Designing and Evaluating a Community Civic Education Platform for General Studies

Thesis Abstract

The study addresses a critical gap in general studies by designing and evaluating a community civic education platform that integrates local governance, media literacy, and civic participation to enhance youth and community engagement in democratic processes. Despite rising interest in civic education, existing platforms often fail to contextualize content for diverse communities or to demonstrate measurable impacts on civic knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. The aim is to develop a scalable, user-centered platform and rigorously assess its effectiveness, usability, and pedagogical impact. Specific objectives are to (i) design a modular platform combining interactive modules on governance, rights and duties, public policy literacy, and community action; (ii) implement the platform with a representative sample of 600 participants across three urban neighborhoods; (iii) evaluate usability and user engagement using the SUS (System Usability Scale) and engagement analytics; (iv) measure changes in civic knowledge, attitudes toward community participation, and intentions to act via pre-post surveys; (v) examine the platform’s effectiveness across subgroups by gender, age, and educational background; and (vi) identify facilitators and barriers to adoption to inform policy and practice. The study adopts a mixed-methods design guided by social constructivism and the Theory of Planned Behavior to triangulate quantitative outcomes with qualitative insights. The population comprises residents aged 15–35 in three metropolitan districts, with a stratified random sample yielding 600 participants for the quantitative component and 40 participants for in-depth interviews. Data collection instruments include a validated Civic Knowledge Scale, a Civic Attitudes and Intentions Inventory, server-side analytics, usability questionnaires (SUS), semi-structured interviews, and focus group protocols. Instrument validity is established through expert review and pilot testing (n=60), with reliability confirmed by Cronbach’s alpha (? > 0.80) for all scales. Quantitative data are analyzed via descriptive statistics, paired t-tests and repeated-measures ANOVA to assess pre-post changes, and multiple regression analyses to identify predictors of civic intention and engagement. In-depth qualitative data are examined using thematic analysis to extract patterns related to usability, perceived usefulness, social influence, and contextual constraints, with credibility supported by member checking and triangulation with analytics. The expected findings include (i) significant improvements in civic knowledge and pro-social attitudes post-intervention; (ii) higher engagement levels among participants with prior civic experiences and higher digital literacy; (iii) positive associations between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and intent to participate in community actions; and (iv) context-specific barriers such as time constraints and varying access to digital resources. The study’s contribution to knowledge lies in (a) providing an empirically validated, scalable civic education platform tailored to community contexts, (b) offering a robust mixed-methods evaluation framework for digital civic interventions, and (c) generating insights into how design features influence learning outcomes and civic behavior. The research advances theoretical integration of the Theory of Planned Behavior with digital pedagogy for civic education and informs policymakers, educators, and practitioners about best practices for fostering informed participation in local governance. The main conclusion is that a co-designed, modular platform with culturally responsive content and continuous feedback mechanisms can yield measurable gains in civic knowledge and willingness to engage, particularly when coupled with targeted outreach to underrepresented groups. Practical recommendations include adopting iterative design cycles, investing in digital access and literacy programs, incorporating locally relevant case studies, and integrating partnerships with community organizations to sustain engagement. Further studies are suggested to explore long-term behavioral outcomes, cross-cultural applicability, and the platform’s impact on actual civic participation in different governance contexts.