Plans for Bible reading and Latin in Italian schools criticised as ‘retrograde’
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Education minister reveals revamp of national curriculum guidelines and says children must ‘learn to write better’. Bible reading, Latin and learning poetry by heart could return to Italian primary and middle schools as part of a revamp of national curriculum guidelines criticised as “retrograde” and “nostalgic”.
The education minister, Giuseppe Valditara, unveiled the guidelines, which predominantly affect children aged three to 14 and are expected to take effect from the 2026/2027 school year, in an interview with the rightwing newspaper, Il Giornale, saying that children must discover “a taste for reading” and “learn to write better”.
Although he didn’t specify that the Bible would become part of the primary school syllabus, Paola Frassinetti, the education ministry’s undersecretary, told Ansa news agency that Christianity’s sacred text would be present “in some form” owing to it “having inspired numerous works of literature, music and painting and influenced the cultural heritage of many civilisations”.
Latin would be reintroduced as an option in middle schools and history lessons would prioritise Italy, Europe and the western world, “but without ideological prejudice”, Valditara told Il Giornale. Valditara was also in favour of reviving the technique of reciting poetry by heart, “starting with simple texts at the beginning, even nursery rhymes and tongue-twisters”.
Children could then move on to reading more challenging texts, he added, citing classical epics, Greek mythology and even Norse sagas, which some observers have connected with the far-right prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s fascination with the JRR Tolkien fantasy, The Lord of the Rings.
