ITS, MIM-Regions agreement on examination commissions, statutory rules and national committee

Valditara: "Building a training chain that gives young people the opportunity to realize their talents"

As part of the reforms envisaged by the PNRR (Mission 4 - component 1 - investment 1.5), thanks to an intense discussion activity animated by a spirit of collaboration and identity of purpose, the Ministry of Education and Merit and the State- Regions and Autonomous Provinces have reached agreement on the first three implementing decrees of law 99/22 on the tertiary system of higher technical education, on the subject of Examination Boards, the Statute and the National Committee, which Minister Giuseppe Valditara has already signed.

Furthermore, still within the development of the tertiary professional training system envisaged by the PNRR, Minister Valditara signed a decree allocating resources for the strengthening of the laboratories of the newly established Higher Technological Institutes "ITS Academy" which have activated at least one training in the year 2022. This is the disbursement of 27.600.000 euros for the laboratories of 14 newly established ITS Foundations. This assignment is part of the maximum investment of 50 million established by DM n. 310 of 2022, which provides for "the allocation of additional resources among the other ITS foundations that have activated at least one training course starting from the year 2022 or later, and in any case by the date of adoption of the further allocation decree, for the purposes of compliance with targets and milestones of the PNRR”.

"We intend to build a training chain that gives young people the opportunity to realize their talents by strengthening the link between the training offer and the productive world", declared the Minister.

Specifically of the three decrees:

  • The first decree defines the composition and functioning of the commission for the evaluation of the final verification tests of the ITS path; establishes the type of tests and the scores assigned at the end of the final assessment; provides for the recognition of credits to facilitate the transition from an ITS path to other ITS paths and to enhance the experiences acquired in other contexts, including the workplace. A new and important element is that, unlike in the past, the student's evaluation will not be exclusively based on the final exam: a part of the score will be attributed on the basis of the evaluation of the entire study program (two-year or three-year). The decree also contains rules dedicated to students with disabilities or specific learning disabilities. Compensatory tools are envisaged for students with SLD, for example the extension of the time allowed for carrying out the test, while for students with disabilities, equivalent verification tests are envisaged, which in any case ensure the outgoing skills of the future professional figure. The rules contained in the decree apply only to those enrolled in the first year of ITS courses starting from the 2023/24 training year.
  • The second decree governs the functioning of the National ITS Academy Committee which will be set up by the Minister. The Committee is the advisory body of the Minister for the development of the tertiary system of higher technological education: for example, it provides proposals for the updating of technological areas and professional figures, indicates general guidelines that will be applied to the three-year regional programming; proposes actions to encourage greater gender inclusion, suggests indications for the development of forms of collaboration between the ITS Academies, for example the establishment of multi-regional and multi-sector campuses. The decree also identifies the state administrations that make up the committee and provides for the opening to external parties.
  • The third decree establishes the minimum standards of the Statute of the ITS Academy Foundations, a fundamental document for the life and functioning of the ITS. It is a scheme of rules which the Foundations can draw inspiration from when defining their individual statutes. The minimum assets that foundations must have in order to operate have been raised, from 50 thousand to 100 thousand euros, which can be further raised in the case of ITS operating in several technological areas, so as to provide greater solidity to the system and better guarantee students. This decree also enhances the role of the school and the headteacher: the latter, in fact, becomes a member by right of the technical-scientific committee. The ultimate goal is to enhance guidance activities for students, facilitating the link between schools and ITS, and improve knowledge of this important training opportunity.

ITS, MIM-Regions agreement on examination commissions, statutory rules and national committee