9.7% of students with a high school diploma in 2022 will find themselves in a situation of "implicit" dropping out, i.e. without the minimum skills necessary to enter the world of work or university, while 12.7% of under-18s do not even graduate from high school because they drop out. These are some of the data from Save the Children's recent report Alla ricerca del tempo perduto (In Search of Lost Time), an analysis of the situation in Italian schools that highlights the actual relationship between inequalities of school provision in Italy and educational outcomes, but also that between the quality of the provision, where it exists, and the learning resilience of socio-economically disadvantaged children and young people.

The publication reveals strong territorial inequalities.

The report also analyses a number of "structural" indicators concerning the school, such as the presence of school and full-time canteen, gymnasium and certificate of viability, highlighting the positive correlation between the quality of provision in terms of facilities and school time and the level of learning achieved by students.

Finally, the report proposes a series of measures to revitalise public schools. "Measures aimed not only at ensuring that schools are brought back on track after two very difficult years, but above all at transforming them, in order to provide them with the necessary tools to meet future educational challenges, and to guarantee all students the right to a quality education".

Alla ricerca del tempo perduto is available on the Save the Children website, in the "Publications" section.
Other materials and news can be found on this website under the topics Dropping out and Educational poverty, accessible from the "Topics" navigation menu.