Jeopardy for Prospective Americans

A sample citizenship test

Published on May 26, 2004 By pseudosoldier In Politics

For dharmagrl and other interested parties:

1. How many stars are there on our flag?
2. What do the stars on the flag mean?
3. What color are the stripes?
4. What do the stripes on the flag mean?
5. What is the date of Independence Day?
6. Independence from whom?
7. What do we call a change to the Constitution?
8. How many branches are there in our government?
9. How many full terms can a president serve?
10. Who nominates judges of the Supreme Court?
11. How many Supreme Court justices are there?
12. Who was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence?
13. What holiday was celebrated for the first time by American colonists?
14. Who wrote the Star-Spangled Banner?
15. What is the minimum voting age in the U.S.?
16. Who was president during the Civil War?
17. Which president is called the "Father of our Country"?
18. What is the 50th state of the Union?
19. What is the name of the ship that brought the Pilgrims to America?
20. Who has the power to declare war?
21. What were the 13 original states of the U.S. called?
22. In what year was the Constitution written?
23. What is the introduction to the Constitution called?
24. Which president was the first Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Army and Navy?
25. In what month do we vote for the president?
26. How many times may a senator be re-elected?
27. Who signs bills into law?
28. Who elects the president of the U.S.?
29. How many states are there in the U.S.?
30. Who becomes president if both the president and V.P. die?

From: Politics in America, Fifth Edition, Texas Edition by Thomas R. Dye

Comments

pseudosoldier

on May 26, 2004

And the answers:

1. 50
2. One for each state in the Union
3. Red and white
4. They represent the 13 original states
5. July 4
6. England
7. Amendments
8. 3
9. 2
10. The president
11. 9
12. Thomas Jefferson
13. Thansgiving
14. Francis Scott Key
15. 18
16. Abraham Lincoln
17. George Washington
18. Hawaii
19. The Mayflower
20. The Congress
21. Colonies
22. 1787
23. The Preamble
24. George Washington
25. November
26. There is no limit at the present time
27. The president
28. The Electoral College
29. 50
30. Speaker of the House of Representatives

You need 18 out of 30 to approximate a passing score.

greywar

on May 27, 2004

They left out : "Who wrote the book of love?"

dharmagrl

on May 27, 2004

Yay! I got them all right!!!!

That's only because I did a sample test last week and made myself learn about the answers I got wrong.

So, what's my prize?

Estrogen Lass

on May 27, 2004

I would hope that people would know that. But unfortunately we are living in a stupid society.

dharmagrl

on May 27, 2004

I would hope that people would know that. But unfortunately we are living in a stupid society.

I find it somewhat sad that I as a foreign national looking to become a US citizen end up knowing more about the constitution and the governmental system than someone who was born and bred here.

jeblackstar

on May 28, 2004

11. should add the modifier, "at present". That may seem small, but the constitution does not establish the number of supreme court justices.

20.'s answer should be the Senate and not Congress, Just try and see the House declare war.

6. should be Great Britain

Sorry to nitpick, it's the professor in me.

Cheers

pseudosoldier

on May 28, 2004

Feel free to nitpick, jeb. This test was merely typed in by me, and was reproduced without permission from the Government textbook that I'm using in an online college course. dharma had expressed interest, so I thought I'd post it.
"The Book of Love"... someone in India? The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Prince? Your Mom? (Hi, Mom.)
Geez, it's hard to make a "your mom" joke when the mother in question just might be reading. Awkward.
When I first took it, I got them all right, but that was after reading most of the first two chapters of the book. I would've missed a couple, honestly, but not enough to fail. I put the burden (good or ill) of these results upon my American public education.

pseudosoldier

on Jun 20, 2004

Y'know, it occurs to me that the sort of training and testing that prospective US citizens go through, the training and testing that dharma so aptly points out makes these naturalized citizens more knowledgable about their adoptive society, is very similar in both cause and effect to entrance into the Catholic church.
Now if I could only turn this odd parallel into a blog entry...

historyishere

on Jun 21, 2004

Doesn't a prospective US citizen have to know all the presidents as well?

pseudosoldier

on Jun 26, 2004

It can be even worse/harder trying to get someone over from a less developed country. A co-worker met a Malaysian (I think) woman while stationed in Korea, and is having endless difficulties in getting her over here. He has already married her, but they keep re-routing her visa request. He has discovered entire new agencies none of us had heard of prior to these events. Once his terms of service are up, if she still can't come here, I believe he is considering just moving there.

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