Civic Club Pilot Project
This project aims to raise climate change awareness and promote civic engagement in students by establishing civic clubs in public schools in the city of Karachi, Sindh. Using stratified random sampling, 3-5 schools will be selected from each of the 7 districts in Karachi. In these schools, civic clubs will be established focusing on grade 8 students. The school head and one teacher (designated as the focal person and primary club advisor) will participate in a capacity-building training at the start of the school year. Following a baseline survey, the executive leadership team of the clubs will also be on-boarded. The project team will also be available throughout the year to support clubs as they engage in various activities. The impact of these clubs will be evaluated through a randomized control trial, with an equal number of schools being selected for the control group. The key findings and blueprint for adaptation and scale-up will be documented and shared with relevant stakeholders.
Project Details
Establishing a civic club for 8th graders in Karachi's public schools offers a significant opportunity to foster a generation of informed, active citizens. Engaging students at this formative stage equips them with foundational knowledge about their rights, responsibilities, and the importance of active community participation. This early education can lead to a more engaged and informed citizenry in the long term. These students will reach adulthood and be eligible to vote in three years. Engaging them now helps prepare them for the responsibilities of adulthood, including informed voting, understanding civic duties, and actively participating in community development.
By fostering leadership skills and a sense of civic duty among 8th graders, these students can be leaders in their own neighbourhoods. These students will carry the lessons learned through the club into their high school years and beyond, positively influencing their peers and communities. Participation in civic activities complements academic learning by enhancing critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills. It also boosts students' confidence and sense of agency, encouraging them to take initiative in various aspects of their lives.
Engaging 8th graders in civic projects allows them to contribute fresh perspectives and innovative solutions to local issues, fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility. A civic engagement club aligns with broader educational goals by promoting holistic development. It supports the curriculum while providing practical experiences that make learning relevant and meaningful.
The impact of engaging 8th graders extends beyond the individual. As these students become more engaged, they can influence their families, friends, and neighbourhoods, creating a ripple effect that strengthens civic-mindedness throughout Karachi. Hence, the Civic Clubs project aims to create a platform that can be leveraged by students to raise awareness about climate change and empower them to take small actions to address these issues. There are two key reasons for working with public schools: the massive scale of the public school system; and the lacklustre administrative structure of the public schools. The project is being tested at public schools to determine if the model works. If it does, then it can be scaled up across all public schools and have a larger impact. Secondly, if the model works in public schools, it can easily be adapted (and expanded) for private schools that typically have better administrative structures and resources.
The project design rests on four key principles:
Sustainability – for the model to succeed, it needs to be sustainable and require minimal external support, both in financial and technical.
Participatory – it should not use a top-down approach where these communities are “educated”, but rather empower them to be independent in their actions.
Simplicity – it focuses on public schools and a younger population as a gateway into the community, hence it should not be a very complicated intervention or have an overuse of jargon that would distance the project from young students.
Meaningful – at the same time, it should not be a superficial intervention, but one that makes a connection with the students, exposes them to the nuances of social issues, and builds a framework for them to be able to take action on their own.