New Citizenship Test Gets A Test Drive

They came from Vietnam, India, Mexico, Britain. And they were among the first in the United States to try out a new citizenship test that the U.S. government wants to have ready for 2008.

The new test is designed to make immigrants think more about American concepts instead of memorizing lists of facts.

Those who volunteered Thursday said they did quite well.

"It seemed like a good cause," said Sandeep Nayyar, 37, of India, who answered correctly all 10 of the civics questions he faced. "If it helps result in a better test, why not?"

Nayyar said he studied for both the current and pilot tests and did not see much of a difference.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services wants 6,000 people in 10 cities to take the pilot test, which also includes reading and writing portions that are slightly different from the current test.

To pass the civics section, applicants must answer six of 10 questions correctly in an oral exam. There are 140 possible questions in all, which will be trimmed to 100 as immigration officials watch how the volunteers do.

Some made mistakes. As soon as Grahame Jones answered that two of the inalienable rights in the Declaration of Independence are the freedoms of speech and religion, he smiled and knew he was wrong. (The correct answers were life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.)

The British immigrant passed anyway and will take the citizenship oath in May.

"I'm not sure if they're important things to know," said Jones, 53. "But as a courtesy to the citizenship office, it does prove you're serious about becoming a U.S. citizen."

There is no penalty for failing the voluntary pilot test; applicants can simply take the current test.

Immigration officials mailed letters to people eligible for the pilot test and encouraged them to take it as a ""unique chance to make a contribution to your new country."

Other cities administering the pilot test are Albany, N.Y.; Boston; Charleston, S.C.; Denver; El Paso, Texas; Kansas City, Mo.; Miami; Tucson, Ariz.; and Yakima, Wash.

Ramiro Tomas Estevez Guzman, 66, who moved to Texas from Mexico City 10 years ago, said it is easy to pick up the information needed to pass simply by reading the newspaper and watching the news.

"You should know the names of the people who are in power of the country you live in," he said after passing.

"I want to make sure that people understand this is certainly not to make the test more difficult," Customs and Immigration spokeswoman Maria Elena Garcia-Upson has said. "We just want to make sure that when they're giving the oath of allegiance, raising their right hand at the time of the ceremony, that they understand our process here in this country and what our forefathers stood for."

Hau Le, 36, of Vietnam, said he got six of 10 questions right. He could not remember which ones he missed, but said at least one question — who is the president now? — was easy.

"Everybody knows that one," he said.