Citizenship competence comprises three interrelated components: civic knowledge, civic skills, and civic dispositions or virtues¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 1 claim (1 mixed) · 1 study (1 theoretical), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description¶

The article defines civic or citizenship competence drawing on the National Standards for Civics and Government, which claim that "a real citizenship competence (and therefore its education) has three interrelated components". These are civic knowledge (ideas and information about key concepts), civic skills (intellectual skills to identify, explain, argue, and decide in public matters), and civic dispositions or virtues (character features such as responsibility, public spirit, and tolerance). The article notes that at times only the first two components are evaluated given the difficulty of assessing the third.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Assessment of the competence should address all three components, including dispositions, though assessing dispositions is difficult

Constraints¶

• At times only the first two components are evaluated given the difficulty of assessing the third

Target Learners¶

• university students

Target Learning Objectives¶

• civic and citizenship competence

Claims¶

• A specific civic education subject provides valuable knowledge but is insufficient on its own to develop civic competence [~W]

Related Theories¶

• Three-component framework of global citizenship: social responsibility, global competence, and global civic engagement
• Critical Pedagogy Model of Civic Competence through Service-Learning
• Integrated Learning (IL): a philosophy linking subject contents to real-world issues to promote civic competence transversally
• Dispositional mastery framework: Ability, Inclination, and Sensitivity

Examples¶

• Promote civic competence at the formal level through a character education approach grounded in virtue development

Key Sources¶

• Naval, C.; Villacís, J.L.; Ibarrola-García, S. (2022). The Transversality of Civic Learning as the Basis for Development in the University. Educ. Sci. 2022, 12, 240. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12040240