Italian Special Education Terminology: English Glossary for School Meetings
Italian special education meetings are conducted entirely in Italian, move quickly, and assume familiarity with a dense set of acronyms and legal concepts. Walking into a GLO meeting without knowing what GLO stands for — or understanding the difference between a PEI and a PDP, a verbale and a relazione — leaves families unable to participate meaningfully in decisions about their child's education.
This glossary covers the core terminology you will encounter. Knowing these terms changes your position in the room from confused observer to active participant.
The Legal Framework
Legge 104/1992 — The primary disability rights law. Provides the framework for school support (insegnante di sostegno and an individualized education plan) for students with certified physical, intellectual, or sensory disabilities. The foundation of most advocacy rights.
Articolo 3, Comma 1 — A designation under Law 104 indicating a disability that causes learning or relationship difficulties. Generally supports reduced or shared support hours.
Articolo 3, Comma 3 (disabilità grave) — Severe disability requiring continuous, intensive assistance. Can support maximum or full-day support and may include communication and autonomy assistants. This distinction determines the level of resource allocation the school can request.
Legge 170/2010 — The framework for Specific Learning Disorders (DSA). Covers dyslexia, dysgraphia, dysorthographia, and dyscalculia. A DSA certification supports a PDP and compensatory tools but does not grant a support teacher on that basis.
D.Lgs. 66/2017 / D.Lgs. 96/2019 — Legislative decrees that reformed the inclusion process, introducing the ICF framework and restructuring the PEI. Together with D.I. 182/2020 and its refinement in D.I. 153/2023, they provide the basis for current GLO procedures and formalized parental participation rights.
Direttiva Ministeriale 27/12/2012 — Ministerial directive establishing the BES framework for students with special educational needs beyond Law 104 and Law 170, including linguistic and socioeconomic disadvantage.
Medical and Certification Documents
Certificato Medico Introduttivo (CMI) — The introductory medical certificate issued or initiated by the family pediatrician to start the INPS disability pathway. Valid for 90 days; the INPS application must be submitted within that window.
Verbale (Verbale di accertamento dell'handicap) — The official disability-certification document issued by the INPS/ASL medical commission confirming disability status and severity level. After it, the ASL drafts the Profilo di Funzionamento and the school proceeds through the GLO and PEI pathway.
Profilo di Funzionamento — The Functioning Profile. A document drafted by the ASL multidisciplinary team using the ICF framework, describing the student's functional profile and the environmental barriers/facilitators in their school context. Replaces the older PDF (Profilo Dinamico Funzionale) under the 2017 reform.
ASL (Azienda Sanitaria Locale) — The local health authority. This is the entity that conducts the diagnostic evaluation, issues the Profilo di Funzionamento, and participates in GLO meetings. Different regions have different ASL structures.
NPI (Neuropsichiatria Infantile) — The child neuropsychiatry unit within the ASL. The team typically responsible for diagnosing and evaluating autism, ADHD, intellectual disabilities, and learning disorders in children.
INPS (Istituto Nazionale della Previdenza Sociale) — The national social security institute. Administers the formal disability certification process through which Law 104 rights are activated.
Patronato — A free welfare assistance office (run by trade unions or social organizations) that helps families navigate the INPS application process. Strongly recommended for expat families given the complexity of the Italian portal.
School Plans and Documents
PEI (Piano Educativo Individualizzato) — Individualized Educational Plan. The Italian equivalent of an IEP, drafted by the GLO for students under Law 104. Covers four dimensions: socialization/interaction, communication/language, autonomy/orientation, and cognitive/learning goals. Specifies support hours, compensatory tools, dispensatory measures, and academic objectives.
PDP (Piano Didattico Personalizzato) — Personalized Teaching Plan. For students under Law 170 (DSA) or BES. Specifies compensatory tools and dispensatory measures; a DSA certification does not grant a support teacher on that basis. Drafted by the class council, not the GLO.
PEI Provvisorio — Provisional PEI. Can be drafted if a student has preliminary clinical documentation indicating disability but has not yet received the final verbale. Allows the school to formally request a support teacher for the following academic year without waiting for the full certification to complete.
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People and Roles
Insegnante di Sostegno — Support teacher. Assigned to the class (not exclusively to the individual student) to facilitate inclusive learning. Legally a co-responsible member of the class teaching team. Often the most visible special education presence in the school.
Supplente — Supply (substitute) teacher on a temporary annual contract. Reliance on supplenti rather than tenured staff contributes to the high turnover rate (57.3% of students with disabilities face a new support teacher between academic years).
Referente per l'Inclusione (or Referente BES) — The school's inclusion coordinator. The teacher responsible for coordinating SEN provision within the school, liaising between administration, support teachers, ASL specialists, and families. Often the most knowledgeable person in the school regarding procedures and timelines.
OEPAC (Operatori Educativi per l'Autonomia e la Comunicazione) — Assistants for autonomy and communication. Additional support staff requested for students with severe disabilities (typically Comma 3) who need assistance beyond what the support teacher provides — personal care, mobility, AAC device management.
Dirigente Scolastico — School principal. The person who signs off on formal requests, convenes the GLO, and is the recipient of any formal diffida (legal notice) if the school fails to comply with legal obligations.
Meetings and Processes
GLO (Gruppo di Lavoro Operativo) — Operational Working Group. The formal body that drafts and reviews the PEI. Includes all class teachers, the support teacher, ASL specialists, the school principal (or delegate), and parents. Parents have the right to participate fully, not merely observe. Students in secondary school are also encouraged to participate to support self-determination. Meets at least three times per year.
Verifica del PEI — PEI review meeting. The GLO meeting (typically mid-year) that reviews progress against PEI goals.
Verifica finale / Proposta risorse — The June GLO meeting that evaluates the year and proposes support hour allocation for the following academic year.
Colloquio — A general parent-teacher meeting. Not the same as a GLO meeting — less formal, not legally bound by the PEI process.
Relazione — A report. Teachers often produce relazioni at the end of term summarizing a student's progress. These are distinct from the GLO minutes (verbale di riunione).
Verbale di riunione — Meeting minutes. The written record of a GLO meeting. Request a copy so the record can be checked against decisions about support hours, PEI goals, and any commitments made by the school.
Accommodation Terms
Strumenti Compensativi — Compensatory tools. Aids that compensate for a specific deficit without reducing the learning objective: calculators, text-to-speech software, extended time, graphic organizers, bilingual dictionaries.
Misure Dispensative — Dispensatory measures. Exemptions from specific tasks disproportionate to the learning objective: exemption from reading aloud, reduced homework, and alternatives for certain written tests where provided.
Tempo aggiuntivo — Extended time for tests. Up to 30% where applicable for Law 170 students; specified in the PEI or PDP for Law 104 students.
Curriculum and Exams
Curricolo — Curriculum. May be standard (following national objectives) or modified as specified in the PEI.
Obiettivi Minimi — Minimum objectives. A modified set of learning objectives for students whose PEI specifies adapted academic goals at a simplified level.
Esame Equipollente — Equivalent exam at the Maturità — modified in format or time but deemed equivalent in value, resulting in a full standard diploma with university access.
Esame Differenziato — Differentiated exam — follows a significantly modified curriculum, resulting in a Certificato di Crediti Formativi rather than a standard diploma. Does not grant university access. Requires explicit parental consent to implement.
BES (Bisogni Educativi Speciali) — Special Educational Needs. The umbrella term covering all three categories: Law 104 disabilities, Law 170 learning disorders, and temporary disadvantages (linguistic, socioeconomic). A student described as "BES" may or may not have a formal medical diagnosis.
DSA (Disturbi Specifici di Apprendimento) — Specific Learning Disorders. The category under Law 170: dyslexia (dislessia), dysgraphia (disgrafia), dysorthographia (disortografia), dyscalculia (discalculia).
Knowing this terminology is the baseline. The Italy Special Education Blueprint goes further — explaining how these documents connect, what to say and ask during each GLO meeting, and how to use the legal framework to get your child the support they are entitled to.
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