Respect for animals from September will be taught in our classrooms. In the hour of civic education restored by Law with the final approval of the Senate there will also be education to respect nature. By the will of Mrs Paola frassinetti (Fratelli d'Italia) in Article 3, paragraph 2, an amendment has been introduced which reads as follows: “All actions are aimed at nurturing and strengthening respect for people, animals and nature”. With the new school year then, how much has remained on paper– since not obligatory for State and Regions, In Article 5 of Law 189 of 2004 against animal cruelty – it becomes a founding principle of all civic education. An important step for the Anti-vivisection League: “For us it will change a lot. Now – explains Giacomo bottinelli, head of the school– we will have an extra opportunity because we will be able to enter the classrooms thanks also to this Law. Already today we do about 500 interventions a year and we have a website dedicated to teachers. The law is clear and stipulates that the hours of civic education are supplemented by the participation of the Third Sector. Something similar was provided for in Law 189 of 2004 but now a specific space is identified. There will be a number of hours devoted to civic education within which there will also be education to respect animals”.
The latter will not be the only subject covered by the Law passed by the Senate. The foundation of the teaching of civic education will be the Italian Constitution. Pupils should be introduced to the content of the Charter both in primary and second cycle schools to develop skills inspired by the values of responsibility, of legality, participation and solidarity. The legislator on this point was clear and in paragraph 3 of Article 4 he wrote: “Knowledge of the Constitution is among the competences of citizenship that all students, of any education and training, must achieve”. Among the topics that teachers will address will be the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development; fundamental elements of law, with particular regard to labour law; environmental education and training; education in law and law enforcement; education in respect for and enhancement of cultural heritage; basic training in civil protection as well as road, health and welfare education.
The law on civic education also devotes an article to digital knowledge. The measure adopted in the Senate provides some basic skills such as analyzing, comparing and critically assessing the credibility and reliability of data sources, information and digital content; interact through various digital technologies and identify the appropriate digital means and forms of communication for a given context; inform and participate in the public debate through the use of public and private digital services.
