Civic Education
A peaceful world becomes increasingly possible when citizens are engaged in their communities, diversity and creativity are cornerstones of progress, and individuals have secure hope for the future. Our civic education programs expose participants to multiple models of civic involvement, and help them to develop the skills and knowledge-base needed to more effectively participate in their government and civil society organizations. Participants apply their skills and knowledge by engaging in the civic process through projects and teaching others about their rights and responsibilities.
Legacy’s civic education programs utilize a multi-step process, culminating in what we call the “multiplier effect,” as participants share and expand the reach of their knowledge. Steps include:
Kyrgyz students listen to a presentation on civic responsibility
- Exposure to civic involvement models—through site visits, discussion forums, and meetings participants in our civic education programs are exposed to multiple successful models of civic engagement on the local and national level.
- Information Gathering and Education—learning how one’s government works and where the opportunities for involvement lie
- Skills development—developing skills that allow a person to participate in various areas of government and society. Skills may include: Community organizing, letter-writing and publicity campaigns, use of the media, facility with developing and revising public policy, methodology for gathering and disseminating statistics, or tools for running for public office (and/or assisting others to do so).
- Need assessment– Identifying a need in their local community and creating and implementing a project to address that need.
- The “Multiplier Effect”– In all our programs, participants are required to share what they have learned with their communities through forums and discussions. Additionally, we train trainers to pass on their training to others, for an exponential growth of knowledge.
