Florence, 19 June 2024 – “How did it go? Definitely better than a year ago. We were luckier.” The graduates we meet as soon as they leave the first test have no doubts.
If the fifth grade students of 2023 found themselves faced with Moravia and Quasimodo, this year it was the turn of Pirandello and Ungaretti. “Definitely more feasible”, the unanimous comment. But at least at the scientific Leonardo Da Vinci the students mostly opted for the track on the balance of terror in the cold War. “I would have gladly done Ungaretti too, but then I preferred to talk about nuclear power and how ‘fear’ is an important element in diplomatic relations. Unfortunately, today we are conditioned by the threats of possible conflicts, so I liked the timeliness of this track,” he says Elena Faggioli. No superstitious ritual, “but this morning the anxiety made itself felt”, admits the young woman, who once she has finished her high school diploma she will study Physics. Dream? “Particle physics researcher. I would like to stay in Italy, but if the work situation in my country remains uncertain I will also opt to go abroad”, she opens her arms.
Oscar Piciocchi, also from the scientific Da Vinci, is however unsure whether to enroll in Nutrition Sciences or Biology. “For now I feel calm, but the tough nut to crack will come tomorrow, with the math test…”, Oscar crosses his fingers. But how many hours a day do students studying for their high school diploma? Some responded to us for two or three hours, while others answered for six, seven, even ten. And the night before exams? “All of us graduating seniors at Da Vinci met in the garden in front of the high school – he says Ahmed Assan – We sang and relaxed a bit. After the exam I will try the Medicine test. Then, I deserve a nice holiday in Mykonos with my friends.”
Lapo Milani instead he chose the track on the old diary and the new social networks. “I’ve never had one, but I think it’s a good outlet – observes the boy -. As for social media, in that case it is much more difficult to talk about yourself. They are a completely different thing to a diary.”
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Contrary to what one might think, at least the students we met they are interested in politics and for nothing in the world will they miss the ballot. “Of course we will go to the polls. We followed the city’s electoral campaign and we have very clear ideas”, they assured us. From the scientific to the classic. Martha Barbarossa he attends the Dante musical high school and wants to dispel a myth: “It’s not true that there is all this anxiety around graduation… After all, this morning’s test is a normal theme! Last night I went to bed peacefully after watching a movie. My future? The Fiesole school of music and psychology”. “I thought worse – the first words he says Anna Amadori, just out of the classic Michelangelo -. I’m quite worried about the Greek test. And I’m not the only one to say it…”.
Irene Mostarda del Michelangelo, smiling, says he chose “the track on Ungaretti, therefore the analysis of the text”. “I’m happy – he continues – because I dreamed about it last night. It seemed like an interesting track to me, also because it gave the opportunity to also reflect on the war”. The adrenaline drops for a few hours but the final exam isn’t over. “Usually I’m very anxious, but I had a good time the night before the exams – adds the girl -. I’m more anxious about the oral exam but I hope it goes well. And then I’ll think about my future: I’d like to do psychology, because in these years I I am passionate about this topic.”
There is also one of Michelangelo’s students Enrico Dancygier: “I chose the piece by Giuseppe Galasso which analyzes the concept of the cold war. It was the one that inspired me the most even if the ideas on Ungaretti and Pirandello were both interesting. Was I scared? Honestly no. I’m in a phase of ataraxia, I’m very calm.”
Instead he frequents the classic Galileo Olmo Fantini: “I chose the track on Pirandello – he says -. I was able to write about technology and artificial intelligence. There was a good starting point to reflect on the relationship between man and progress. Graduation trip? No, it is difficult to organize the needs of 25 people. But we had a nice trip together and we will always carry this with us.”
