Education is a task that thrives on innovation and change. Because both learners and the
context change from event to event, and because successful education should by definition result
in change even to the individual learner, there is a tendency amongst educators to underestimate
the need to develop continuity from one programme to another.
Continuing Shortages of Resources
Amongst other problems that this has caused, has been a shortage of skilled adult education
practitioners in the sphere of voter and civic education. In addition, there is only a
limited transferral of best practices and lessons learned and materials available from one election to another. It is
remarkable how even a simple but recorded piece of material finds its way into programme after
programme around the world. While this might be as a result of the efficacy of that particular
piece of material, it seems more related to the shortage of information and materials in general
circulation.
Those electoral authorities that have been able to develop continuity have been able to run
programmes that proceed through the entire cycle of needs assessment, development of
objectives and educational strategy, implementation, evaluation and reassessment necessary to
establish an ongoing educational curriculum. Other authorities are forced to rely again and
again on external technical support and expertise.
Documentation is Better than Nothing
Continuity is achieved in part by good documentation, and in part by having access to people
who have experience. But some continuity can only be achieved by the development of an
institution or organisation that can exist between programmes and that can develop through
its own marrow the lessons which must be taken forward.
Establish Some Responsible Institution
For this to happen, countries must charge either the election authority or some other statutory
body to conduct voter and civic education programmes. Russia, Ukraine, and Mexico provide a few examples of permanent election bodies that have been given a legal mandate to undertake on-going voter or civic education activities. Such bodies
may only have a small staff, but having such a body will mean that many of the record keeping
and procedural matters that have been detailed in this section can be delegated to it without a
fear that programme expertise will be lost. It is the establishment of such bodies with state
support, irrespective of the strength of civil society--unless it can reliably be anticipated that
civil society will be able to sustain these bodies--that educators should give their
attention to when they are able to lift their eyes from the immediate tasks.36
