In the News -- Citizenship-test failures skyrocket

Failure rates for the citizenship test -- the test that all applicants must pass in order to become Canadian -- have been pretty high as of late. In some cases, the failure rate is as much as 1 in 3. The reason?

Last March, the Government of Canada introduced a new test. This test is based on the overhauled Discover Canada booklet. Since the publication of this new study guide, Canadian citizenship applicants must know even facts about Canada's history, society and values.

Not only do applicants need to know more, but the pass mark has also been raised from 60% to 75%. This news story is just the tip of the iceberg for the debate about immigration in Canada. Canadian new media have taken this opportunity and used it as a platform to dive into the deeper issues of immigration.

For a basic situation report and background of the issue, check out this article by the CBC. Check out the video below to see some of the new questions featured on the test. How would you do on the test?



In an article entitled A Stricter Immigration Test, the National Post offers a more conservative view of the issue (surprise, surprise...). While the editorial does not necessarily approve of the cultural content of the new test, it states that the increased difficulty of the test is a step in the right direction for changing to the process of admitting new Canadians. This article looks at the issue of the growing number of unskilled and elderly immigrants that are being accepted into the country and the burden that they present on Canadian society.

On the other side of the debate, the Globe and Mail's article The Citizenship Test Doesn't Translate looks at the underlying issues of why immigrants are having such a hard time passing the test. From language barriers to gender equality, several aspects influence the failure rates that immigrants face when taking the citizenship exam.

And this is just the print media. Clearly, the debate is complicated but essential to the development of the issue in Canada. Too bad the subject only comes up when there's a story...

Photo Credit: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/discover/index.asp