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  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_011.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_010.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_009.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_006.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_005.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_004.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_003.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_001.jpg
  • Borough Park, Brooklyn, New York. Young orthodox jewish boy at the wedding of Zvi Tauber, nephew of Gran Rabbi Ben Zion Halberstam, taking place at the shul (synagogue) of the Congregation Shaarei Zion of Bobov. Behind him, men and women are seperated by dividers called mechitzah. According to Jewish Law, men and women must be separated during prayer, usually by a wall or curtain called a mechitzah or by placing women in a second floor balcony. This allows men to concentrate on prayers and God, without being distracted by the presence of women. Gianni Cipriano, cell +1 646 465 2168 (USA), +39 328 567 7923 (Italy), gianni@giannicipriano.com , www.giannicipriano.com
    boro_03.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_008.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_007.jpg
  • 18 December, 2008. New York, NY. Choir director Gregg Breinberg, 36, directs his fifth grade students from the Graniteville School chorus in Staten Island, at the Kitchen Club restaurant for a Bruce Weber private party in Manhattan, NY. <br />
<br />
The story of P.S. 22 Chorus began in the fall of 1999 when Breinberg arrived at the 1,250 student K-5 elementary school after being excised from his first music teaching job at nearby P.S. 60 in Staten Island.   Unfortunately for Mr. Breinberg, himself a Staten Island native, P.S. 22 didn't have any available music jobs so he found himself in the unfamiliar position of second grade teacher.<br />
<br />
"It was never my intention to be a classroom teacher," Breinberg dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and grey sweatshirt, said.  "In the absence of a music job, I used music to teach second grade. Everything I taught from math to english, I taught with music."<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for The New York Times<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    PS22_002.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308189.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: The occupied building where Marilena Colantuono (37), unemployed and mother of three, lives, in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307462.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: Marilena Colantuono (37), an unemployed mother of three children, looks out of the window of her occupied apartment in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307335.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: The children's recreational room at the NGO L'Albero della vita is seen here in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306853.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Founder and President of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" Giovanni Savino (38) is seen here with elementary school children during after-school activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Secreatry Pietro Esposito (21) is seen here at work at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • 1 July, 2008. Bronx, NY. Katherine Atwill, 21, listens to Corps Member Advisor Paul Root, 26, during the first week of the Teach for America Summer Institute at Middle School 118. The Summer Institute is a five week preparation where corps members, such as Katherine, develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be beginning teachers. Originally from Santa Barbara, CA, Katherine graduated in May from Colombia University with a double major in East Asian Studies and Creative Writing. She decided to enroll in the Institute because she believes the Teach for America teachers produce great results with kids.<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for the Wall Street Journal<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    Teach09.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: A student walks in the hallway of the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school students in Naples only physically went to school for 27 days, according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children, a national low. In Naples, the dropout rate is about 20 percent, twice the
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, poses for a potrait at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high s
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, poses for a potrait at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high s
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, is seen here teaching an online class to his third grade students at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to sc
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Third grade students are seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school students in Naples only physically went to school for 27 days, according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children, a national low. In Naples, the dropout rate is about 20 percent, twice
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, is seen here teaching an online class to his third grade students at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to sc
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Saturno, 1 13 years old third grade student, is seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. Francesco Saturno spent his mornings helping in his grandfather’s fruit shop, sleeping in or glued to his Playstation. He only twice logged on to his online class. His mother, Angela Esposito, 33, who herself dropped out of high school, worried that he might leave school and follow in the footsteps of his father, who earns tips of loose change for babysitting parked cars in Naples. “I am scared that if he doesn’t go to school he is going to get lost,” she said. “And getting lost in Naples is dangerous.”<br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, teaches her last day of school online to 4th graders  with a tablet from her home in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308469.jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: A 4th grader is seen here online on the tablet of Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, during the last day of school, in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308415.jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, teaches her last day of school online to 4th graders  with a tablet from her home in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308317.jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, teaches her last day of school online to 4th graders  with a tablet from her home in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308284.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308248.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308192.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his teacher explains a math exercise , here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308154.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade, center) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his mother Marilena Colantuono (37) looks at the screen and his sister Ilaria plays with their dog Maya, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308085.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his mother Marilena Colantuono (37) looks at the screen, in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M307864.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: A view from an occupied building in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307414.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: Giorgio Colantuono (15), is seen here in the living room after attending his online school class from his mother's smartphone, in an occupied apartment in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307257.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: Marilena Colantuono (37), an unemployed mother of three children, poses for a portrait in her occupied apartment in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307213.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: Giorgio Colantuono (15), attends his online school class from his mother's smartphone in his room, which he shares with his younger sister and brother, in an occupied apartment in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307169.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020:  The main hall of the "Eduardo De Filippo" primary and secondary school is seen here in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307127.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: A classroom of the 1'st grade of secondary schoo of the "Eduardo De Filippo" school, of which only two students of a total of twelve attend the online classes, is seen here in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M307110.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: The playground of the primary and secondary school "Eduardo De Filippo" is seen here next to a public housing complex in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306963.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: A view of the school "Euduardo De Filippo" in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306937.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: Patrizia Pica Ciamarra (46), who runs the local section of the NGO L'Albero della vita in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, leaves the local office in Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306918.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 12 MAY 2020: A public housing complex is seen here in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 12th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200512_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306829.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 11 MAY 2020: Giulia Improta (34), a mother of three, poses for a portrait in her apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 11th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200511_WSJ_NewPoor_7M306350.jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, teaches her last day of school online to 4th graders  with a tablet from her home in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308540_...jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: A 4th grader is seen here online on the tablet of Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, during the last day of school, in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308415_...jpg
  • SANT'ANASTASIA, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Giusi Amodio (44), an elementary school teacher, teaches her last day of school online to 4th graders  with a tablet from her home in Sant'Anastasia, Italy, on May 29th 2020. <br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308284_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308189_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308168_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his teacher explains a math exercise , here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308154_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade, center) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his mother Marilena Colantuono (37) looks at the screen and his sister Ilaria plays with their dog Maya, here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M308085_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his teacher Giusi Amodio (44) explains the last lesson of the year , here in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M307994_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Raffaele Giusti (9, 4th grade) attends his last day of school, logged in online with his mother's smartphone, as his mother Marilena Colantuono (37) looks at the screen, in an occupied apartment in Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020. Raffaele needs to share his mother's smartphone with his two older siblings for online classes, since the family cannot afford a computer or tablet.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M307864_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Street art is seen here on a public housing complex in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M307806_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 29 MAY 2020: Street art is seen here on a public housing complex in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of Naples, Italy, on May 29th 2020.<br />
<br />
In Italy, a country ravaged by the coronavirus, there is a new casualty: Students. Many children from low-income families have effectively dropped out of school, say teachers and charity groups, the result of the prolonged, nation-wide school closure caused by the pandemic. In early March Italy became one of the first countries in the world to shut down all schools, forcing teachers to turn to remote learning. But many families have struggled with the shift, and many children have been left behind. Around 12% of school-age children don’t have a computer or a tablet at home, and parents are often unable or unwilling to help. The Covid dropouts are intensifying a problem that was already there. Even before the pandemic, Italy had one of the highest school dropout rates in Europe. And there is no solution in sight, since schools won’t reopen before September at the earliest. The problem is particularly acute among poor and marginalized communities in places such as Naples, where teenagers are easily lured into the ranks of organized crime syndicates. In one middle-school on the outskirts of the city, for instance, around 10% of students didn’t access online classes at all. Many others participate only occasionally. “I’ve never had this many kids not come to school,” says Barbara De Cerbo, the headmaster. “There is the fear that we’ll lose some of them for good.”<br />
<br />
CREDIT: Gianni Cipriano for The Wall Street Journal<br />
<br />
SLUG: DROPOUTS
    CIPG_20200529_WSJ-Dropouts_7M307789_...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: (R-L) Circus instructor Antonio Bosso (25) hugs Carllo Borrelli (23)  at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Teenagers standing on stilts are seen here during the circus activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Buildings of the Barra neighborhood are seen here from the gym of  "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: A teenager standing on stilts looks at the Barra neighborhood from the gym during the circus activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: A teenager practices diabolo during the circus activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Michelangelo Ravone (23, right) teaches diabolo to a teenager at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Vice-President of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" Marco Riccio (25) juggles with a teenagers during the circus activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Aerial Dance instructor Caterina Spezzaferri (29) teaches aerial dance to teenagers at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Circus and Parkour Instructor Antonio Bosso (25) juggles with a teenager during the circus activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Secreatry Pietro Esposito (21) is seen here at work at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: (R-L) Carlo Borrelli (23, Janitor), Pietro Esposito (21, Secretary) and Marco Ravone (19, circus teacher) are seen here at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: A child's painting quoting "The right to study" is seen here at the headquarters of  "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Teenagers followed by their instructors walk out of the gym after practicing parkour at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Teenagers practice parkour at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Angela Cuccaro (19), an aerial dancer, poses for a portrait at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Angela Cuccaro (19) is seen here as she performs aerial dance at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Angela Cuccaro (19) is seen here as she performs aerial dance at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Angela Cuccaro (19) is seen here as she performs aerial dance at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Angela Cuccaro (19) is seen here as she performs aerial dance at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Founder and President of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" Giovanni Savino (38, center) looks at a teenager who missed school and a potential school-dropout as he walks away,  here at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Elementary school children watch "Inside Out", a 3D animated comedy-drama, during after-school activity at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Vault horses are seen here in the gym of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Founder and President of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" Giovanni Savino (38) is seen here at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: (L-R) Founder and President of "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" Giovanni Savino (38) discusses with Save The Children project coordinator Luigi Malcangi at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: (R-L) Marco Riccio (25) and Mattia Formicola (22) are seen here while teenagers warm-up before a parkour class at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Teenagers do yoga during a warm-up session before a parkour class at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 16 MARCH 2018: Teenagers are seen here during a warm-up session before a parkour class at "Il Tappeto di Iqbal" (Iqbal's carpet), a non-profit cooperative in Barra, the estern district of Naples, Italy, on March 16th 2018.<br />
<br />
Il Tappeto di Iqbal (Iqbal’s Carpet) is a non-profit cooperative founded in 2015 and Save The Children partner since 2015 that operates in the Naple’s eastern neighborhood of Barra children in the arts of circus, theater and parkour. It was named after Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who escaped from life as a child slave and became an activist against bonded labor in the 1990s.<br />
Barra, which is home to some 45,000 people, has the highest rate of school dropouts in the Italian region of Campania. Once a thriving industrial community, many of the factories were destroyed in a 1980 earthquake and never rebuilt. The resulting de-industrialization turned Barra into a poor, decaying neighborhood. There are no cinemas, theaters, parks or public spaces in Barra.<br />
The vast majority of children from poor families are faced with the choice of working in the black economy or joining the ranks of the organised crime.<br />
Recently, Save the Children Italy opened a number of educational and social spaces in Barra. The centers, known as Punti Luce, or points of light, aim to help local kids stay out of the ranks of the organised crime and have also become hubs for Iqbal's Carpet to work.
    CIPG_20180316_CAUSETTE_NapoliBarra_M...jpg
  • 1 July, 2008. Bronx, NY. Katherine Atwill, 21, attends the first week of the Teach for America Summer Institute at Middle School 118. The Summer Institute is a five week preparation where corps members, such as Katherine, develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be beginning teachers. Originally from Santa Barbara, CA, Katherine graduated in May from Colombia University with a double major in East Asian Studies and Creative Writing. She decided to enroll in the Institute because she believes the Teach for America teachers produce great results with kids.<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for the Wall Street Journal<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    Teach13.jpg
  • 1 July, 2008. Bronx, NY. Katherine Atwill, 21, attends the first week of the Teach for America Summer Institute at Middle School 118. The Summer Institute is a five week preparation where corps members, such as Katherine, develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be beginning teachers. Originally from Santa Barbara, CA, Katherine graduated in May from Colombia University with a double major in East Asian Studies and Creative Writing. She decided to enroll in the Institute because she believes the Teach for America teachers produce great results with kids.<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for the Wall Street Journal<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    Teach06.jpg
  • 1 July, 2008. Bronx, NY. Katherine Atwill, 21, attends the first week of the Teach for America Summer Institute at Middle School 118. The Summer Institute is a five week preparation where corps members, such as Katherine, develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be beginning teachers. Originally from Santa Barbara, CA, Katherine graduated in May from Colombia University with a double major in East Asian Studies and Creative Writing. She decided to enroll in the Institute because she believes the Teach for America teachers produce great results with kids.<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for the Wall Street Journal<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    Teach05.jpg
  • 1 July, 2008. Bronx, NY. Katherine Atwill, 21, attends the first week of the Teach for America Summer Institute at Middle School 118. The Summer Institute is a five week preparation where corps members, such as Katherine, develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be beginning teachers. Originally from Santa Barbara, CA, Katherine graduated in May from Colombia University with a double major in East Asian Studies and Creative Writing. She decided to enroll in the Institute because she believes the Teach for America teachers produce great results with kids.<br />
©2008 Gianni Cipriano for the Wall Street Journal<br />
cell. +1 646 465 2168 (USA)<br />
cell. +1 328 567 7923 (Italy)<br />
gianni@giannicipriano.com<br />
www.giannicipriano.com
    Teach04.jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, poses for a potrait at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high s
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Dora Leva (36), mother of third grade student Emanuela, is seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021.  “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” Francesco Uccello, an Italian teacher at the school, said. “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.” <br />
Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, is seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers.<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school stu
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Third grade students are seen here glued at their smartphones during a class at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school students in Naples only physically went to school for 27 days, according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children, a national low. In Naples, t
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Third grade students are seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school students in Naples only physically went to school for 27 days, according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children, a national low. In Naples, the dropout rate is about 20 percent, twice
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: Francesco Uccello (48), an Italian teacher, is seen here teaching an online class to his third grade students at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. “Here parents have a hard time considering school as something important in life,” he said, “The kids don’t have anyone telling them to wake up for class.”  Over the past months, the school has also organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to sc
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
  • NAPLES, ITALY - 14 APRIL 2021: A third grade student is seen here at the "Melissa Bassi" middle school in Ponticelli, a district in the outskirts of  Naples, Italy, on April 14th 2021. Over the past months, the school has organised workshop to get the local kids, who were most likely to not attend the online classes, come to school and build solid personal relationships with the teachers. <br />
<br />
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Italy had among the highest dropout rates in the European Union. But over the last year it has kept its schools at least in part closed about three times longer than France, and more than Spain or Germany and just about all other member states, severing a lifeline for some of the most challenged children and fueling fears of an education crisis.<br />
<br />
Experts argued that by at least partially closing its schools for 35 weeks, Italy, already lagging behind the rest of Europe in key educational indicators and hoping for a strong post-pandemic recovery, had threatened its long term prospects. The country with Europe’s oldest population has risked leaving behind its youth, which is its greatest and rarest resource.<br />
<br />
While it is too early for reliable statistics, teachers, principals, advocates and social workers say they have seen a sharp increase in the number of students falling out of the system. Even those who stayed in are clearly falling behind.<br />
<br />
The problem is especially acute around the southern city of Naples. Schools here have remained closed longer than the rest of the country, in part because the president of the wider Campania region, Vincenzo De Luca, insisted they were a potential source of infection. At one point, he mocked the notion that children in his region were “crying to go to school.” Between September and January, high school students in Naples only physically went to school for 27 days, according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children, a national low. In Naples, the dropout rate is about 20 percent, twice
    CIPG_20210414_NYT_Italy-Dropouts_A73...jpg
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