And from this year, for those who have obtained a 6 in conduct, law 50/2024 also makes it compulsory to discuss a critical paper on active and solidarity-based citizenship.

Evaluation of Civic Education

There is no provision for the appointment of a specific commissioner in the examination precisely because the teaching of civic education is, in itself, transversal to the individual disciplines.

Furthermore, there is no distinct phase during the interview for this subject; at any time, during the discussion of the topics chosen by the commission or at the prompting of the commissioners of the individual subjects or in the illustration of the Pcto projects, the candidate has the opportunity to demonstrate that he/she has acquired the skills and knowledge required by the civic education activities, as enumerated within the individual disciplines.

Analysing the national grid for evaluating the interview, annexed to Om 67/2025, it is also clear that the standard wanted to give significant weight to the evaluation of the candidate's performance in this subject, so much so that for the indicator 'ability to analyse and understand reality in terms of active citizenship starting from reflection on personal experiences' the candidate can obtain up to 2.5 out of the 20 available.

Document of 15 May

It is necessary to find in the class council's document the part dedicated to Civic Education activities, carried out during the school year, in the form of curricular or extra-curricular study and in-depth study paths, by modules or learning units (UdA), enucleated within the individual disciplines.

Clearly, on the basis of teaching autonomy, each fifth-grade council places the activities carried out in the document differently. There may be a table, a paragraph, an outline or other describing the paths developed, from which the candidate may derive some valid indications. The conceptual nuclei taken into consideration for the construction of the interdisciplinary pathways, chosen from the Constitution, law (national and international), legality, the fight against organised crime and bullying phenomena; economic development and environmental protection, bio-economy and biodiversity; digital citizenship and the conscious use of communication media and artificial intelligence, etc., can be read. The title of the course will be highlighted, such as "The globalised world", "Economic sustainability", "Freedom of the press, transparency and privacy". There will be a description of the content carried out with an indication of the general purpose, competence development goals and learning objectives. The reference texts used, any in-depth studies developed, the digital tools used and the subjects involved will also be mentioned. Finally, the acquired competences identified by the class council regarding the work carried out in class will be outlined.

The candidate's preparation

Starting with the class council document that every candidate must keep in mind, here are a few tips for organising exam preparation work with regard to civic education. With the knowledge that you can earn up to 2, 5 points if you demonstrate excellent skills in this transversal subject.

While it is true that the civic education 'questions' may vary depending on the 15 May paper, and thus on the thematic paths actually taken in class, it is important that the candidate conducts the civic education discussion according to how the interview takes place. In practice, a lot also depends on whether one manages to incorporate some civic education topics into the discourse. It is highly unlikely, and also outside the rules governing the examination, that the board will ask specific, additional questions on the subject if one has already demonstrated mastery of the topics already covered during the oral examination.

It should be borne in mind that this part of the interview also takes into account the indicators, levels, descriptors, points provided for the interview. Therefore, when preparing, it is necessary to try to train oneself to link the knowledge acquired in the thematic paths included in the class document. Also, strive to present your arguments clearly and critically, reworking the acquired content in a personal manner. If one wishes to aspire to the highest mark, it is essential to show richness and mastery in lexical language and to show that one is able to analyse and understand reality, particularly in terms of active citizenship, including through examples taken from one's own life experience.

A recommendation to you 'maturandi': do well in the exam this part on civic education. Although renamed the 'state exam' under Berlinguer, in the collective imagination it remains the 'maturity' launched by Gentile in 1923, a goal to be reached to prove you are ready to leave school and enter society as 'active and aware citizens'.

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