[ti:People Seeking US Citizenship Face Tougher Test] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]People seeking U.S. citizenship will now be required [00:05.16]to take a longer and more complex test. [00:11.08]The test centers on civics, [00:14.40]a study of the rights and duties of citizenship. [00:20.00]There are now 128 subjects [00:23.60]relating to American history and government [00:27.36]for applicants to study before taking the test. [00:32.60]There used to be 100 subjects. [00:36.36]The new test requires applicants [00:40.12]to answer 20 questions instead of 10. [00:44.72]To pass, individuals must answer [00:48.00]12 questions correctly, or 60 percent. [00:52.60]This is the same pass rate as before. [00:58.04]The process of becoming a U.S. citizen [01:01.72]is known as "naturalization." [01:05.72]Passing the naturalization test is the final requirement [01:10.76]for legal permanent residents [01:13.20]- also known as green card holders [01:16.44]- to become American citizens. [01:20.32]A U.S. immigration official asks the applicant the questions [01:25.96]during a naturalization interview, [01:29.04]one of the final steps in the process. [01:33.16]U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) [01:37.40]is the federal agency that administers [01:40.96]the country's naturalization and immigration system. [01:46.72]Last year, it announced it was improving the naturalization test [01:51.84]for the first time since 2008. [01:56.72]The change became official last week. [02:01.00]Anyone applying for U.S. naturalization [02:04.96]after December 1, 2020, must take the new test version. [02:12.44]The USCIS's acting director, Ken Cuccinelli, said in July [02:19.00]it was the agency's responsibility to improve and keep the test current [02:25.40]in order to help new citizens "fully understand [02:29.96]the meaning of U.S. citizenship and the values that unite all Americans." [02:38.44]While many questions have not changed, some have been reworded [02:43.84]and others will require additional explanation in the answers. [02:50.16]For example, the former test asked, [02:53.92]"There were 13 original states, name three." [02:58.44]The new version states "There were 13 original states. Name five." [03:06.04]Instead of "What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?," [03:12.16]an applicant must now answer, [03:14.72]"What are three rights of everyone living in the United States?" [03:20.96]Some immigrant rights groups have criticized the new test, [03:26.00]saying some questions were made more difficult [03:29.76]without a clear reason to do so. [03:33.20]Aaron Reichlin-Melnick is with the American Immigration Council. [03:39.16]He raised concerns that some questions were influenced by politics. [03:45.96]"On the old test, applicants could be asked ‘ [03:49.80]Who does a U.S. senator represent?' [03:53.40]The suggested answer was ‘all people of the state,'" he said. [03:59.08]On the new test, the suggested answer is "citizens of their state." [04:06.24]"This is not correct," Reichlin-Melnick said. [04:10.60]"Members of Congress represent everyone who lives within their district, [04:16.48]regardless of citizenship status. [04:20.00]It's been that way since the nation was founded." [04:24.32]A 2018 study by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation [04:30.36]found that only one in three U.S.-born citizens [04:35.00]would pass the former naturalization test. [04:40.00]USCIS said it finalized the new test [04:44.76]with the help of community-based organizations [04:48.40]and volunteers across the country in summer 2020. [04:54.52]"The data collected from this pilot was used to help USCIS [05:00.84]make determinations about the language and grammatical structure [05:06.40]of individual test items," the agency said. [05:11.72]Sarah Pierce is a policy expert at the Washington D.C.-based, [05:17.28]Migration Policy Institute. [05:21.32]She said the test changes could possibly triple the amount of time [05:26.96]each immigration officer needs to spend with applicants. [05:33.44]"These changes reduce the efficiency [05:37.04]of this already struggling agency," Pierce said. [05:42.52]"The administration is adding hundreds of thousands of more minutes [05:47.56]to these naturalization exams." [05:51.84]USCIS spokesman Dan Hetlage said applicants 65 years and older [05:59.96]who have been living in the U.S. legally for at least 20 years [06:04.84]will be provided special consideration. [06:09.28]They will be able to study from a smaller number of civics subjects [06:14.92]and will need to only get six out of 10 questions correct to pass. [06:21.36]I'm Bryan Lynn. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM