La comprensión lectora en algunas regiones italianas. Una investigación experimental para mejorar el sistema escolar italiano

National and international studies confirm that the ability to read and understand differents types texts is a basic and strategic competence, from which depends the subject's ability to achieve academic and professional success and to build a personal life project. Without an acceptable basis of competence in this field subjects cannot be able even to solve a mathematical or physical problem, or use a question of geo-historical or political relevance (Bottani, 2011). The literacy in reading is a transversal cognitive competence that structures thought and reasoning (Olson, 1994) and the difficulties in text comprehension represent a socio-cultural problem (Gallina, 2006). As matter of fact, those who do not fully develop the reading and comprehension skills find more difficult to achieve their goals and to take an active role in the social context, with negative effects on citizenship rights (Lumbelli, 2009). This contribution describes the process of a research entitled “Reading and understanding of the written text: a research in High Schools”, promoted by the University of Salerno and the University of Basilicata.