School drop-out rates still down: at 7.3 per cent. Maths is a cause for concern in primary schools

Turning to the national exams, the results in Italian are positive, albeit with a few caveats. In the fifth year of upper secondary school, the proportion of pupils achieving a ‘pass’ has risen from 52 per cent to 54 per cent, with progress recorded across all major regions of the country. In Lombardy, Valle d’Aosta, the Autonomous Province of Trento, Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, the proportion of pupils with inadequate results remains below 40 per cent.

In the second year of upper secondary school, the proportion of pupils reaching at least the target level remains broadly stable (61%–62% in 2025); this result is also linked to the return to school, which generally occurs more markedly during the first two years of upper secondary school. In the third year of lower secondary school, the ‘target’ proportion falls from 59 per cent to 57 per cent. Here, however, it is important to consider the presence of a significant proportion of pupils who attended a substantial part of their primary schooling during the pandemic and who are struggling to achieve adequate levels of reading comprehension. There is a gap of around 10 percentage points between the Centre-North and the South.

In primary school, the proportion of children reaching the basic level has remained constant over the years.

Light and shadow in mathematics

Internationally, mathematics continues to be a ‘tricky’ subject. And we are no exception. In the fifth year of upper secondary school, the proportion of pupils reaching the target level rises from 49 per cent to 52 per cent, with progress seen particularly in the South. The South alone has seen an increase from 40 to 45 per cent; together with the islands, the figure has risen from 38 to 41 per cent, approaching pre-pandemic levels. Significant regional disparities remain, with the North at around or just above 60 per cent.

In Year 9, this national proportion of pupils rises from 54 to 55 per cent. There are significant regional differences: a gap of around 15–20 percentage points separates the Centre-North from the South. In Calabria, Sicily and Sardinia, and in the autonomous province of Bolzano (where Italian is spoken), the proportion of pupils whose skills are not up to standard remains very high, at around 50–60 per cent. In primary school, there is a worrying decline in maths attainment.

English is generally going well, not least given the increasing focus on foreign languages amongst families. In 2026, the growth seen in previous years resumed: 63 per cent reached the target level of B2/B1+ in Reading and 48 per cent in Listening. Southern Italy shows the most encouraging signs, with very significant growth compared with 2019.

In Year 9, around 83 per cent of pupils achieve the required A2 level in Reading and around 70 per cent in Listening. In primary school, around 91 per cent of children achieve the A1 level in Reading and around 85 per cent in Listening.

A specific focus is placed on digital skills, assessed across four areas: digital literacy, communication, digital content creation and digital safety, in the second year of upper secondary school (on a census basis) and in the fifth year (sample classes). In the second year of upper secondary school, the proportion of pupils who have reached at least the Intermediate level (the expected level for Year 10) is very high, consistently above 80 per cent. Around 6–7 out of 10 young people (Year 13) complete upper secondary education with an advanced level of digital skills.

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