Presentations/Exams - Highschool


There are some differences between high school in Italy and the Unites States. 

In the US, generally exams are taken either on paper, with the computer in person, or with the computer at home. When I came to the United States and I had to do presentations for the first time, I could not believe the way students did their presentations, for example by reading word to word from the power point or note cards, or many times not even taking it too seriously. Many students were really nervous, and the majority of people that I have met hated classes where they had to constantly present in front of the class because it made them anxious. 



And here comes the difference from home. In Italy high school is really stressful. The reason is that we have both oral and written exams almost in every single class. In a four-month period (we do not have semesters like in the US), every professor is required to have a certain amount of oral and written exams from each student. The exams are all in class and on paper. We are not allowed to bring computers to school, so you need to take notes on paper. Evey person has a desk, and when we have tests we need to move the desks by separating them from one another when the bell rings, so that when the professor comes to class with the exam, the classroom is already set up for us to take it, and we waste as little time as possible. 

When it comes to oral exams, students need to get up and go in front of the class, where the professor will ask them questions and/or ask them to solve problems on the board, and the grade will be given in accordance with the accuracy of the responses. We do not have presentations using power points, but when we do have to speak in front of the class, we are not allowed to have notecards that help us remember things, therefore, we either know the answer or we don’t. This may be the reason why when I personally must do presentations here, I am a little nervous, but it does not scare me at all (which of course can be a little different for every person) 

In the US the grading system goes from A (highest) to F (lowest), while in Italy it goes from 0 (which never occurs) to 10 (perfection), which never occurs in oral exams, and is possible to achieve only in written physics, science, and math exams (where you provide precise numbers in your answers). 

 

These are some of the differences between high school in Italy and the US.

I will come back with more!! 

See you soon. 

Comments

  1. Júlia SitjasFebruary 13, 2025 at 5:53 AM

    This is really interesting! I hadn't really stopped to compare these aspects, but coming from Spain, I see a lot of similarities with the Italian system—like separating tables before exams, the 0-10 grading scale, and written exams always being on paper. We’re allowed to use computers (but not tablets or phones), and for presentations, while we can rely on PowerPoints, we’re not allowed to read from a printed script either. I actually find the Italian approach to oral exams really valuable because it pushes students out of their comfort zone and strengthens communication skills early on. I imagine that helps later in life when facing challenging situations!

    By the way, tanti auguri for yesterday! :) Hope you had a great birthday Keko

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