Pilot test will be offered to those seeking citizenship
Louie Gilot
El Paso Times
Jan 30, 2007
Immigration officials are looking for volunteers to test their new citizenship exam. The deal is good.
First, you'll get the questions in advance. Then, you'll get a do-over - if you fail the pilot test, you can retake the old version right after, and you only have to redo the portions you failed.
El Paso was one of 10 cities selected for the trial, which is meant to make the citizenship test more meaningful and not necessarily more difficult, officials said.
For instance, instead of asking the color of the stars on the U.S. flag, the new test might ask for one important idea found in the Declaration of Independence.
"We're proud of this new pilot test, and we encourage our citizenship applicants in the El Paso area to volunteer to take it," said Raymond Adams, director of Citizenship and Immigration Services in El Paso. "In a sense, these volunteers will play a small part in our country's history, since their feedback will help us mold the final version of the new naturalization exam given to all citizenship
applicants beginning in 2008.
The agency will mail a letter to all citizenship applicants scheduled for an interview in El Paso during the trial period, which begins in February, to invite them to take the test.
The program will last 90 to 120 days and participation will be voluntary.
The test will not differ from the old one in length, officials said, taking about five minutes during which officials ask the applicant 10 questions about America. The new questions will cover the same subjects as the old ones but the new questions will require less memorization and more comprehension, officials said.
To help, immigration officials will provide volunteers with study materials, including the actual 142 history and civics questions, as well as a vocabulary list for the English reading and writing portions of the test.
Immigration officials need about 6,000 volunteers nationwide.
