Ben Bacote teaches at Waterville Valley Academy.
Last August, a bill was revised to add, “an additional assessment to NH schools’ graduation requirements beginning with the graduation class of 2024; that addition is the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Test. This 128 short-answer question test includes three broad categories: American Government, American History, and Symbols and Holidays. In order to satisfy this requirement, learners must answer 90 of the 128 correctly.” (ILHS Memo)
What a stupid email, I thought, before stashing it with others concerning my son and his uncertain academic future. But two weeks later I went digging to find it, after being informed, “my learner has not yet met success.” Immediately, I was defensive and curious.
A quick Google search directed me to the list of 128 questions. As a citizen by birth, a teacher, and a parent, I wanted to see how I would score. I wanted to experience what my students would by taking the test. I wanted to see what was expected of those who have immigrated, sought naturalization, and faced the exam. I was curious because my 15-year-old is a pretty average student, but a keen listener who enjoys learning — and has never left the country. He flunked it.
I found the test easy and enjoyable (in my dude’s defense, I teach history, civics and U.S. government.) I found the answers to “ways Americans can participate in their democracy” informative and helpful. I appreciated that the test acknowledges the historic and perpetual harm of slavery and the enduring racism against Africans and African-American descendants. I only wish it had directly linked them together.
Overall, I found the exam to be a relatively honest reflection of United States history and government, a snapshot of those events and values we as a society hold in the highest regard. I found the test to be like a collection of glossy, framed photos centered in the living room of our metaphoric house.
There are glamour shots of our “Founding Fathers,” lots of old Anglo-dudes: Washington, The Federalists, Franklin, a cameo by Martin Luther King, Jr.; and even a woman, Susan B. Anthony. While scarce, there is little mention of any other recognized class that has contributed to the development of America.
But, this article isn’t really about New Hampshire’s standardized testing results or national trends that “show a decline in math, English and science” (Gibson, NHPR, 12/15/21), or how New Hampshire’s test scores aligns nationally, which “has slipped in the past five years” (Edelbut, DOE Press Release, 12/14/21).
This article has mentioned those things to point to New Hampshire’s trajectory after a national outcry for social justice and racial awareness has been to require high stakes tests on only the United States’ greatest hits. Our legislators seem to say to our teachers, the past is more important than social justice, racial awareness or reckoning with our future.
Now, far be it for me to say, our youths are somehow exceptional in comparison to those seeking naturalization. However, as a teacher and a parent of a youth who failed the exam once, I question the tolerance and space a test like this provides for any other discussions concerning the U.S. government and U.S. civics.
I question the logic of those crafters. Was it truly to inform students about the laws and operations of the land wherein they live, or something worse? Could it be that the lawmakers understood that when high-stakes tests are made, complex lessons are co-opted? I think so.
I see this as a racist product continuing the trend that limits classroom discussions, censors speech and debate, and handcuffs educators for the preservation of past white supremacy. I think lawmakers are afraid of our children changing the world.
3-Minute Civics is a column that explores and examines concepts to help readers understand and participate in state and national political conversation. It runs every other week in the Sunday Forum. The authors of this column are not members of the Monitor’s staff.