March 8th 2025
Giorgia Sgueglia
Valditara Reform: Is the Meloni government looking to the future or rewriting the past?
"A nationalist vision" that "risks distorting history and hindering an education open to the global challenges of the 21st century."
On January 14, 2025, the Italian Minister of Education and Merit, Giuseppe Valditara, presented the new National Guidelines for compulsory education. Finalised on the 11th of March 2025, and the reform will come into force by the 2026-2027 school year. While the declared goal of the Fratelli d’Italia party is to “strengthen the cultural identity of italian students,” the emphasis on national history and the reduction of critical international perspectives raise concerns about a possible nationalist bias. One of the major changes is the separation of history and geography in middle school, with a curriculum focused on Western civilization, Christian roots, and Italian history. The intention is to “enhance local cultures and knowledge of local territories,” but in an increasingly interconnected and multicultural society, this choice seems anachronistic.
The first flaw of this approach lies in a historical narrative that focuses solely on Italy and the West, sidelining the networks, contacts, and exchanges that played a crucial role in shaping Italian culture. Just think of the explorations of Marco Polo, which connected Italy with the East—especially China—and inaugurated centuries of exchanges along the Silk Road. These dynamic and ever-expanding relationships facilitated a bilateral flow of knowledge, products, and ideas, enriching Italian culture.
The second flaw is the lack of acknowledgement of Italian and other European powers’ historical responsibilities, particularly the impact that certain Italian and European historical events have had on the development, stability, and evolution of other countries. A prime example is the colonization of Africa during World War II, with colonies in Eritrea, Somalia, Libya, and Ethiopia, and the subsequent decolonization process in the latter half of the 20th century.
Omitting these events from the school curriculum erodes collective memory and undermines education’s core mission: equipping young people with the knowledge and skills to critically analyze and understand the complexities of the world around them. For instance, a curriculum that explains how the colonial partition of Africa—highly influenced by Italy and other Western powers—drew arbitrary borders would help foster critical individuals, aware of the origins of today’s forced migration phenomena, often manipulated by populist rhetoric.
Another controversial aspect of the Valditara reform is the introduction of Bible study. While justified as an attempt to reconnect with Italian roots and culture, this choice raises concerns about the secularity of the Italian state, a fundamental principle enshrined in the Constitution. In an increasingly multi-religious and secular context, public education should guarantee inclusivity, avoiding the dominance of any single religious tradition. The numbers clearly show that foreign-born students in schools are constantly increasing (914,860, accounting for 11.2 percent of the total student population in the 2022/2023 school year), and with them religious and cultural diversity.
To Include the Bible in the curriculum, without an equivalent recognition of other traditions, risks excluding a large portion of Italian students, thus creating a hostile environment. According to Tommaso Martelli, national coordinator of the Italian Students Union (UdS), “this decision appears as a political move in line with the government’s conservative ideology,” justified under the guise of “Italian cultural roots,” which disregards their real complexity and diversity.
At the same time, while religion has been given considerable importance, the Valditara reform has bypassed fundamental issues crucial for the progress of the Italian education system, such as civic and sexual education. In particular, the government has sidelined the previous proposal by the Democratic Party for an emotional education program aimed at developing emotional awareness among young people and preventing gender-based violence, without taking a stance on these issues.
In a historical context marked by gender violence (in 2024, 1.5 million women suffered physical violence, and 1.37 million experienced sexual violence), femicides (97 in 2024), and racist and homophobic attacks, the Italian education system continues to neglect these issues, dismissing them as “gender ideology.” Moreover, according to the 2024 “Rainbow Europe“ report by ILGA-Europe, Italy ranks 36th out of 49 European countries concerning the rights of LGBTQ+ people, with a score of just 25 out of 100. This highlights a situation of significant lag compared to other European countries, emphasizing the need to improve inclusion and support for marginalized communities through education. International studies show that inclusive and comprehensive educational programs reduce social and cultural inequalities while also improving academic outcomes. For instance, the WHO reports that countries with comprehensive sex education programs have seen a 30 percent reduction in teenage pregnancies and a 60 percent decrease in sexually transmitted infections among young people, in addition to improved overall well-being and academic performance. These figures underscore the urgency of what Italian parties like Fratelli d’Italia have often dismissed as “indoctrination”, when in fact, it is essential education on topics like sexual health and gender equality, equipping students with the knowledge to build a more just and conscious society.
In conclusion, the reform proposed by Minister Valditara fits squarely within the vision of a government that, since its inception, has prioritized defending traditions, adopting a conservative and Eurocentric approach, and strengthening Italian cultural identity through a return to historical traditions. While in some European countries, such as Belgium and the Netherlands, historical education is evolving with more attention to colonial responsibility and critical historical thinking, the Valditara reform marginalizes the importance of the “East” in the evolution of national history and culture. Furthermore, it relegates crucial issues such as inclusion, the fight against marginalization, and sexual and emotional awareness to a secondary position, thus hindering the development of the Italian education system.
Finally, the nationalist turn marked by this reform contrasts with the necessary openness in a globalized era that is centered on diversity and progress. These are signs of a narrow and conservative vision that fails to adequately prepare students for future challenges. An effective education system must look forward, not backward, and embrace diversity as a resource, not as an obstacle.