Mar 4
Passato prossimo
I do understand the pedagogical choice for beginner and intermediate levels. Using passato prossimo makes the text closer to spoken Italian and avoids introducing another complex tense too early.However at C1–C2 level this choice becomes harder to justif as advanced learners are expected to engage with authentic written Italian, and narrative texts in Italian overwhelmingly use passato remoto. Replacing it systematically with passato prossimo means learners are not exposed to the tense in the very context where it naturally appears.At this stage it may actually make the material less useful, since students preparing for advanced reading will encounter passato remoto constantly in real Italian literature and written storytelling.
Reviewing
Thanks for this feedback. It's absolutely something we've agonised about. Having one consistent rule seemed like a simpler choice. If we see more feedback like this, we'll review that choice.