Distance Education in Italy: Investigating Foreign Language Distance Teaching and Learning in Secondary Schools During COVID-19 Lockdown

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects on education in Italy of the unexpected shift from proximate to distance learning after the COVID-19 outbreak and consequent closure of schools across the country. The study is grounded on the premise that online learning can make education more accessible all over the world: in fact, an increasing number of universities and institutions are turning to blended and distance learning in order to increase participation. Moreover, distance education and technology may help to promote collaboration across many institutions and offer a wider choice of classes. On these premises, the following study intends to trace an overview of the current situation in Italy and outline limits and solutions to a new type of education which could lead to innovative and effective teaching practices. Specifically, the study will explore how teachers and schools have managed the unexpected circumstances, how quickly they have switched to online teaching and with what consequences and limits, and to what extent distance education’s success or failure correlates with the sudden COVID-19 emergency (meaning that there was insufficient time to reorganize the teaching and learning environment), or whether it simply depends on a lack of other objective requisites (teachers’ or students’ digital competences, online resources, and so forth). The project will contribute to discussions of the impact that this exceptional time may have in terms of eliciting new educational practices, and how it can stimulate self-reflection on future teaching strategies, as well as produce educational literature. As this is the first study on distance education during COVID-19, and because of the timing, no empirical or case study research has been done yet.