Most Canadians would fail citizenship test

IN a random sampling of public opinion taken by The Forum Poll among 1,645 Canadian voters, in celebration of Canada Day, Canadians were asked 10 questions drawn from Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship,  the study guide used by prospective citizens to study for the Canadian Citizenship Test.

Applicants need to get least 75% to pass the Canadian Citizenship test. Canadians scored an average of 5 correct answers out of 10. A majority of Canadians (88%) obtained 70% or lower while just one-tenth of Canadians (12%) would pass the Canadian Citizenship Test.

Those more likely to pass the Canadian Citizenship Test include males (15%), the highest earners (18%), post-graduate degree holders (21%), and those living in British Columbia (22%).

Those least likely to pass the Canadian Citizenship Test include those 65 years old and over (94%), the lowest earners (97%), those with secondary school or less (95%) and some college or university (93%), and those living in Quebec (95%).

Those in the Western provinces are more likely to know who the Métis are

Respondents were asked: “Who are the Métis?” Half of respondents (55%) correctly answered that the Métis are “a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry”, one-quarter (26%) answered don’t know, one-tenth (11%) answered that they were a “distinct Aboriginal people of Atlantic Canada”, and a few said the “the first French settlers” (6%) and the “original settlers of Montreal” (3%).

Those more likely to answer correctly include those aged 18-44 (64% of those 18-34 and 63% of those 35 to 44), males (59%), those earning $60k to $80k (67%), those who completed college or university (61%) and those with post-graduate degrees (63%), and those living in Manitoba/Saskatchewan (67%) and British Columbia (64%).

 

The West wins again

Respondents were asked, “What is the name of the Royal Anthem of Canada?” One-third of respondents (36%) correctly answered “God Save the Queen” while more than half (56%) answered “O Canada” and a few didn’t know (6%), or said it was The Star-Spangled Banner (1%), or La Marseillaise (1%).

Those more likely to correctly say it was “God Save the Queen” include, the highest earners (44%) and those earning $60k to $80k (43%), those who completed college or university (43%) and post-grads (42%), and those living in Manitoba/Saskatchewan (48%), Alberta (46%), or British Columbia (47%).

One-third of Canadians know their responsibilities as citizens  

Respondents were given a list of official responsibilities Canadian citizens have. They were asked to determine which was not an official responsibility. One-quarter (26%) of respondents correctly said “driving safely” was not a responsibility of citizens (highly advisable, but not an official responsibility). Meanwhile, another said they (26%) didn’t know, a tenth (12%) said it was “helping others in the community”, another tenth (11%) said it was “voting in elections”, an additional tenth (9%) said it was “protecting and enjoying our heritage and environment”, and a few said it was “serving on a jury” (7%), “taking responsibility for oneself and one’s family” (6%), and “obeying the law” (3%).

Those more likely to correctly deduce “driving safely” is not an official responsibility for citizens include, those aged 35 to 44 (36%), males (30%), those earning $80k-$100k (36%), the highest-earners (36%), those who completed college or university (30%), post-grads (29%), and those living in Atlantic Canada (33%) or British Columbia (31%).

 

Higher-earners and the highly educated more likely to know when the CCRF joined the Constitution

When did the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms become part of the Constitution? 4-in-10 respondents (40%) correctly said it was 1982. One-quarter (26%) said 1867, a tenth (10%) said 1988, a few (2%) said 2000, and one-fifth (21%) said they didn’t know.

Those more likely to answer correctly include males (47%), those earning more than $60k (50% of those earning $60k to 80k, 48% of those earning $80k to $100k, and 50% of those earning $100k to $250), post-grads (54%), and living in Atlantic Canada (40%), Québec (41%), or Ontario (42%).

Albertans more likely to know about Canadian geography

Respondents were also asked about geography, “Canada has five regions, which of the following is not one of them?” Most Canadians (63%) recognize that the Midwest is not a region of Canada. A few Canadians erroneously guessed that West Coast (7%), Central Canada (6%), the Prairies (4%), the Northern Territories (4%) and Atlantic Canada (2%) were not regions of our nation. About a tenth (14%) don’t know.

Those more likely to know that the Midwest is not a region of Canada include those aged 35-44 (70%) and 45-54 (68%), males (66%), those earning more than $60k (72% of those earning $60k-$80k, 72% of those earning $80k-100k, and 73% of those earning $100k-$250k), those who completed college or university (70%), and post-grads (72%), and those living in Alberta (75%).

 

More than half know “Inuit” means “the people”

The majority (56%) was able to correctly identify that “the people” is the meaning of the word “Inuit” in the Inuktitut language. A quarter (27%) didn’t know, while about 1 in 10 (7%) said it meant “the north”. About 1 in 20 thought it meant home (6%) or land (4%).

Respondents most likely to correctly identify the meaning include those aged 35-44 (59%) or 45-54 (60%), earning $80-100,000 (65%), with a college/university (60%) or graduate degree (63%), and living in BC (64%).

Half know Gilles Duceppe isn’t a party leader in the House of Commons

A list of four party leaders was presented to respondents: Duceppe, Trudeau, Scheer, and May.  Respondents were asked to identify which was not currently a leader in the House of Commons.  Half (53%) correctly identified Duceppe as someone not currently a party leader in the House of Commons, though curiously one-fifth (20%) selected Justin Trudeau.1 in 10 (9%) said Elizabeth May and 1 in 20 (6%) said Andrew Scheer.

Respondents most likely to correctly identify Duceppe include those aged 35-44 (60%) or 45-54 (57%), males (58%), earning $60-80,000 (60%), $80-100,000 (58%), or the most wealthy (61%), with a college/university (59%) or graduate degree (61%), and living in Québec (72%).

 

Half correctly identify the founding peoples of Canada

Half (48%) were able to correctly identify that Aboriginal, French, and British were the founding peoples of Canada.One-fifth (17%) said they do not know.

Respondents most likely to correctly identify the founding peoples of Canada include those aged 34 or younger (53%), 35-44 (53%), 45-54 (50%), males (54%), the most wealthy (56%), with a post-graduate degree (60%).

Two-thirds know the importance of the Canada Pacific Railway

Two-thirds (65%) were able to identify that unity, a railway from sea to sea, was the importance of the Canada Pacific Railway. About 1 in 10 (8%) thought it was the start of the manufacturing industry or easy access to steel from west to east (8%).1 in 20 (5%) thought it was wealth, and Canada increasing its GDP. One-sixth (14%) said they do not know.

Respondents most likely to correctly identify the importance of the CPR include those aged 55-64 (72%), males (70%), earning $60-80,000 (72%) or the most wealthy (74%), with a college/university (69%) or graduate degree (70%), and living in BC (78%).

 

Only 1 in 5 identify the Sovereign as Canada’s Head of State  

One-fifth (19%) were able to identify the Sovereign, Her Majesty the Queen, as Canada’s Head of State. 4 in 10 (39%) said it was the Prime Minister, while a third (33%) said it was the Governor General. Few said they didn’t know (6%) or the President (3%)

Respondents most likely to identify the Sovereign as Head of State include those aged 35-44 (21%) or 55-64 (22%), earning $80-$100,000 (22%) or the most wealthy (25%), with a college/university (23%) or graduate degree (25%), and living in Atlantic Canada (29%).

 

“Many Canadians wouldn’t pass the Canadian citizenship test,” said Dr. Lorne Bozinoff, President of Forum Research. “Canadians’ general knowledge of what’s in the study guide would only get them about halfway to a passing grade.”