What Do We Mean By “Civic Engagement”?

 Education aims to bring about positive changes in our behavior. It helps us try to change our lives as well as the society we live in. Education that does not illuminate our minds or does not inspire us to work for the community is not  complete at all. Education is not all about getting grades or receiving certificates we use education to make life better. We are expected to apply the knowledge, skills and values that we learn in a classroom in our engagement with the world that lies outside. And we can do so in many different ways. Let's have a look at how education works.

Learners civic engagement is highly appreciated all over the world. Civic engagement means working to make a difference in the civic life (the public life of the citizens as contrasted with private or personal life) of the community using knowledge, skills, values and motivation..Giyic engagement promotes the quality of life in a community by contributing to the improvement of health and wellbeing of the people.

Civically engaged individuals recognize themselves as members of a larger social community and are concerned about civic issues. They consider themselves responsible citizens who take action or raise their voices against injustice, discrimination and other forms of social ills.

In civic engagement, issues of public concern are crucial. Civic engagement includes individual or group activities to protect public interests and change the way the community values itself. For example, if you are protesting against any unjust decision of the local municipality such as raising taxes or anfact that might work against people's interests, you are civically engaged and your action is considered a civic engagement. This protest can be done in different ways such as organizing rallies, collecting signatures, making human chains, writing petitions. etc. You can also help control traffic in front of a school, help children to cross the roads, work in a team to clean a park or a sea beach. You can also give some services to elderly people. These are all examples of civic engagement as what you do directly affects the community.

When civic engagement is a part of an academic programme, and the learners' engagement is assessed following a scale, then it is called service learning. It involves the application of knowledge and skills learned in the classroom and then making a complete plan of action i.e. preparing a budget, starting the process of implementation, involving people and activating operational strategies. When civic engagement is spontaneous but irregular and not a part of any academic programme, it is considered volunteerism.