U.S. unveils new citizenship test

WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- U.S. government officials have revealed 100 questions that will be included in the new citizenship test, which begins in October 2008.

The new test focuses more on assessing a test-taker's grasp of Democratic values, as opposed to the old test, which mainly featured civics trivia questions, The Washington Post reported Friday.

The test drops the question, "What country did we fight during the Revolutionary War?" in favor of, "Why did the colonists fight the British?"

"I think what we've achieved through the process is a better test, concept-oriented ... but is not harder," said Alfonso Aguilar, chief of the Office of Citizenship at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

“This test genuinely talks about what makes an American citizen,” The New York Times quoted Emilio Gonzalez, the director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, as saying at a Washington news conference.

Some 6,000 applicants volunteered to take the test as part of a pilot program this spring in 10 cities, the Post said. A total 92.4 percent of the volunteers passed, compared to the 84 percent pass rate of the old test.