Minnesota Could Add Civics Test To Diploma Requirements

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota could join other states in requiring high school students to pass a civics test before getting a diploma.

A new bill at the Capitol would add the U.S. citizenship exam on civics to graduation requirements starting with the 2016-2017 school year. North Dakota and Arizona have already enacted similar laws.

A group of more than 20 House legislators, most of them Republican, introduced the bill Thursday. A conservative institute is pushing the issue nationwide.

The national test includes questions like how often the country elects a president and what the Emancipation Proclamation did. The bill introduced Thursday would require high school students to correctly answer at least 60 percent of them. They would get as many chances as they needed to pass the exam.