School competition: here are 3 good reasons to attend the oral exam

3 Reasons to Attend the Oral Exam for the 2024 School Competition

Many candidates for the 2024 school competition may consider it pointless to attend the oral exam.
However, there are at least 3 good reasons to attend the oral exam for the school competition, whether you pass with the minimum score or get rejected.

Benefits of Attending the Oral Exam

Several reasons may lead those who have passed the written test of the school competition to not want to go to the oral exam: the high number of participants compared to the limited number of spots, the extensive program to study in a short time, a low score in the written test, the absence of an exhaustive ranking list.
However, all is not lost because even with the minimum score, there are some benefits that participants in the 2024 school competition can enjoy.

3 Good Reasons to Attend the Oral Exam

1.
Points in Provincial Ranking Lists for Substitutes

The first of the 3 good reasons to attend the oral exam of the school competition, even if you have received a low score or are afraid of not being sufficiently prepared, is closely linked to the provincial ranking lists for substitutes.
The ordinary competition of 2024 should give 3 points in the provincial ranking lists to those who pass it.

If the ordinance for the update of the ranking lists 2024/2026 were to provide for it as currently in force and pending replacement, passing the tests of an ordinary competition for qualifications and exams, if not already evaluated as qualification for another class, entitles to 3 points in the ranking list.

Those who pass the oral exam of the school competition even with a minimum score of 70/100 and therefore are not winners, could benefit from the 3 points in the provincial ranking lists.

The 2024 school competition, we remind you, does not provide for an exhaustive ranking list, so there are no eligible candidates who can hope to be given a permanent position by moving down the ranking list unless in case of waivers from the rightful candidates.
The ranking list will only cover the advertised positions and no more.

Therefore, those who are deemed suitable and not winners can still count on the 3 points in the ranking lists, if the official ordinance were to provide for it.
Obviously, the 3 points can only be included starting from 2026, when there will be the new update of the ranking lists (unless changes in legislation), since the qualifications must be possessed when submitting the application for inclusion or updating of the Provincial Ranking Lists for Substitutes; for the biennium 2024/2026, this should happen in May 2024.

2.
Mobility Points

Passing an ordinary competition gives scores for mobility, both professional and territorial, and this is why many teachers who are already in a position have decided to participate in the 2024 procedure.
The points are: 6 for professional mobility; 12 for territorial mobility.

The points for mobility are granted for passing an ordinary competition of a level equal to or higher than the one you belong to, so if you want to move from middle school to high school, for example, but not vice versa.

3.
Understanding How the Oral Exam Works

Attending the oral exam of the school competition, even if there are few spots and no exhaustive ranking list, allows you to understand how it works especially if it is your first time.

The oral exam, especially for this competition with a feasible written test that many have passed, represents the most important and challenging part of the selection since it consists of: a simulated lesson on a topic drawn 24 hours beforehand; randomly drawn questions, as stated in the announcement, aimed at assessing the candidate’s knowledge and skills in the discipline of the class they are applying for and general teaching skills, and the relative capacity for effective didactic planning also with reference to the didactic use of technologies and multimedia electronic devices; assessment of comprehension and conversation skills in English at least at level B2.

In addition to the practical test for the classes for which it is foreseen.

Preparing for the oral exam of the school competition and facing the committee, even if you were to fail, means in any case: studying topics that will be useful in the future; practicing oral exposition; practicing English; preparing a simulated lesson by studying the school regulations and delving into teaching methodologies and strategies always present in all selections; learning to make the best use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).

Moreover, the structure of the oral exams of the previous competitions was the same, and participating even while fearing failure is still a good way to be more prepared for future selections.

Final Considerations

Many candidates, if not adequately prepared and due to the discouraging factors mentioned, decide not to attend the oral exam due to its economic cost.
Many, in fact, have to travel out of their region or province because they have decided to participate in the school competition for a different Region than where they live or work or due to territorial mergers.

However, there is a fourth reason to attend the oral exam, and that is luck.
At the school competition, as in life, a good dose of luck could help in a surprisingly way.