There are some lights but also many shadows on the situation of theeducation in Italy In the OECD Education at a Glance 2024 report presented today. First of all, in our country the young women with a degree They earn on average the 58% less than the salary of their male peers, a reality that represents the largest gender pay gap in the area OECDAccording to the study, women get better academic results compared to males and in many cases the gap is widening, but the picture changes when they enter the job market. Women aged between 25 to 34 years oldin fact, are less likely to be busy compared to men; the gap is generally wider for those with a higher level of lower education to that upper secondary schoolwhile it is more restricted for those who have achieved a degree. In Italy, only the 36% of young women with an educational qualification below upper secondary level is busywhile the corresponding quota for young people is 72% (the corresponding OECD averages are 47% and of the 72%).
NEETs and education levels
Lights and shadows also on Neetyoung people who neither study nor work, and the education levels in our country: the average share of young people among the 20 to 24 years old who do not have a job, nor attend a course of education and training has decreased from 32% to the 21% between 2016 and 2023. However, especially in the age group between 25 to 29 years oldit is well the 31% of women who do not study and do not work, against the 20% of men. Furthermore, the percentage of young people among the 25 to 34 years old without a higher education qualification in our country has decreased by 6 percentage points since 2016 and has reached the 20% in 2023, but still remains above theOECD (average of 14%). Theparental education has a strong impact on the academic performance of children: in Italy the 69% of those who are over 25 years old and have at least one parent with the degreehas obtained a degree (or equivalent qualification), while the 37% of adults whose parents did not achieve higher education, did not even manage to complete their high schools and get the maturity. Only the 10% of children whose parents did not have a high school diploma earned a college degree.
Education expenditure and teacher salaries
Italy spends for the education The 4% of the GDP against the OECD average which is close to 5%. In our country, theaverage age of the teachers is confirmed to be higher than in other countries, and even if the share of fifty year old professors has slightly decreased in recent years, remains 53%while the OECD average is 37%. As for the salariesgrew in nominal terms by8% for teachers with 15 years of careerbut theinflation has significantly reduced the real value. “It is disheartening to note that Italy, for teachers’ salaries, is always at the bottom of the list of the entire OECD area”, observes Rino DiBetter from the Guild. For the Flc Cgilthe report confirms that “it would be essential to raise compulsory education to at least 18 years old. Instead, the minister Valditare boasts a reform, the technological-professional supply chainwhich provides for the lowering of the secondary route to 4 years».