GLO Meeting Italy: What It Is and How to Prepare

If your child has a certified disability under Law 104/1992, the GLO meeting is the most important event in their school year. This is where the team writes the PEI — your child's individualized education plan — and where support hours, goals, accommodations, and curriculum path are formally decided.

Most expat families show up to their first GLO meeting without knowing any of this. They sit through an hour of Italian, nod politely, and sign whatever is placed in front of them. Then they spend the rest of the year trying to change things they already agreed to.

Here is what the GLO meeting is, what happens in it, and how to prepare.

What GLO Stands For

GLO is the Gruppo di Lavoro Operativo — the Operational Working Group. It is the formal, legally mandated body responsible for your child's individual inclusion at the school level.

It was established by Legislative Decree 66/2017 and updated by Interministerial Decree 182/2020. The 2020 reform shifted the GLO from a consultative body to a collaborative one, with legally formalized parent participation. You are not invited to observe. You are a member.

Who Is in the Room

The GLO includes:

• All of your child's curricular teachers (every teacher assigned to the class, not just the homeroom teacher)
• The insegnante di sostegno (support teacher)
• ASL specialists involved in your child's care (neuropsychiatrist, speech therapist, psychologist — whoever is on your child's clinical team at the local health authority)
• The school principal or a designated delegate
• You, the parent

In secondary education, the student with the disability is also encouraged to attend and participate, supporting self-determination and agency over their own educational path.

You may also bring private specialists — your English-speaking neuropsychologist, behavioral therapist, speech therapist, or any other professional working with your child outside the school system. This right is explicit under Italian law. Private specialists can speak at the meeting, contribute clinical observations, and advocate for specific goals or accommodations.

What Happens at Each Meeting

The GLO meets at least three times per academic year.

September (initial meeting): The team reviews the Functioning Profile from the ASL, drafts the PEI for the current year, and sets the goals across the four ICF dimensions (socialization, communication, autonomy, and cognitive/learning). This is also when the specific compensatory tools and dispensatory measures are listed.

Mid-year review (typically February or March): The team assesses progress against PEI goals, identifies what is working and what needs adjustment, and can modify goals or accommodations if necessary.

June verification meeting: The team evaluates the year's outcomes and formally proposes the support resources needed for the following year — including the number of support hours. This June proposal is what goes to the regional educational authority when allocating teacher positions. Missing this meeting, or failing to advocate for adequate hours at it, means arriving in September with whatever the school proposed uncontested.

What You Can Do in a GLO Meeting

More than most parents in this system realize.

You can propose goals. The PEI is not a document the school writes and presents for your signature. It is a collaborative product. If you want specific goals related to peer interaction, communication skills, or academic content, bring them in writing and propose them at the September meeting.

You can challenge proposed support hours. If the school proposes 10 hours per week for a child whose INPS verbale classifies them as Comma 3 (severe disability), you can challenge that proposal directly. Ask for the calculation behind the hours. Schools sometimes propose low hours because that is what's easiest given staffing, not what the child's certification warrants.

You can bring private specialists. Your child's therapist in the UK or Australia has context the Italian team does not. If they can attend (even via video call in some cases), or if you can bring a written report from them, introduce it into the GLO discussion. The team must consider external clinical input when drafting or revising the PEI.

You can refuse to sign the draft PEI immediately. Take it home. Have it translated if necessary. Consult with private professionals. The school cannot impose a PEI you have not consented to. Without your signature, the PEI is not final.

You can request the minutes. Every GLO meeting must produce written minutes (verbale). Request a copy. If there are discrepancies between what was discussed and what the minutes say, challenge them in writing before the next meeting.

How to Prepare for Your First GLO Meeting

Before the September meeting, gather the following:

Your child's complete documentation. Bring the INPS verbale, the ASL Functioning Profile, any Italian diagnostic reports, and translated foreign assessments. The teachers in the room may not have read everything; having your own copies lets you reference specific points.

A written list of goals you want in the PEI. Think about what your child needs most: Is it managing sensory overload in a noisy classroom? Building peer relationships? Developing independence in personal care? Learning to read using specific assistive methods? Write these down before the meeting in clear, observable terms.

A list of compensatory tools and accommodations. If your child uses assistive technology, specific software, visual schedules, or communication devices in their therapy setting, document this and bring it to the meeting. Request that these tools be explicitly listed in the PEI.

Key questions to ask:

• How many weekly support hours are being proposed, and what is the calculation basis?
• Will the same support teacher be assigned next year, or is this a new annual contract position?
• What is the school's plan if the support teacher is absent?
• Is an OEPAC (autonomy/communication assistant) being considered, and if not, why not?
• How will progress toward PEI goals be measured and documented?
• What curriculum path is the school proposing (equipollente or differenziato), and what are the implications?

An interpreter if needed. If your Italian is not strong enough to follow a meeting conducted by multiple teachers and medical professionals simultaneously, bring someone who can interpret in real time. This is your legal right. You cannot consent to a PEI you did not understand.

The Curriculum Path Decision: Know Before You Sign

At some point in the GLO process — often implicitly, sometimes explicitly — the team will propose whether your child follows an equipollente or differenziato curriculum path.

Equipollente means your child takes the same exams as their peers but with modifications (extra time, adapted formats). They earn a fully valid diploma that grants university access.

Differenziato means your child follows a heavily modified curriculum that does not meet national standards. They receive a certificate of educational credits instead of a diploma — which closes the door to university.

This is an irreversible decision with major life implications. Schools cannot impose a differenziato path without explicit parental consent. If someone in the GLO meeting mentions a "percorso differenziato" and asks for your agreement, do not sign anything until you fully understand what you are agreeing to.

The Italy Special Education Blueprint includes a complete GLO meeting preparation guide with bilingual question scripts, a checklist of what to bring, and guidance on how to advocate for support hours before and after the June proposal meeting.

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