Page 12 - ELG1705 May Issue 447

NEWS NEWS

Once upon a time in Italy

UK schools urged to target Italian market PON:

after green light is given for funding

By: Claudia Civinini course during the school year Pre-schools, for example,
2017–18 in a country that is can apply for funds of up to
The UK ELT industry heaved part of Erasmus Plus. The UK, €20,000 to run thirty-hour
a sigh of relief after the Italian despite its plans for Brexit, is bilingual or multilingual
ministry of education invited still in the scheme. education programmes.
its own state schools to apply Schools must specify in For primary and secondary
for funding from the latest their application where schools there is up to €45,000
Pon programmes. These are they wish their students to for language courses of thirty,
EU-funded schemes designed study, and this detail can’t sixty or a hundred hours that
to close the educational gap of be changed at a later stage. should take student to B1
students from disadvantaged Students are required to level – the minimum level
backgrounds. In the past, have at least a B1 level in the required to then participate in
several groups of Italian language of their choice and programmes abroad.
high school students have attain B2 or higher by the end Primary schools can also
benefited from these funds of the programme. obtain funding to organise
to study English in the UK, Courses will need to offer one or more thirty-hour The Piano Operativo Nazionale
Ireland and Malta. sixty hours of instruction English courses. Under this, ‘Per la scuola’ (National Operative
Henry Tolley, head of over a three-week period. A the Italian ministry says Programme ‘for schools’), 2014-
business development at language test must be taken at priority must be given to 2020 will consist of just over €3
Trinity College London, the end of the course, either native-speaker teachers, and billion. Before 2014, only four
urged English language abroad or in Italy on students’ the school can employ a non- regions in Italy used to receive
schools in the UK to return, and must be awarded native only if there is no one Pon funds. Now the programme
approach study travel agents by an accredited exam board. else available. has been extended to the whole
and Italian high schools Funding for the programme However, according to country, but with signi cant
about what they have to provides a maximum of EU law, employers cannot differences according to local
offer. In particular, they €45,000 for each group of 15 discriminate on the basis of resources, educational and
should target institutions in students, including language mother tongue rather than socio-economic needs.
the south of Italy, where the certification fees. The closing language proficiency.
lion’s share of the funding date for schools’ applications Regional adult education More developed regions, about 65.6
will go, he said. is 26 May. centres and state schools per cent of the population, will receive
In 2015, Italy provided the Languages are key in many that offer courses for adults € 714,000,000
largest source market for UK of the objectives of the Pon – akin to further education Developing regions, about 5.5 per
English language schools, at 2017 programme, and funding colleges – can register to offer cent of the population, will receive –
25 per cent of the total. is on offer not only for studies foreign language courses over € 193,000,000
Italian high schools can abroad but also for courses two years. Maximum funding Less developed regions, about 29
per cent of the population, will receive
apply to participate in the that strengthen learning for adult education centres € 2,100,000,000
programme, which will allow opportunities in Italian is €50,000, while for state
students to attend a language schools. schools it is €30,000. Data and terminology: Italian Ministry of Education

12 May 2017

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