Today sees the start of final exams for more than 500,000 students nationwide. They started at 08.30 with the first test – the same for everyone – testing of the Italian language and critical abilities.
A total of 28,038 classes will be overseen by 14,072 commissions, examining 13,787 external candidates.
The majority of candidates come from high schools, with 266,057 students. They are followed by 172,504 candidates from technical institutes and 87,756 from professional institutes. The exams begin today at 8:30am with the first test, which is the same for everyone.
This initial test assesses proficiency in the Italian language (or the respective language of instruction) and evaluates students’ expressive, logical-linguistic, and critical thinking skills.
Students can choose from various types and themes, with the Ministry providing seven options that cover artistic, literary, historical, philosophical, scientific, technological, economic, and social fields. Each student selects the track that best matches their preparation and interests.
The test may include multiple sections to evaluate different competencies, such as linguistic understanding, expressive ability, logical reasoning, and critical reflection. Students have up to six hours to complete the exam.
Student exempts students from studying Dante
PM Meloni wished students good luck in a reel on social media. ‘Dear graduates, it’s just the beginning of a great adventure: give your best and remember that you are much stronger than even you think. Good luck!”
What is in today’s paper?
ANSA reports that the following are texts proposed in the high school final exams today.
Ungaretti with ‘Pellegrinaggio’ which is part of the collection Allegria is the poem among the tracks proposed to graduates.
The song chosen by the ministry for the 2024 high school diploma is “Pellegrinaggio”, included in the “Life of a man” collection and which is part of the ‘L’allegria’ collection. The poem draws inspiration from Ungaretti’s experience during the First World War. The student is asked to briefly present the content of the poem, describe its metric structure, identify the similarities, write why the poet refers to himself as a ‘man of sorrow’, comment on why, in the final part, the author expresses the desire to survive through the use of an image relevant to the theme of light; finally, reflect on the ways in which literature deals with the drama of war and suffering.
Tech progress
There is also Pirandello among the authors proposed. The text, taken from the novel ‘Quaderni di Serafino Gubbio editore’ from 1925, addresses the theme of technological progress and reflects on the possible effects. The candidate must summarise the content of the passage, identify the thesis supported, comment on some sentences and make a series of reflections.
Social – Imperfection
Another topic addresses the issue of imperfection as a distinctive and valuable element. It comes from the book by Nobel Prize-winning scientist Rita Levi Montalcini, entitled “In Praise of Imperfection“. Working from the passage and their own experiences, knowledge and readings, the student is asked to reflect on what meaning the praise of imperfection can have in contemporary society.
History
A dual-aspect text concerns the theme of the Cold War, starting from an extract from “History of Europe” by the historian, journalist and politician Giuseppe Galasso, calling into question the question of the atomic conflict between opposing blocs.
Philosophy
The peculiar functions of silence and the benefits it provides to communication, the relationship between word, silence and thought are the themes of the passage taken from ‘Rediscovering silence’ by Nicoletta Polla Mattiot. Graduates need to reflect and write on the text.
Social – beauty
The reflection taken from the extract of a text by the jurist and university professor Maria Agostina Cabiddu, published in the Journal of the Italian Association of Constitutionalists, focuses on the “value of the artistic and cultural heritage”. Students are asked, among other things, why, in the author’s opinion, the growing demand for beauty cannot fall into the category of luxury goods.
Communication
The new forms of communication and expression of one’s thoughts, encouraged by digital, which have replaced the paper diary is taken from the book “Profiles, selfies and blogs” by Maurizio Caminito, bibliographer and librarian. Students are asked to reflect on the importance and meaning of the diary in the digital age with the following quote: “The secret diary, intended as a notebook or notebook in which hopes, thoughts, reflections, dreams are noted, strictly linked to personal rereading – observes the author in one passage – no longer exists”.
