The Lower House on Thursday gave
final approval to the government's controversial 'Good School'
reform, sparking fresh protests against the flagship package,
one of Premier Matteo Renzi's signature revamps.
Renzi, whose wife is a high-school teacher of Italian and
Latin, celebrated on Twitter, saying: "One hundred thousand
hirings, more merit, more autonomy #thegoodschool is the law".
The government has marched the reform through parliament
despite strident protests from all of the nation's teachers'
unions.
The bill, which injects four billion euros into the school
sector, passed into law with 227 votes in favour, 173
against and four abstentions.
A session in the House before the vote had to be suspended
when the Northern League displayed banners reading "hands off
children" and the party's whip Massimiliano Fedriga was ejected
from the floor of the assembly.
Five rebel members of Premier Matteo Renzi's centre-left
Democratic Party (PD) were among the lawmakers to vote against,
said party dissenter Alfredo D'Attorre.
Another 39 PD MPs, including former party leader Pier
Luigi Bersani, former PD House whip Roberto Speranza and ex-PD
chairman Gianni Cuperlo, did not take part in the vote,
D'Attorre said.
Among other things, the law beefs up powers for
school principals and will see around 100,000 school teachers
currently employed on temporary contracts get permanent
contracts.
The reform has come under intense fire from education
unions, opposition parties and a minority within the PD.
The package has been criticised for allegedly paving the
away for possible nepotism by boosting principals' powers and
for leaving many temporary teachers out of the permanent hires.
As well as head teachers allegedly becoming 'little
Duces', unions are against tenure being removed with the
prospect of being moved far from one's post; and students and
families getting to rate teachers' performance.
Education Minister Stefania Giannini said the approval was
only the beginning of a fresh start for the sector.
"This is not a final act, but the initial act of the
school take a new role at the centre of attention," she said.
"No law is perfect; in the event we can correct it," she
said.
"We've put four billion euros of fresh resources into
state schools and we've established a principle of responsible
autonomy," said Giannini.
Opponents said they would continue to protest the reform
package.
Students promised an autumn "dense with activism" against
the package.
"We cannot allow the state school system to be destroyed
and dismantled piece by piece," the national spokesman of the
Network of middle school students Alberto Irone said.
"Like many other points of reference within the school
community, we have been contesting the provision and putting
forward our proposals since last September, without being
listened to in the slightest," he continued.
"Students will not accept a school that is run like a firm,
antidemocratic, privatised and exclusive rather than inclusive.
We will not stop until schools are truly good," Irone concluded.
He was echoed by Rino Di Meglio, national coordinator of
the Teachers' Guild.
"The reform approved by the Lower Chamber today is a reform
against education imposed arrogantly by a single party that has
only pretended to listen, when in reality for months it has
remained deaf to the unanimous chorus of protests raised by the
entire school community," he said, promising a "tumultuous"
start to the new school year in the autumn.
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