Teenage volunteers teaching English to Kids who deserve more opportunities.
Founded by a Teenager and supported by the Rosa Riganti Foundation.
English speaking Teens teach Kids from underserved communities.
Kids learn English. Teenagers learn leadership. Both get certified.
New Wor(l)ds Project was founded in 2023 by Giulio Sergnese, who wanted to do something meaningful and decided to start from what he could: teaching English. He reached out to Alessandra, a young girl from the South of Italy and from an unprivileged background, who wanted to learn English but couldn't afford it.
Over a period of 9 months, Giulio taught Alessandra weekly, helping her build confidence lesson after lesson. A few months later, he flew her to Cambridge where she took her exam, and she passed.
What began with one student is now a peer-to-peer programme where Kids build English skills, confidence, and access to new opportunities. Teen volunteers grow as leaders by taking responsibility for someone else's progress.
Italy is making significant progress in English-language education, yet success is not shared equally. Behind the national averages lies a growing divide that becomes more pronounced as students move through the education system.
INVALSI data confirm that English is a subject in which Italian schools are investing successfully. However, achievement is not distributed equally among students.
— INVALSI, L'inglese nella Prova INVALSI 2025 tra successi e fragilità ↗Regional differences remain limited at the end of primary school, but they widen progressively throughout the following grades, becoming particularly pronounced by the end of upper secondary education.
— INVALSI, L'inglese nella Prova INVALSI 2025 tra successi e fragilità ↗In Sicily and Sardinia, only 75% of Grade 5 students reach the A1 benchmark, compared with a national average of 86.2%. The gap widens in Grade 8: while 80.5% of students in North-East Italy achieve the A2 level, only 50.5% of students in Southern Italy and the Islands do so.
— Rapporto Nazionale INVALSI 2025 — Grade 5 & Grade 8 results ↗The disparity becomes even more evident in Grade 13. In Southern Italy and the Islands, only 28.6% and 27.3% of students respectively reach the expected B1/B2 levels, compared with more than 60% of students in North-East Italy.
— Rapporto Nazionale INVALSI 2025 — Grade 13 results ↗The data suggest a mixed picture. Italian schools are making real progress in strengthening students' English and fostering a more international outlook. But a key challenge is making sure English proficiency doesn't become an additional source of inequality.
Reducing the gap between school tracks and narrowing the divide between Northern and Southern Italy are essential. Only then can English truly become a citizenship skill — accessible to every student, wherever they live.
Sources: INVALSI — L'inglese nella Prova INVALSI 2025 · Rapporto Nazionale INVALSI 2025
teen
Giulio
friends
joined in
teens from across the world
teaching once every two weeks
kid
Alessandra
kids
kids
kids
goal
hours of free lessons
live · taught by our teen teachers
Cambridge certifications
9 achieved in 2025 · 29 expected by end of 2026
Only 1h30 of commitment every 2 weeks!
