One hundred days to the school leaving exam

It is one hundred days until the school leaving exam. The countdown to the first written exam, a composition in Italian, started today, 11 March.

This year, the anxiety level is likely to be higher, considering the announced changes which greatly alter the final exam of the school curriculum. There will only be two written exams, the essay is being abolished, and there will be envelopes available to choose the question with which to begin the oral examination.

The Education Ministry has organised the simulations of the two written exams to be done simultaneously, throughout Italy. The historical outline has been abolished from the composition, and the choice has been restricted to three different options: text analysis, a point-by-point text, and critical presentation of current topics. But it is the specialisation exam that sees the biggest changes: the Ministry has decided on joint exams of the main subjects, such as physics and mathematics, for the science specialisation, Greek and Latin, for the classic.

In the meantime, for many students today is a cause for celebration; they are celebrating the beginning of the specific preparation. This is not a heart-felt tradition in these parts, but in many Italian towns, there are genuine pilgrimages.

However, before 19 June, there is another series of simulations to be faces: the Italian exam, on 26 March, and the specialisation exam, on 2 April.