The Sicilian Region has sent reports to the Prosecutor’s Office on some private schools suspected of functioning as “diploma factories”. The investigations revealed various irregularities, including facilitated examination methods and non-regulatory year skips.
The dossiers, drawn up by ministerial inspectors and the regional school office, were sent to the prosecutor’s offices of Palermo, Agrigento and Trapani. In some cases, it is assumed that students obtained their diploma in just one year, paying amounts between 4 and 8 thousand euros.
The Minister of Education, Giuseppe Valditara, announced an anti-diploma plan which provides for the recovery of a maximum of two years in one and the presence of an external commissioner for the suitability exam. The bill is being approved and, once it comes into force, it will also apply to Sicily.
The regional education councilor, Mimmo Turano, assured that the Region will adapt to the new national rules. “There are no things that I do in a manner that is inconsistent with the minister. As soon as the national rules change, they also apply in Sicily”, declared Turano.
The case of the “diploma factories” has put the spotlight on the critical issues of the private school system in Italy. The new measures announced by Minister Valditara aim to combat the phenomenon and guarantee greater equity in the education system.
