







































 

 

 

 

 

“School Never Stops”: Measures and 

Experience in Italian Schools during the 

COVID-19 Lockdown

Marta Pellegrini,
1
 Carla Maltinti

2
 

 
1. University of Florence, Firenze FI, 50121, Italy 

2. Regional School Office of Tuscany, Firenze FI, 50136, Ministry of 

Education, Italy 

Abstract. With the COVID-19 outbreak and the resulting lockdown, Ital-

ian schools have continued to provide education using distance learning 

systems. In this emergency, the primary aim of the Ministry of Education 

was to guarantee each student’s right to education. The expression 
“School Never Stops” (“La Scuola non si ferma”) is a clear response to 

the country’s isolation and a demonstration of the school staff’s com-

mitment. This paper describes Italy’s educational response during the 
lockdown by illustrating the measures undertaken by the Ministry of Ed-

ucation and the initiatives by private and public organizations. The chal-
lenges of distance education during the pandemic emergency and future 

directions for the reopening of schools in September are also examined 

and discussed. 

Best Evid Chin Edu 2020; 5(2):649-663. 

Doi: 10.15354/bece.20.or021. 

How to Cite: Pellegrini, M., Maltinti, C. (2020) “School never stops”: Measures and 

experience in Italian schools during the COVID-19 lockdown. Best Evid Chin Edu, 

5(2):649-663. 

Keywords: Distance Education; COVID-19; School Never Stops; Lockdown; 

School Lockdown Measures.

 
 

 

About the Author: Carla Maltinti, Dr., Regional School Office of Tuscany, Firenze FI, 50136, Ministry of Educa-
tion, Italy. Email: carla.maltinti@posta.istruzione.it 

Correspondence to: Marta Pellegrini, PhD, Department of Education, Languages, Intercultures, Literatures and 

Psychology, University of Florence, Via Laura, 48, 50121 Firenze FI, Italy. Email: marta.pellegrini@unifi.it 

Conflict of Interests: None. 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 650 

HE end of January, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the 

COVID-19 outbreak constituted a Public Health Emergency of International 

Concern, reporting 7,818 confirmed cases worldwide with the highest number of 

cases in China (WHO, 2020a). Given the wide and rapid spread of the virus and its se-

verity, in March the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic. As we know, Italy was one 

of the first countries after China where the number of cases increased rapidly from Feb-

ruary. The Italian government took immediate measures to halt the spread of the virus, 

starting from the most affected regions. On February 23, some municipalities in Lom-

bardy and Veneto have declared ‘red zones and were subjected to quarantine to reduce 

the spread of the virus outside these regions. After the initial measures that related only 

to specific areas in the country, the Ministerial Decree (DPCM) of March 4 established 

measures at the national level that involved the suspension of public events, the closure 

of schools and universities, and the recommendation to implement smart working where 

possible. Measures to isolate affected areas and limit the movement of people were no 

longer effective in a country where the number of cases and deaths had risen exponen-

tially within a few weeks. Furthermore, the percentage of patients in intensive care re-

ported daily in early March rose consistently, and by March 11, Italy had announced 

12,462 cases and 827 deaths (Remuzzi & Remuzzi, 2020).  

In this scenario, the Ministry of Education coined the expression “School Nev-

er Stops” (“La Scuola non si ferma”) in response to the entire country’s isolation and 

the measures taken to continually providing students with online instruction. As rapidly 

as possible, school principals and teachers implemented distance learning using differ-

ent systems to deal with the emergency and the suspension of face-to-face instruction. 

Restructuring lessons, creating virtual classes, and managing synchronous and asyn-

chronous communication systems was challenging for teachers and students. In April, 

further measures by the Ministry of Education together with the support of several edu-

cational and technological organizations helped improve and systematize online teach-

ing and learning. 

This paper aims to describe Italy’s educational response during the early 

months of the outbreak and to discuss issues concerning distance learning during this 

period of emergency. Future guidelines for the reopening of schools in September – 

recently published by the Ministry – are also examined and discussed. 

Measures and Initiatives of the Ministry of Education 

The protection of citizens’ health is recognized by the Italian Constitution as a funda-

mental right since health represents the premise for the exercise of all the other rights 

that contribute to the full development of the human person (Art. 32 of the Italian Con-

stitution). The early measures of the Ministry of Education at the beginning of February 

concerned the diffusion of the circulars prepared by the Ministry of Health through the 

Regional School Offices (USR). They contained the "Indications for the management of 

students and teachers returning or leaving to affected areas of China" (Circular of the 

Ministry of Health n. 113/2020). To limit the spread of the outbreak, the Decree-Law of 

February 23 suspended school trips in Italy and abroad and, later, the DPCM of March 

T 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 651 

4 declared the closure of schools and authorized distance teaching activities in schools 

and universities. 

At the same time, a task force was set up at the Ministry of Education to man-

age the pandemic emergency; the group was composed by delegates of the Civil Protec-

tion, pediatricians, local delegates of Ministry of Education, representatives of parents 

and students associations as well as public and private organizations. 

As regards the management of the epidemiological situation, it was recom-

mended referring only to information confirmed by official sources and information 

published by the Ministry of Education. A website page was opened by the Ministry of 

Education in which useful information was constantly updated for schools, universities, 

and institutions of advanced artistic, musical, and choreatic education. This webpage – 

still active – is divided into four sections: (i) distance learning in which indications and 

resources to support schools are published; (ii) FAQ in which the answers to the most 

frequently asked questions are available; (iii) measures and rules in which the measures 

and decrees adopted are available; (iv) links to other useful websites. 

Distance Education in Italian Schools 

In the last twenty years the measures adopted by Ministry of Education regarding ICT 

have been of different types and have involved different sectors: (i) technological 

equipment for schools; (ii) staff training in ICT; (iii) support of students at risk of drop 

out, (Ministerial Decree n. 55/2002; Ministerial Decree n. 851/2015). Especially two 

school experiences in place in Italy were important to base distance learning during the 

lockdown. The School in Hospital that guarantees education to hospitalized pupils and 

youths through a variety of systems including distance learning, and the Rural School 

project, that involves about 200 schools located in the Italian islands or mountain mu-

nicipalities. In these isolated contexts, technology has always been central to maintain 

relationships between teachers and students and to provide education through distance 

learning at home.  

Despite these actions and experiences, the Italian school was not prepared for 

such a radical change requested by the COVID-19 that ‘has thrown’ schools into the 

dimension of online education systems, with their teachers and families.  

In the early weeks of the lockdown, teachers undertook a variety of initiatives, 

such as the transmission of materials by e-mail or class electronic register, the record of 

video lessons, and the use of distance education platforms activated by their schools, the 

contact with students via mobile phone. This operation involved over 8 million students, 

thus their families, and one million workers including school principals, class teachers, 

support teachers, and educational assistants. The tests for this emergency teaching had 

never been planned or hypothesized; while teachers and students know the escape 

routes in case of fire in the school and know where to take shelter in the event of an 

earthquake, nobody was prepared to teach and learn during a pandemic crisis or had 

previous experience to base teaching activities. Suggestions to deal with distance learn-

ing and a wide range of online training courses for teachers were promptly made avail-

able by the Ministry of Education. Furthermore, the Italian government developed 

https://www.istruzione.it/coronavirus/index.html


Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 652 

measures to allow parents to take time off from work during school closure and, at the 

same time, provided funding to purchase devices for the Internet connection, tablets, 

and laptops (DPCM of March 11). 

The Note of the Ministry of Education of March 17 provided schools with con-

crete suggestions to teach using online educational platforms. Conscious that nothing 

could fully replace face-to-face education, the aim was to design a learning environment 

to be lived by students and teachers and to be reshaped if needed. The document also 

suggested privileging as far as a possible virtual classroom to conduct and attend online 

classes. A specific section of the document covered activities for children with disabili-

ties, linguistic and/or socio-economic difficulties, at the hospital or in prison schooling. 

A mini-guide was provided to teachers on April 6 as methodological and prac-

tical support to help students to face the emergency. One of the main objectives was to 

give pupils a sense of security – without sweetening the reality – providing them with 

simple and clear information to protect their rights – recognized by the UN Convention 

of 1989 – and to stimulate their ability to give original and innovative answers to situa-

tions of crisis. The guide developed by the Ministry of Education contains suggestions 

of activities to do with students concerning the principles of equality, solidarity, well-

being, information, listening, and personality development. The followings are relevant 

statements from the guide: (i) reassuring children and youths without an Internet con-

nection or digital devices that State is started to provide them; (ii) teachers should con-

tact by phone students who cannot follow distance education and invite classmates to 

share their notes with them; (ii) engaging everyone in educational activities that act as a 

stimulus and encouragement; (iii) video calling children and youths with disabilities 

involving the whole class or part of it and the whole teaching team in order to give en-

couraging messages and make families and children feel part of the school; (iv) starting 

educational activities from telling a story, listening to music, or creating small artifacts; 

(v) reflecting with children and youths on the new educational experience according to 

their age and their level of awareness; (vi) proposing to write letters and postcards to 

grandparents, elderly and lonely people, children in group homes; (vii) proposing the 

hour of listening, that is one hour of connection per week to listening to the doubts and 

fears of children and youths; (viii) promoting physical education, through video tutori-

als, following the motto of ‘Relaxing everyone, nobody excluded’; (ix) proposing musi-

cal pieces to listen, sing, play and then, make a narration about students’ emotions. 

Since COVID-19 does not only concern health but is a social, economic, and 

cultural crisis, the document made clear the need to guarantee students the right to play, 

to devote themselves to creative, supportive, awareness-raising, and mutual aid activi-

ties.  

Distance Education for Inclusion 

As known by the scientific community, Italy is one of the first countries that adopted 

the model of full inclusion abolishing special classes and schools in 1977. During the 

COVID-19 lockdown, particular attention was paid to students with special educational 

needs and their inclusion in online distance learning. As indicated in the Note of the 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 653 

Ministry of March 17 “the suspension of teaching should not interrupt as far as possible 

the inclusion process”. The Ministry of Education suggested supporting teachers to 

maintain interactions with the pupils with disabilities and between to promote the rela-

tionship between the pupil and the other class teachers. Furthermore, the document sug-

gested being in contact with the family and to prepare personalized materials for the 

student and to periodically evaluate the implementation of the Individualized Education 

Plan.  

For students with other special needs, such as pupils with linguistic and/or so-

cio-economic difficulties, principals had to assign them – on loan for free use – any 

devices of school property or request them to the Ministry of Education. The right of 

education had also to be guaranteed to hospitalized pupils and youths (School in Hospi-

tal). 

The main objective of the web inclusion of all children was to mitigate the po-

tential social isolation connected to the lockdown. For this purpose, the website of the 

Ministry of Education had been expanded with a section called ‘inclusion via the web’ 

(https://www.istruzione.it/coronavirus/didattica-a-distanza_inclusione-via-web.html). It 

is designed to support the work of principals, teachers, and school staff in providing 

distance education opportunities to students with special needs. In this section of the 

website Ministry measures, educational experiences, and webinars in collaboration with 

the Institute for Educational Technologies of National Research Council (ITD-CNR) 

were published. Furthermore, online platforms for distance education were made avail-

able free of charge and thanks to the contributions of private organizations that re-

sponded to the call launched by the Ministry of Education. 

Resources for Distance Learning 

In the implementation of the so-called ‘Cura Italia’ (Care Italy) Decree-Law (Decree-

Law n. 18/2020), the economic resources were allocated and distributed very quickly 

among schools to enhance distance education. Of the total amount of 85 million euros, 

10 million were allocated to the use of e-learning platforms and to immediately increase 

or equip schools with digital tools; 70 million were used to purchase digital devices to 

be assigned on loan for free use to the students with low socioeconomic status; the re-

maining 5 million were invested in school staff’s training. The assignment of digital 

devices (for 70% of the amount) was based on the Pisa Index of Economic, Social and 

Cultural Status (ESCS-OECD) that allowed to identify areas of disadvantaged families 

and in which digital devices are less widespread. Furthermore, the Ministerial Decree n. 

187 of March 26 established the procedures to assign to schools the 1,000 computer 

technicians, who are giving support to teachers in distance learning.  

An additional amount of 80 million euros were then provided to primary and 

middle schools through the PON (Programma Operativo Nazionale) call – funds from 

the European Structural Funds – for the purchase of computers, tablets, and devices for 

the Internet connection. The aim was to guarantee everyone access to distance educa-

tion. Funds were also provided to the Provincial Centers for Adult Education (CPIA), 

prison schooling, and schools in hospitals. 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 654 

To support schools and families the Ministry of Digital Technology and Digiti-

zation, with the technical support of the Agency for Digital Italy promoted the ‘Digital 

Solidarity’ project. It is solidarity collaboration between the public and private sectors 

to facilitate smart working, education, well-being, and, therefore, distance communica-

tion. Companies, associations, and other organizations have provided free digital ser-

vices to limit economic damage to families, citizens, and businesses. The goal was also 

to improve the lives of citizens forced to stay at home and reduce social contacts and 

travel as much as possible, even within cities, to protect themselves and others from 

contagion. Many private and public organizations showed great solidarity towards 

schools and families supporting the growth of a school community. 

Additional Initiatives to Implement Distance Educa-

tion 

The COVID-19 emergency forced millions of teachers and students to adopt distance 

learning using digital technologies. However, they were aware that these technologies 

would not reach the entire school population. Not only has the digital divide concerning 

those who do not have the devices in Italy, but even more those who are unable to use 

them. To deal with these issues the Ministry of Education promoted collaborations with 

radio and State television as well as publishing houses and training agencies to offer 

additional training and educational opportunities besides online distance education. 

Learning Through Radio and Television 

The health emergency and the requests for interpersonal distancing had given value to 

the role of the Italian State Television (Rai) for many reasons: ease of use; a powerful 

way to overcome the digital divide; the accessibility throughout the country without the 

need of broadband Wi-Fi internet connection; and the cultural, historical, and artistic 

richness of the Rai archives. In Italy over 97% of family units have the television and 

watching television may reinforce family relationships (CENSIS, 2018).  

According to the agreement between the Ministry of Education and the Rai a 

wide range of television channels and programs were dedicated to education. In contrast 

with distance education, which is mainly developed online, Rai has made available to 

the schools, families, and students of all ages educational contents and lessons usable 

with every device. 

A vast repository of products and educational programs was offered on Rai 

Cultura (which includes Rai Scuola, Rai Storia, Rai3), Rai Ragazzi, and RaiPlay. 

Among the various initiatives promoted, ‘La Scuola in Tv’ provided students with les-

sons on many subjects (e.g., English, mathematics, history, literature, art, Greek, Latin) 

taught by expert teachers identified by the Ministry of Education. This service also in-

cludes programs dedicated to adult education (e.g. adults participating in prison school-

ing) as well as programs channels to support students in preparing the secondary school 

State Exam. Even the radio – Maturadio – offered over 250 educational podcasts to stu-

dents who are going to take the State Exam.  



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 655 

Unexpected Professional Development 

Principals, teachers, and administrative offices had no breaks in delivering educational 

services and in being committed to improving their professional skills especially related 

to technology. In response to the need to be up to the new task, free training offers were 

rapidly promoted by institutions, private companies, and publishing houses. 

The National Institute for Documentation, Innovation, and Educational Re-

search (INDIRE) has provided hundreds of free webinars on good practices to support 

innovation processes as well as video tutorials for the use of distance education plat-

forms differentiated by the level of skills in collaboration with ‘eTwinning’ – a commu-

nity for schools in Europe. Many other organizations (e.g., USRs, publishing houses, 

ITD-CNR, scientific and educational societies) had made available training materials 

and training opportunities for teachers.   

The offer of training courses was based on the specific need of the schools; 

when schools were well technology equipped the training offer was directed to contents 

and educational methods; when schools had teachers with a low level of digital skills 

the training offer was focused on the technical aspects of the use of the distance learn-

ing platforms. The COVID-19 emergency also required significant sensitive and rela-

tional resources; therefore webinars on the management of anxiety were widely attend-

ed by teachers.  

The most used e-learning platforms were the ones created specifically for 

schools and listed by the Ministry of Education as compliant with the regulations (EU 

Regulation 2016/679): G-Suite for education (Google), Office 365 Education A1 (Mi-

crosoft), WeSchool (Telecom Italia Mobile). To use them, many teachers were engaged 

in many hours of detailed study with the support of the school digital animator. This 

professional and moral commitment is demonstrated by over 35 thousand accesses to 

the website the Ministry of Education on the first day of distance education.  

As a result of both the COVID-19 pandemic and everyone’s commitment to the 

digital skills of citizens – in particular of teachers – have been improved and strength-

ened. 

Distance Education: Challenges during the COVID-19 

Lockdown 

Since the closure of schools and universities on March 5, the effort of principals and 

teachers was to provide instruction with online systems, as required by the DPCM of 

March 4. In the space of a few days, teachers, students, and their families were ‘thrown’ 

into a new reality and an approach to schooling characterized by virtual relationships 

instead of face-to-face ones. As a consequence of the emergency, a huge social change 

put into question the traditional teaching and learning process and demanded that teach-

ers and parents design and manage online education at home. Since the COVID-19 cri-

sis, online learning is considered “a critical lifeline for education” (Organization for 

Economic Cooperation and Development, 2020a, p. 1).  



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 656 

This rapid change was carried out within a few weeks, not without difficulties 

and issues mainly related to school organization, social inequalities, and the teachers’ 

knowledge and skills in using online platforms. The challenges faced by Italy were sim-

ilar to those all over the world (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Develop-

ment, 2020b). 

Organizing Online Teaching and Learning 

One of the first challenges was to completely change the organizational rules and mod-

els for providing education. During the initial weeks, assignments, and homework via 

email or WhatsApp were the most common ways of connecting with students. This was 

done to maintain an active relationship between teachers and students; in other words, a 

way to show that schools were not stopping. Some schools started directly with online 

lessons through platforms already familiar to principals and teachers, such as Microsoft 

Teams, Zoom, and G Suite. In the beginning, each school used whatever they already 

knew how to use. As a consequence, the methods for continuing school activities varied 

considerably between schools. As quickly as possible, the Ministry of Education identi-

fied platforms to choose from and provided guidelines for online education – as ex-

plained in the previous paragraph. 

Another organizational challenge emerged especially with students in primary 

schools, due to their low level of autonomy and self-control. The role of parents during 

the lockdown has been extremely important especially in primary schools; due to the 

lack of teacher guidance in the school context, many parents supported their children in 

studying and supervised them during the synchronous lessons. Many people worked 

from home during the lockdown, meaning that parents often had to work from home 

using their personal computers and at the same time take care of their children and sup-

port them studying.  

On the one hand, this situation fostered a closer relationship between teachers 

and parents and a further integration between school education and family education, as 

happened also in China (Zhou & Li, 2020). On the other hand, supporting children in 

school activities demanded that parents manage the time devoted to work and their chil-

dren and, for many families, access to the one device in their house. Furthermore, with 

the transition to phase two that happened a few days ago, other issues emerged since 

many people went back to work. As mentioned by Locatelli and Mincu (2020) phase 

two “may create even greater difficulties for families where parents need to go back to 

work and cannot afford to pay someone to take care of their children, who must stay at 

home because of the school closures”.  

Social Inequality and the Digital Divide 

These organizational issues are linked to another wider issue, namely social inequality 

throughout the country. The crisis generated by the COVID-19 outbreak had a signifi-

cant impact during these months on disadvantaged families and intensified existing ine-

qualities (Locatelli & Mincu, 2020). Knowing the parents’ prominent role in providing 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 657 

support in education during this period of lockdown, children living in families with a 

high level of education had better opportunities to cope with online learning compared 

to vulnerable and poor families. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and De-

velopment (OECD, 2016) found that in Italy, 27.7% of adults are at or below level 1 in 

literacy and 31.7% in numeracy. As a consequence, many parents might not have suffi-

cient skills to give their children the necessary educational support. 

A recent report by Save the Children on poverty in Italy showed a huge in-

crease in the level of poverty of children (aged 0-17) from 2008 to 2018 (Caderna, 

2019). In 2008, 3.7% of children were in poverty, while in 2018 the percentage more 

than tripled (12.5%), with a clear disparity between the North and South of Italy – 45% 

of the children in poverty in 2018 lived in the South. Furthermore, the index of cultural 

deprivation of children ages 6-17 – calculated considering the access to cultural activi-

ties, such as theater, cinema, museum, and concerts – showed that 7 children out of 10 

are considered ‘deprived’. The ISTAT data (2020) suggests that these children might be 

the ones who suffered the most during the lockdown and that inequalities may grow due 

to the COVID-19 crisis. 

Inequality was inevitably intensified during the lockdown due to the introduc-

tion of distance learning systems to provide students with lessons at home. The ISTAT 

data (2020) showed that in 2019, 33.8% of Italian families had no computer or tablet. 

The percentage dropped to 14.3% when only families with at least one child were con-

sidered. 22.2% of families in Italy have a computer or a tablet for each family member. 

Students aged 6-17 often have low digital skills; only 30.2% of children have high digi-

tal skills, resulting in a low level of autonomy to study using a computer. Furthermore, 

23.9% of Italian families do not have access to the Internet at home and 41.9% of chil-

dren live in overcrowded housing, two problems that together reduce the children’s pos-

sibility of studying in a quiet place using online systems. 

It is estimated that 6.7 million students were reached by distance learning dur-

ing the lockdown, while 1.6 million students were excluded (Cittadinanza Attiva, 2020). 

To limit the rise of inequalities between advantaged and disadvantaged people and to 

make distance learning possible throughout Italy, at the end of March the Ministry of 

Education allocated funds to purchase digital devices in order “not to leave anyone be-

hind”, quoting Lucia Azzolina, Minister of Education. 

The effects of this situation were particularly damaging for the most vulnerable 

students, including students with disabilities. Many teachers and principals believe that 

the greatest difficulty has been developing a system capable of giving the necessary 

attention to pupils with disabilities, to adapt and personalize contents and educational 

strategies through distance learning (Fundaro, 2020). Despite the inevitable difficulties 

in providing students with personalized instruction through online systems, many initia-

tives were promoted by the Ministry of Education, private associations, and publishers 

to support teachers and families during the lockdown – as described in the previous par-

agraph. 

Teachers’ Knowledge and Skills in Distance Learning 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 658 

One of the first issues raised by the COVID-19 crisis was the capability of teachers to 

provide distance learning. According to the TALIS 2018 report (OECD, 2020c), Italy is 

below the OECD average for the level of ICT usage during class lessons – 47% of 

teachers answered that they allow students to frequently use ICT during lessons. Re-

garding teacher professional development, 52% of teachers reported that they have at-

tended some kind of training on ICT, 36% felt sufficiently skilled to use ICT in teach-

ing after completing their training. Furthermore, the PISA 2018 data (OECD, 2020a) 

showed that 50% of the principals believed that teachers in their school have the neces-

sary technical and pedagogical skills to integrate digital devices in their teaching. Fur-

ther data published by the European Commission in 2019 and WeSchool showed a 

worse scenario regarding professional development on ICT; only 20% of teachers have 

attended digital literacy training courses, 20% can teach remotely, 40% would like to 

learn to do it, and the remaining 40% are against it (Pasta, 2020).  

These data revealed that Italian schools and teachers were not fully prepared 

for the shift from face-to-face instruction to distance learning that occurred due to the 

COVID-19 outbreak. Nevertheless, a huge change was achieved in the first months of 

the lockdown thanks to the commitment of principals and teachers and free professional 

development initiatives. Teachers’ efforts were recognized by public authorities, fami-

lies, and more in general by society as a whole, and their efforts, like those of healthcare 

personnel, are uncontested throughout the country. 

As regards teacher professional development, in the first weeks of the school 

closures the need to know and use the various online systems was particularly high-

lighted. Later on, more attention was given to creating digital content and adapting face-

to-face instruction to the online way of delivering education (Caponata et al., 2020). As 

mentioned in the previous paragraph, a prominent role was played by the INDIRE, 

which provided teachers with first-hand support on online learning systems, and later 

webinars on topics related to teaching and learning strategies, evaluation, and more in 

general to distance learning. These initiatives were essential in addressing the emergen-

cy, however further "suitable measures will have to be adopted [at the Ministry level] to 

provide all teachers with the necessary skills to deal with the digital transformation 

which has been accelerated by this emergency" (Locatelli & Mincu, 2020). 

Plan for the Reopening of Schools 

As we approach the end of the school year in mid-June, the major concern for people 

involved in schools – the Ministry, principals and teachers, parents and students, experts, 

and researchers – regards the conditions under which schools will start in September. 

Although the decision partially depends on how the outbreak develops during summer, 

the Ministry of Education is working to provide guidelines for the new school year. The 

question from many experts and teachers is: on what basis will the Ministry of Educa-

tion make decisions on how to reopen schools? 

To answer this question, it would be important to know what worked and what 

did not, based on the data that the Ministry should have been collected during these 

months. A rigorous evolution would have not been feasible in a period of emergency, 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 659 

during which the aim was to provide education and to continue the relationship between 

teachers and students. However, data on the opinions of teachers, students, and parents 

on distance education would have helped to effectively design the reopening of schools 

in September.  

In Italy, few data were collected during this first attempt at distance learning 

and no investigations regarding the implementation of distance learning were launched 

at the central level of the Ministry of Education. Data were collected by the USR of 

each Region, but only some of them published the results on their websites. An investi-

gation ‘Youth and Quarantine’ promoted by the Di.Te. National Association (Technol-

ogy addictions, Gap, Cyberbullying) and Skuola.net collected data on the opinions of 

students, parents, and teachers on distance learning through a survey. Although the ini-

tiative is certainly valuable, it did not provide a picture of the entire country. Participa-

tion was voluntary, with 1,245 responses, which represent a few data considering that 

there are about 8 million students in Italy. As a consequence of the lack of a centrally 

promoted investigation, we do not have a clear and exhaustive picture of what worked 

and what should be improved in reopening schools. 

A positive initiative by the Ministry of Education to restart schools in Septem-

ber was to collect best practices in a dedicated section of its website and its social net-

work pages. Experiences, stories, and examples of distance learning in Italian schools 

were collected and shared as a way to animate the narrative of best practices, to bring 

together educational institutions, and to show that the school wanted to move forward, 

even in such a difficult and unpredictable time. 

 A few days ago, on May 28, the Ministry of Education published the guide-

lines for school reopening in September which take into account the recommendations 

of the WHO (2020b). With this document, the Ministry proposed to start the new school 

year mainly using face-to-face education. According to the guidelines, it will be neces-

sary to observe interpersonal distancing and hygiene requirements by wearing a mask, 

differentiating the times of entry and exit of students, and reorganizing the classroom 

space, such as the arrangement of the desks and furniture. Interpersonal distancing is 

more difficult to observe in preschool and kindergarten. For this reason, organizational 

and personnel precautions will be required, e.g. disinfecting regularly the surfaces, 

washing hands, and reducing the number of pupils present in each class at the same 

time. 

Each school may decide to alternate face-to-face education and distance learn-

ing based on the spaces available and the age of the students. Primary schools should 

privilege face-to-face lessons, while middle and secondary schools may propose the use 

of distance learning systems for part of the educational time to reduce the number of 

pupils in the school environment. The recommendation is to use school outdoor facili-

ties for physical activities, breaks, and lessons when possible (Council of Ministers and 

Technical Scientific Committee of May 28). 

Conclusions 



Pellegrini & Maltinti. Measures and Experiences in Italian Schools during the COVID-19 Lockdown. 

Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 660 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers, principals and families showed a great 

commitment to continuing to provide students with the education, thus responding to 

the ‘Schools Never Stops’ principle put forward by the Ministry of Education. In some 

cases, despite a few digital resources and skills, they tried to guarantee each student’s 

right to education, also through the use of additional resources (e.g., television chan-

nels). 

In a few months, the Ministry of Education, with the support of other organiza-

tions, provided professional development to teachers and technological devices to stu-

dents, accelerating the integration of technology in the teaching and learning process. 

However – as discussed in the article – there is an urgent need to overcome the difficul-

ties and challenges faced during these past months in time for the reopening of schools. 

Among the most critical issues discussed in this paper, it is worth mentioning social 

inequalities exacerbated by the lockdown and the preparedness of school staff in the 

redesign of educational strategies and contents for distance learning. This new way of 

teaching introduced during the lockdown has increased the difference in students’ op-

portunity to learn in Italy worldwide. Students with disabilities, with a low socioeco-

nomic status as well as students with no technological equipment or an Internet connec-

tion, were the ones who suffered the most during this period for the low access and par-

ticipation in distance learning. This issue should be taken into account in effectively 

designing the reopening of schools in September; these students need the adequate sup-

port they did not receive during more than three months of lockdown by their teachers 

or parents. Italy may look at the initiatives for school reopening announced by other 

countries that are facing the COVID-19 crisis, such as the Netherlands and the UK that 

have planned to provide the most needier students with tutoring by an adult (Slavin, 

2020a; 2020b). Tutoring – recognized by many international reviews of research as the 

most effective practice with struggling students (Inns et al., 2020; Pellegrini et al., 2020) 

– could accelerate the learning of students who did not participate in online learning or 

did not improve their learning during the lockdown due to different reasons.  

Furthermore, there is the need to invest in teacher professional development to 

improve their competencies in using online educational tools, and more in general tech-

nology to make sure to provide students with adequate resources, contents, and strate-

gies in online, face-to-face, or blended learning in September. 

 For the reopening of schools in September, the Ministry of Education has es-

tablished a Committee of Experts to support the Ministry in making decisions and to 

provide advice about innovations to be implemented in schools. According to the Min-

istry’s course of action for school reopening (latest plan dated May 28), face-to-face 

education will be privileged since the school is, as recognized by the document, the 

context in which each child has the opportunity to properly grow and develop. The Min-

istry guidelines of May 28 are not final and will be updated in the following weeks to 

provide a clear guideline for school reopening in September. 

 

 

 



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Vol.5, No. 2, 2020 661 

 

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Accepted: 02 July 2020 

 

 


	OriginalArticle-MartaPellegrini-BECE_title_15July2020
	OriginalArticle-MartaPellegrini-BECE_Maintext15July2020

