This bulletin of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) sets forth the philosophic grounds for democratizing schools and the evidence from research as to why this task should be undertaken. In the first part of the booklet, a brief NCSS position statement indicates that schools should practice democracy and be able to instruct through modeling. Further, the statement stresses that what is taught from textbooks about the advantages of democracy should be exhibited within the school and that the school experience should provide young people with an immediate example of a democratic system so that they can feel the effects of democracy. Various chapters describe how individual teachers can restructure their classes and ways in which entire schools have been successful in increasing student participation in decision making. Chapter 1 discusses why educators should be concerned. The second chapter looks at research evidence which says that schools, teachers, and administrators can make a difference. Chapter 3 examines 7 examples of schools with democratic learning environments. How democratic experiences can be promoted in the classroom is explained in the fourth chapter, and practical examples are provided in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 contains a case study of the citizenship experiences of one high school. Resources for teachers and administrators are provided in the concluding chapter. An index is provided. (RM)