The Center conducts regular monitoring and evaluation of all its programs to assess progress, evaluate impact, improve quality, and promote sustainability. Research and evaluation on programs is conducted by external evaluators and by the Center’s Research Department.
- Participant results, confirmed by research, include:
- Increased levels of civic and public policy knowledge
- Improved participatory skills and political knowledge
- Improved public policy problem-solving skills
- Improved civic discourse skills
- Increased participation in the political process
- Greater interest in politics and use of media
- Increased tolerance and support for rule of law and fundamental rights; less authoritarian attitudes
External Evaluation
The Center has commissioned a number of external studies of its international programs. Examples include:
- Annual studies of Civitas International Programs sites and partnerships
- “Promoting Tolerance and Ethnic Reconciliation in the Balkans through Civic Education”
- “Promoting Youth Participation in Local Government in Indonesia”
- “Civic Education for Participation and Tolerance in Thailand”
In addition, the Center’s partners have commissioned studies to evaluate the impact of their work on schools, teachers, students, and communities.
Center Research
The Center’s research department has evaluated the Civitas International Programs and supports Civitas partners in designing evaluation plans and survey instruments.
Bosnian and Herzegovinian Students Show Improved Political Knowledge and Skills
A 1999 survey of nearly two thousand middle and high school students in Bosnia and Herzegovina showed that Project Citizen students had statistically significant improvement in:
- Participatory skills and political knowledge
- Political attitudes
- Political values
