Implementing a cross-curricular approach to civic and citizenship education that reconciles formal curriculum and informal learning experiences within school life plays a pivotal role in promoting a school as a democratic learning environment that supports the development of students’ citizenship competence. In 2018, the Council of Europe recognized the Whole-School Approach (WSA) as the most effective model for this purpose, arising from the integration of democratic principles in its three main components: teaching and learning, school governance, and cooperation with the local community. Students’ participation in the decision-making processes is a crucial aspect of school governance within the WSA. Involving students in decision-making processes gives them the opportunity to develop their citizenship competence within a learning environment where they are not mere passive participants in school life but they become active members in shaping their own school experience by engaging in organizational and instructional-curricular choices.

The research presented here is part of the Research Project of National Interest (PRIN) “The school as a democratic learning environment. Promoting civic and citizenship education through the whole-school approach in the first cycle of education”. The research is carried out by a consortium of three universities: LUMSA University of Rome, Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, and University of Verona. The research aims to promote civic and citizenship education through the adoption of the WSA in the first cycle of education. This is achieved through meaningful democratic experiences that enable students to activate and develop their citizenship competence in teaching and learning, school governance, and cooperation with the local community. Specifically, a multi-perspective case study with a simultaneous mixed-method design was conducted in six Italian schools, two from Rome, two from Bologna, and two from Verona. A questionnaire was administrated to 416 students from two lower secondary schools in Rome.

This contribution presents the first findings of the case studies conducted in two schools in Rome related to students’ perceptions of their participation in classroom and school decision-making processes. After a brief description of the school contexts where the research took place, one of the instruments adopted for the research (i.e. the student questionnaire) is presented. Initial findings highlight lower levels of students’ participation in decision-making processes at the school level compared to their classroom involvement.

This article compares the school contexts, detailing students’ perceptions of various aspects of their involvement in decision-making, such as setting class and school rules, collaborating with school staff in problem-solving activities, voicing their opinions on class and school activities, and participating in the organization of school initiatives.

Keywords: Civic and citizenship education, decision-making, school governance, students’ participation, whole-school approach.