Shared reading aloud as a tool to improve integration: an experiment in Porta Palazzo (Turin, Italy)

The integration of minors with a migrant background is certainly a crucial challenge for our school system. In relation to the linguistic difficulties detected by international student assessment programme results, it is necessary to plan educational activities and policies aimed at strengthening students' ability to understand texts and socialise them in order to promote academic success and the inclusion of first-and second-generation children and their families. This article presents the exploration of a case study in a context with a high rate of migration, namely the Porta Palazzo district in Turin in the northwest of Italy, wherethe project “Ad Alta Voce Porta Palazzo” verified the effects of shared reading aloud on a sample of classes from kindergarten to primary and secondary school. The results demonstrate a statistically significant increase in text comprehension and linguistic skills but also a beneficial impact on the well-being of the students by improving the classroom climate while turning the school environment into a more welcoming space. Hence, the linguistic benefits obtained by shared reading aloud, according to the method presented, not only contribute to the educational success of students and to effectively counter early school leaving, but they also provide students and their families with the tools toorient themselves in the country of arrival.