«The most suitable shoe for every foot». Democracy and society in Salvemini's plural school

Abstract

The 65th anniversary of Salvemini's death coincides with the 60th anniversary of the birth of the unique middle school, a milestone in the history of Italian school policy. From this concomitance was born the idea to focus the figure of Salvemini from an educational point of view. He has championed an idea of school that is almost incompatible with his political commitment and the democratic battles for the social redemption of his South. Salvemini openly sided against an idea of a democratic school. He fought stubbornly in favour of a dual school system: on the one hand, both the technical and vocational schools for the lower classes; on the other hand, the upper secondary school reserved only for the upper classes, who, once placed in the country's helm, would have laid the foundations for change in society in a progressive sense. This conservative position of Salvemini is extensively analysed and interpreted both in the light of the biographical data and of the particular socio-historical moment in which he found himself operating.