Abstract
International and national surveys rank Italy among economies where fi nancial literacy levels fall below the OECD average, indicating that many individuals lack basic financial skills for informed decision-making. Rec ognizing the importance of financial education for personal and social well-being, more systematic involvement from educational institutions is needed. This exploratory study investigates which of two innovative peda gogies—game-based learning and cooperative learning—is more effective in primary-level financial education programs. The research involves two fifth-grade classes in an Italian primary school, addressing topics aligned with the European Financial Competence Framework: one class employs cooperative learning, and the other uses game-based learning via the Jun€co program from the Amiotti Foundation. Pre- and post-tests, along side focus groups, assess educational impact and offer deeper insights. Preliminary results show that while cooperative learning is more effective for enhancing students’ financial literacy, both methods are well-suited for financial education, aligning with recent evidence-based research supporting experiential and active teaching approaches over traditional ones.