House Bill 16-148 would require Colorado high school students to pass the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ civics test in order to graduat. (Thinkstock)
I noticed in a recent Denver Post opinion poll that 74 percent of readers think it is a good idea to use the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services civics test as a graduation requirement.
As someone who taught civics in the 1980s, and as someone who has worked with an immigrant to become a U.S. citizen, I do not think this test should be a graduation requirement. This test is primarily designed for adults who speak English as a second language. It is a basic, common-knowledge test that comes with 100 flash cards — one card for each test question. As members of the oldest democratic republic in the world, we must expect that our students have more than just a basic understanding of our form of government in order to graduate.
Luckily, the Colorado Department of Education recognized this when they wrote the high school standards for civics. The first standard states, Prepared graduates Analyze and practice rights, roles, and responsibilities of citizens. The second standard states, Prepared graduates Analyze origins, structure, and functions of governments and their impacts on societies and citizens. Analysis is not a skill that is tested by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services civics test; however, analysis is a skill our American students must have to be good citizens.
What I would require of all high school graduates is that they attend a swearing in of new American citizens. This solemn yet celebratory event demonstrates to students the seriousness of citizenship. It shows adults choosing to give up their birth citizenship in preference for an American citizenship. Students hearts, as much as their minds, would be affected by personally experiencing this event. It is their hearts that will propel them to vote and be more active as citizens. Now that is a graduation requirement.
Carolyn Ayars, Littleton
This letter was published in the March 20 edition.
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