Estudio a nivel de Red

The evaluation of the administrative aspects of the national education system has always existed. INVALSI was instituted just in 1999 and, in year 2003, Law 53/2003 established the intention to institute the Servizio nazionale di valutazione of the educational system, which has been definitively set up through Legislative Decree no. 286/2004.

Evaluation at national level for pre-primary, primary and secondary education

Law Decree no. 258 of 20 July 1999 has transformed the European Centre of Education (CEDE) into National Institute for the Evaluation of the Educational System (INVALSI), which has been completely re-organized through Legislative Decree no. 286 of 2004. Art. 1 establishes the Servizio nazionale di valutazione of the education and training system, which aim is to evaluate the efficiency and quality of the education system at national level. As far as the sistema di istruzione e formazione professionale is concerned, this evaluation only regards the standard level of performance and is carried out together with other actors involved in the evaluation, at national level, of policies related to the human resources sector. Many are the institutions involved in the achievement of the above-mentioned results: INVALSI, schools and institutions providing education and training, Regions, Provinces, Municipalities. These institutions work, within their own competences, by coordinating their own activities and serv- ices and by stimulating the creation of procedures aimed at the data and information exchange concerning both education and vocational education and training systems.

Art. 2 defines INVALSI as a public research body with legal personality regulated by public law and autonomy as far as administration, book-keeping, issuing of regulations as well as management of assets and financial resources are concerned. INVALSI is submitted to the supervision of the MIUR, which issues its directives, at least every three years, establishing strategic priorities that have to be taken into account by the INVALSI in order to plan its subsequent activities. As the education system is concerned, the Ministry issues a Directive, while for what concerns the sistema di istruzione e formazione professionale, the Ministry issues

specific guidelines drawn up in collaboration with the Conferenza unificata Stato/Regioni and the Ministry of labour and welfare.

Art. 3 describes the commitments of INVALSI, which can be summed up as follows: • To assess students’ skills and abilities and the overall quality of teaching offered by the

institutes providing education and training;

• To organize and manage national tests included in the national final exams organised at the end of primo ciclo and secondo ciclo of education. Tests are at the choice of the Minister of education;

• To carry out research activities within its commitments; • To study drop–out and school failure phenomena;

• To carry out specific initiatives to improve the participation of Italy in European and local research projects within the educational field;

• To assist administration at regional, local and school level for the realization of autonomous self-assessment initiatives;

• To carry out training activities for teaching and school managing staff related to assess- ment procedures and self-assessment.

Art. 4 establishes that the Institute is made up of the following bodies:

• Chairman, appointed through a Decree of the President of the Republic by the Council of Ministers on proposal of the Minister of Education. The office has a duration of three years which it can be extended for other three years;

• The board of governors, made up of the Chairman and 6 members (3 of them are appointed by the MIUR, 1 by the Minister of Labour and 2 appointed by the Chairman of the Conferenza unificata Stato/Regioni). The office has a duration of three years which can be extended for other three years. The board has the task of approving the annual programme, deliberating the budget and the final balance; establishing management policies; appointing of the Director of the Institute and his wages and assessing his work. The Director is responsible for the enforcement of the programme and deliberations issued by the Board of governors; he has the task of preparing the budget and the final balance; organising the work of the offices and providing staff management; signing con- tracts; the directors works under a private law contract.

According to art. 9, INVALSI shall provide for an internal regulation for the organisation and administration, accounting and finance. Following articles define the rules for the enrol- ment of the staff, which cannot count more than 10 people already employed both in pub- lic and education sector and not more than 10 experts in the education field.

Evaluation at national level for university higher education

The deep changes of the university system and, in particular, the wider teaching autonomy and the new curricular model require a better educational offer and curricula that are more in keeping with the society demand and the labour market; furthermore, the necessity to guarantee fair competitive processes and the comparison among universities required a rede- finition of the institutional bodies for the evaluation of university education. In fact, Law no. 370 of 19 October 1999 outlined the new evaluation system; it defined the role and func-

tions of two organisations: the board of auditors, which was already existing inside each uni- versity, and the National Committee for the evaluation of the university system, which has been recently instituted outside the university system; this latter has replaced the national observatory through Ministeria Decree no. 229 of 5 May 1999. Law no. 370/1999 defined the composition of the Committee (9 members, including foreigners) and its functions; it closely relates the outcomes of the evaluation process to the resources allocation and binds financing to the results of the evaluation activity.