Access to the electronic register of Italian schools is destined to change significantly. With the final approval of the Simplifications DDL, voted by the Chamber on 26 November, the obligation to use a digital identity system to consult online school platforms is introduced. A turning point that aligns the school with the standards already adopted by the Public Administration, but which also opens up practical questions for families and institutions.
Goodbye to old school credentials
The traditional username and password combinations, provided until now by secretariats or digital register managers, will no longer be valid. To access you will need to use SPID or Electronic Identity Card (CIE). The rule applies to all users and aims to strengthen data security, reducing the risk of improper access and incorrect use of credentials, a critical issue that has emerged especially in recent years.
First cycle: access reserved for parents
The most significant change concerns primary and lower secondary schools. In this segment, access to the electronic register will be granted exclusively to parents or those exercising parental responsibility. Students up to eighth grade will no longer be able to independently consult grades, absences, disciplinary notes or official communications. The register thus becomes a tool for direct dialogue between school and family, reducing the margin of digital autonomy of younger pupils.
What happens in high school
For high school students, however, access will also remain possible in person, but only through a certified digital identity. This implies that children will also have to equip themselves with SPID or CIE to continue using the register as the main channel for monitoring school life.
The issue of costs and practical difficulties
Among the main critical issues reported by school managers is the issue of costs. Some SPID providers have introduced annual fees, transforming a previously free service into an expense borne by families. The CIE remains free, but is not yet widespread in a uniform way and requires activation procedures that are not always immediate, especially for less digitalized users.
The principals’ proposal
Precisely to avoid disparities and difficulties in access, several principals propose the introduction of a specific SPID for the school, a dedicated tool that guarantees free and simplified access to school services. A hypothesis that aims to reconcile security, digital inclusion and the right to information, while schools prepare for a rapid transition and with an adaptation period that will not be easy.
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