Contributions of the IEA’s Civic and Citizenship Studies to Educational Discourse in Lithuania: The Past Three Decades

Citizenship education in Lithuania was introduced after the restoration of independence in 1990. Through the implementation of civic education policies, Lithuanian educators emphasized this topic in general education programs (1994, 1997, 2004, and 2008). Lithuania participated in IEA’s Civic Education Study (CIVED) in 1999 and International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) conducted in 2009 and 2016. Since 2007, Lithuania has been collecting data to construct a national Civic Empowerment Index. This chapter presents how participation in IEA’s civic and citizenship education studies has assisted Lithuania in ensuring that civic education can help students to become citizens who understand their rights and responsibilities, are able to engage constructively in society, and improve society through local activities.