I could not agree more. My wife recently became a Canadian citizen and I studied along with her to prepare for the exam. I was embarrassed to admit that I was getting quite a few questions wrong.

“Canadians appear to be losing knowledge when it comes to the most basic questions about Canadian history, politics, culture and geography … (they) performed abysmally on some questions,” the firm said in a statement.

Only 4 percent knew the three requirements a citizen had to meet to be able to vote while only a third could correctly identify the number of provinces and territories. Just 8 percent knew that the Queen is the head of state.

The survey was carried out for the Dominion Institute, which aims to boost knowledge of Canadian history and values. It said all high school students should have to pass a special citizenship exam before they can graduate.

These were all questions that, if asked 20 years ago, I would have nailed. But, with the passage of time…not so much. Something to think about on this coming Canada Day.

Link

Technorati Tags: Canadian Citizenship, Canada, Canada Day 2007