Two workshops on Democratic School Governance were organised in Tirana on 29 and 31 March 2021 for the Council of Europe (CoE) project “Strengthening Democratic Citizenship Education in Albania”.

25 participants, including CSO representatives, school mentors and school principals discussed the main elements of democratic and inclusive governance and of decision-making policies and practices in school.

The participants were introduced to the Index for Inclusion in Education, a methodology that will be used during the initial evaluation to be conducted in the 25 pilot schools of the project aims to help assess the level of democratic and inclusive governance and decision-making policies and practices, including the functioning of student councils/parliaments at the school level.

The project team presented the School Intervention Plan that aims to support the pilot schools in developing and implementing democratic governance policies and practices to create an inclusive and enabling learning environment for all students, focusing on areas such as digital citizenship, media literacy, safety online, preventing bullying, teaching controversial issues, etc.

Participants shared their experience and highlighted the important role and contribution of the CoE in supporting the Albanian education system in further developing and implementing education policies and practices, with a particular focus on the development of learners’ competences for a democratic culture, in line with CoE instruments and approaches.

The project “Strengthening Democratic Citizenship Education in Albania” is implemented by the Council of Europe and funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.