Hi
I need info on schools in Rome, elementary and "materna". Are there any good state elementary schools and if so where are they?
Private/international elementary schools: which are good and roughly what do they cost??
Same question for pre-schools/kindergarten.
Thanks!!

For int. schools, some are on this link.

Rome International School's Online Directory For the fees, go to their websites, it is all there.


I have experience of 3 on the list, 2 I can strongly recommend.

Regarding Italian state schools, most children go to the local school where they live. Some are better equipped than others, but I think the level of teaching is pretty much the same.

And for Italian private schools-people say they are for Italian kids who do not do academically well in the state schools but whose parents can pay the fees.

Maybe Lorna can give you more info?

Not my finding. In fact the opposite in that the International school is for lazy kids of rich parents. We sent our sons to Italian private school because for one, there wasn't the option in a state school and the other was being held back by the rigid state system. Of course, Rome could be completely different!

I do not know-I am only reporting what I hear from Italian parents.

Parents who send their children to state schools are never going to give an objective view of private schools no matter which country they live in. I am sure that not all private schools are great, at least not in the US or UK, but if you shop around and choose wisely you can find truly great education in the private sector, and avoid the politics of state schools and most of the issues that all state schools face; is not going to be cheap through.

I don't think any parents have a totally unbiased view on schools, because all of our experience is limited to the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8 children that we have. We have four kids and I am really happy with their school, but that doesn't mean it would be suitable for someone else.

All you can do is ask around and take everybody's opinion with a pinch of salt. It's easy to find reasons to agree with people who say what you want to hear and disregard those who disagree with you.

The writer Norman Lewis wasn't too impressed with the private education his children received in Rome in the 70s.

He says after six months the children had picked up a smattering of rustic roman dialect and it was clear they would never be bilingual. When he tested older pupils he found they had learned even less.

I suppose things can only have improved since then.

My point was that parents who went through the state system and send their children to the state system have no experience of private schools, and commonly IME view private schools negatively or a waste of money.

I went through the state school system in the UK. My wife went through the state system in the US. My sister went to a private school in the UK from age 8. My mother is a retired state high school teacher. When it came time to decide what to do with my daughter my wife and I considered both state and private schools, as we had knowledge about each. The likelihood is that relatively few people consider private schools and IME most parents are dismissive of private education.