← Back to the rankingLiceo Scientifico e Linguistico G. C. Vanini
Casarano, Italy · est. 1974 · State
Illustration · Casarano
Liceo Vanini is a state liceo in Casarano in southern Salento, one of the largest upper secondary schools in the province of Lecce. It opened in 1969-1970 as a branch of the liceo in Tricase and became independent in 1974-1975; since 1989 it has been named after the philosopher Giulio Cesare Vanini. More than 1200 students attend from Casarano and nearby towns. Tracks: liceo scientifico, liceo scientifico with a Cambridge IGCSE course, liceo scientifico opzione scienze applicate (with a sports option) and liceo linguistico, including the ESABAC track with a double Italian-French diploma. Lessons are taught in Italian. In the Cambridge section some hours of English, physics, biology and Latin follow Cambridge syllabuses in English, together with native speakers, and students sit IGCSE exams. The school takes part in Erasmus+, uses debate as a teaching method, prepares students for language exams in English, French, German and Spanish and for entrance tests to medical and engineering degrees.
Key facts
Programmes
Cambridge · IGCSE · National programme
Languages of instruction
Italian, English
Languages taught
French, German, Spanish, Latin
About the fees The school is a state school and tuition is free. On enrolment in grade 1 for 2026-2027 families pay 50 EUR for school services (insurance 10 EUR, student record book 5 EUR, photocopies 20 EUR, lab and gym upkeep 15 EUR) and a voluntary contribution of 65 EUR for equipment and extra activities. For the Cambridge course the school charged families 450 EUR a year, in two instalments of 225 EUR in September and October; this rate is given in a 2020-2021 presentation and no newer amount appears on the website.
Admissions Grade 1 enrolment follows the state online procedure (Iscrizioni on-line); in summer it is completed at the school with the lower secondary leaving certificate, a copy of the tax code, consent forms and fee receipts. Classes are formed by chosen track, with a balanced spread of entry levels and of students from different countries. Students choosing the Cambridge section are advised to have A2 English; before the year starts everyone takes a diagnostic, non-selective English test, from which holders of a Cambridge A2 certificate or higher are exempt. There is a protocol for foreign students: enrolment is handled by an office member who speaks English, followed by a meeting with the family, class placement and lessons in Italian as a second language. The ESABAC track is for students who have started learning French.
Stages and year groups Grades 1-5 scuola secondaria di secondo grado. Five-year liceo on the Italian curriculum with the esame di Stato. Tracks: liceo scientifico, liceo scientifico with a Cambridge IGCSE course (one section), liceo scientifico opzione scienze applicate (with a sports option), liceo linguistico (English, French or German, Spanish) and liceo linguistico ESABAC with a double diploma: the esame di Stato and the French baccalauréat, with history taught in French in grades 3-5. Cambridge IGCSE in the scientific liceo: English as a Second Language, Physics, Biology and Latin on Cambridge syllabuses in English; the timetable adds an hour of English and physics in grades 1-4 and of biology in grades 2-4, taught by native speakers together with the school's teachers. IGCSE exams: Biology and Latin in grade 3, Physics and English in grade 4. Cambridge grades are given as letters A to G and do not affect Italian marks. The school also states it may offer AS and A Level but does not describe such a course.
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
Cambridge · IGCSE · authorised programmeThe Cambridge register names the school as its centre; it teaches Cambridge IGCSE. One science lyceum section studies Physics, Biology, Latin and English on IGCSE syllabuses with native speakers; Biology and Latin exams in year 3, Physics and English in year 4.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
CambridgeCambridge International Education
Part of the University of Cambridge. It allows a school to teach the Cambridge programmes and to enter pupils for the exams. There are four stages and they are authorised separately: primary, lower secondary, IGCSE and A Level. If the stages are known they are named in the line below; if that line is missing, the school does not publish them, and the Cambridge registry does not show stages either - it gives only the name of the centre, the country and whether private candidates are accepted. Cambridge calls what it does registration rather than accreditation, and the network holds about ten thousand schools.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: IGCSE (ages 14-16). IGCSE means exams at around Year 10 or 11, the British counterpart of a lower secondary leaving certificate.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →National programme
The state school programme of the country the school stands in: it is set by that country's ministry of education, which also licenses the school and awards the leaving certificate. That certificate is used for entry to local universities, and abroad it is matched to the local one.
What this means for this school. This entry does not count towards the score, and that is deliberate. Every lawful school in a country works to the national programme, so on its own it tells one school apart from no other - unlike the French, German or Russian programmes, which are carried abroad and confirmed by the register of their organisation. We show it because a parent needs to know what programme their child is taught and what certificate the child will get. Counting it would lift the whole ranking at once and still tell nobody apart.
Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Exam results In the 2025 esame di Stato 55 graduates achieved the top mark of 100, 13 of them with honours (100 e lode); all students in the ESABAC class obtained the double Italian-French diploma. The school does not publish IGCSE results in figures, only reporting the annual certificate ceremonies.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
·Cateringnot stated on the website
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field
Clubs and activities: Il Piccolo al Vanini (school theatre) · Debate · Erasmus+ (international exchanges) · eTwinning · Asimov Prize · FAI Apprentice Guides · Orienteering · Vanini Hackathon · ICDL Certifications
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
·Teacher qualificationsnot stated
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
·Students per teacher or class sizenot stated
Cambridge subjects are taught by native-speaker teachers together with the school's teachers; according to the course presentation, Italian teachers with good English have taken CLIL methodology training and Cambridge courses, and their CVs were approved by Cambridge. The history teacher in the ESABAC section holds a French language certificate, and a native-speaker assistant works in French lessons in grades 3-5. The school does not publish staff numbers.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
·Nurse or medical roomnot stated on the website
·Counsellornot stated on the website
✓Child protection policy
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
A CIC counselling point runs with the health service. There is an inclusion plan for 2025-2026, individual plans for students with special needs, a protocol for admitting foreign students and one for student athletes, and a whistleblowing procedure.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)72 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data60 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data70 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 8 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
The full methodology → Similar schools in the country