How to Improve Civic Skills in Education

Simon Briole ()
Additional contact information
Simon Briole: CEE-M - Centre d'Economie de l'Environnement - Montpellier - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement - Institut Agro Montpellier - Institut Agro - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement - UM - Université de Montpellier

Post-Print from HAL

Abstract: This paper investigates how schools can foster civic skills—cognitive and non-cognitive competencies that enable individuals to actively participate in democratic life and contribute to the collective good. While the importance of education in shaping citizenship has long been recognized by scholars, the mechanisms through which schools can effectively enhance these skills remain understudied. This paper reviews empirical evidence on the causal impact of schooling and various school-based interventions designed to improve civic skills. Evidence suggests that primary education can increase political engagement, particularly in low-income contexts, but the effects of secondary education are more ambiguous, possibly reflecting diminishing returns. Most studies focus narrowly on voter turnout, leaving other civic behaviors underexplored. Beyond political participation, an emerging literature shows that schooling can reduce crime, enhance prosocial behaviors, and foster environmental preferences. Examining the specific impact of civic education programs, the paper finds that, while there is a consensus that these programs improve students' civic knowledge and attitudes, they often struggle to produce lasting changes in civic behaviors. Programs rooted in experiential learning ("learning by doing") show the most promise,but rigorous long-term evaluations remain scarce. In contrast, school-based interventions targeting socio-emotional skills—such as empathy, tolerance, and self-regulation—demonstrate more consistent and enduring effects. Studies reveal that these programs can reduce school violence, improve social cohesion, and foster long-term civic engagement, particularly among disadvantaged populations.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Published in Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Economics and Finance, 2025

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05063451

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Post-Print from HAL
Bibliographic data for series maintained by CCSD ().