Confirmed Support Teachers: Families Given a Year to Prepare

Teachers of Support Confirmed by Families: What Does It Mean?

The decree law no.
71 of May 31, 2024, on “Urgent provisions concerning sports, educational support for students with disabilities, for the regular start of the school year 2024/2025, and on university and research” has been definitively approved by the Senate and converted into law.

Among the many innovations for schools, especially for support teachers, the School decree introduces the confirmation of fixed-term teachers, even without specialization, by the school principal at the request of the family of the student with disabilities, in respect of the student and in the name of educational continuity.

This new rule has not been well received by the teaching staff, especially by support teachers with specialization.
However, it will not enter into force immediately.
Here are the details.

Support Teachers Confirmed by Families from 2025: One Year to Prepare

Support teachers have one year to prepare because the rule of family confirmation will not take effect in September 2024 but from the following school year, 2025/2026.
Doing a good job in the 2024/2025 school year, which will start in about a month and a half throughout Italy, could mean securing a position in the same school, in the same institution, and in the same class to which the support teacher is assigned for a student with disabilities for the following year.

Support teachers with specialization placed in the first band, like those without a title obtained through Tfa hoping for calls from provincial lists for second-band cross-substitute positions for support roles, still have to wait for regional school office announcements for appointments.
Some may hope for a quick mini call and appointments from the first Gps band.

From the next year, families will request the principal to confirm the support teacher.
The modified School decree during the conversion into law states the following:

In the meantime, pending the adoption of the regulation referred to in the first period, for the school year 2025/2026, the implementation methods of measures are defined by a decree of the Minister of education and merit.

Therefore, not only will support teachers have to wait until the 2025/2026 school year to enjoy the possibility of being confirmed by families, but also for an additional ministerial decree.

The confirmation of the specialized support teacher, with precedence over the other fixed-term personnel, in the same position assigned to him in the previous school year can only occur if:
– there is availability of the position;
– the preventive operations related to permanent staff are carried out;
– the right to appointment in the contingent of available positions is verified by the teacher concerned.

Support Teachers Confirmed by Families from 2025 and Other Innovations

Not only confirmation by families, but there are other novelties for support teachers in the now law School decree that do not only concern those with specialization.
The text for teaching support roles includes:
– faster specialization paths under Indire for teachers with three years of support teaching in the previous five years;
– specialization paths under Indire for those who have obtained support certification abroad and are awaiting recognition by Mim;
– specific training for support coordinators in schools.