The economic value of education to individuals, families, communities, and nations continues to be one of the key justifications for investments in education globally. Yet, the total value of education should capture the value of both economic and non-economic outcomes that accrue to societies, in addition to all private returns. Unfortunately, there has been little progress to date in terms of estimating not just the social economic return from education, but the social non-economic return (i.e. externalities) that accrue from the experience of participating in education, particularly higher education, in a country such as Ethiopia. This paper aims to address these gaps by exploring whether participation in education yields immediate community benefits in Ethiopia. In particular, it addresses the question: is there evidence that young people who have recently participated in formal education are more engaged with community action in Ethiopia? Community action is an important form of education externality, as it could impact on the development of civic institutions over time in this low-income country. To set this in context, this paper considers the aims and outcomes of the Ethiopian education system with respect to the formation of young people's civic participation, the status of civics and ethical education in the curriculum, and how this relates to values and expectations within the community.