Germany to Introduce Controversial New Citizenship Test

[Kampfbaer]

QUIZZING FOREIGNERS
Germany to Introduce Controversial New Citizenship Test
Anyone who wants to become a German citizen will have to pass a citizenship test from September, with the questions to test applicants' knowledge of the country's history, politics and society. SPIEGEL ONLINE presents the German citizenship challenge.

To acquire German citizenship, foreigners living in Germany already have to fulfil a number of conditions. But as of September 1, prospective Germans will face a challenging further hurdle: a new citizenship test.

Anyone who wants to become a German national will have to demonstrate a basic knowledge of the country. In total, prospective Germans will have to tackle 33 questions on politics and democracy, history and responsibility and man and society -- of which they need to answer 17 correctly.

The test was developed for the Interior Ministry by academics at Berlin's Humboldt University. They came up with 1,000 questions, which after being tested on 5,000 people were reduced to around 300. Seven sample multiple-choice questions were revealed Tuesday, with the rest of the questions due to be presented within the next few weeks. The sample questions include such brain teasers as: What's the job of the opposition in the German parliament? When was the Federal Republic of Germany founded? Why did former Chancellor Willy Brandt kneel down in the former Warsaw Ghetto in 1970?

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,559021,00.html

[Lokos]

Brian: 'Wait, why isn't there anything on 1939-1945 here?'

German Tour Guide: 'Everyone vas out on ze picnic! Nazzing happened!'

Brian: 'A picnic in Poland?'

Hahaha... Family Guy... Excellent.

Lokos

[Rictor]

Seems like basic stuff to me. It's a way to screen for people who have no interest in the country, it's history and culture. Why it's controversial, I have no idea.

[Snoshi]

How is this "controversial"?

[Ordie]

I wonder of the former East Germans can pass the test?

[little icebear]

Wouldn´t worry about East Germans.

I wonder how many Germans below my age can pass... The younger they are, the dumber they often apear to me.
Seriously, I wouldn´t be surprised if the average German wouldn´t be much better that a foreigner who´s only got the slightest amount of interest in history and politics.

[little icebear]

Let´s go folks, post whether you´ve got what it takes to be a Kraut! p-)

http://www1.spiegel.de/active/quiztool/fcgi/quiztool.fcgi?id=32516

And don´t use google-fu. Cheating is lame.

[Breakfast in Vegas]

Let´s go folks, post whether you´ve got what it takes to be a Kraut! p-)

http://www1.spiegel.de/active/quiztool/fcgi/quiztool.fcgi?id=32516

And don´t use google-fu. Cheating is lame.7 of 7, I'm krautworthy. Prost!

[little icebear]

You scored 7 out of a possible 7 points.

Congratulations! You answered enough questions correctly to qualify to become a German citizen.

Awesome, I can keep my citizenship. :)

[Adux]

Good for Germans and Germany

[Ordie]

I got 4 out of 7

My German geography sucks.

[Xaito]

thats an easy test...
no doubt there will also be answers for them on the internet... it won't change anything but nice try.

[Mackie]

What a test. They learning some basic, become German citizens and 2 months later they are member of an immigrant gang.
Great. p-)

[Snoshi]

You scored 5 out of a possible 7 points.

Congratulations! You answered enough questions correctly to qualify to become a German citizen.

Geography did it for me

[peonisowning]

3 out of 7.If having to know a little about the country you will be living in is controversial then i don't know what isn't.

[Afro-European]

Good for Germany.There is nothing wrong knowing your host country's history.Isn't that already the case in the US?

[little icebear]

What a test. They learning some basic, become German citizens and 2 months later they are member of an immigrant gang.
Great. p-)

I´ve yet to see a member of an immigrant gang who wasn´t born here anyway, so I guess it doesn´t matter.

I think we somehow suck at providing some "sense of belonging" as the Americans do.

[Switek]

Well, I had some experience with German bureaucracy about immigrant, working permission issues in the beginning of 199o's and can say one: those who have some family connections with German Citizens and were born on territory of former 3rd Reich can count on some better treatment... ;)

Rules are one thing a life is another...

[little icebear]

It´s a shame that Poland´s economy does so well... Poles are the best immigrants you can imagine. They integrate themselves into our society perfecly and they are great at hunting criminals in the Ruhrpott! p-)

http://www.wdr.de/tv/fernsehfilm/images/143_12_Schimanski_muss_leiden.jpg

Forget about Dirty Harry... Schimanski is the real deal. p-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horst_Schimanski

[Mr.Flint]

You scored 7 out of a possible 7 points.

Congratulations! You answered enough questions correctly to qualify to become a German citizen.
But i dun wanna be a German?!

(http://www1.spiegel.de/active/quiztool/fcgi/quiztool.fcgi?id=32516)

[little icebear]

But i dun wanna be a German?!

(http://www1.spiegel.de/active/quiztool/fcgi/quiztool.fcgi?id=32516)

Whom are you trying to fool? Everybody wants to be German.

[Sanat-e-naft]

Brian: 'Wait, why isn't there anything on 1939-1945 here?'

German Tour Guide: 'Everyone vas out on ze picnic! Nazzing happened!'

Brian: 'A picnic in Poland?'

Hahaha... Family Guy... Excellent.

Lokos


"Ve ver invited! Ask Poland... Punch vas served!"

[PeterRJG]

How is this "controversial"?

No idea why it's controversial, personally. Australia introduced a very similar concept a little while ago - answering a test based on civics info, and AFAIK, the US has done so for a long time.

Guess someone on the loony left feels that it's nationalistic or racist or both...

[smalandian]

2 of 7..not my cup of tea apparently..

[oregongrunt]

What a test. They learning some basic, become German citizens and 2 months later they are member of an immigrant gang.
Great. p-)

lol, with war guilt.

[toki]

Question 7 of 7

What is the state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia?

Cologne
Bonn
Düsseldorf
Dortmund

If you fail at this question, you fail at life.
No mercy, back to Okabanga!

[bigvig]

3/7. Good enough for ze Americaine.

[Creampuff]

How is this "controversial"?

Sole (you) ask the neo Nazi element that thrives on emigrants to Europe.

[graureiter]

6 out of 7.

They snuck in a few additional States after I left. :roll:

But I can't figure out what is supposed to be controversial about it.

[Russian_dude]

7/7. Das ist zehr gut. Ich bin ein Berliner!

[fish&chips]

Wouldn´t worry about East Germans.

I wonder how many Germans below my age can pass... The younger they are, the dumber they often apear to me.
Seriously, I wouldn´t be surprised if the average German wouldn´t be much better that a foreigner who´s only got the slightest amount of interest in history and politics.

Quoted for truth.

[epictetus]

7 out of 7. Where do I pick up ze papers?

[Flounder]

5 out of 7. Deutschland uber alles!!111!!!

BTW, I take my jackboots in a size 10.

[Xaito]

5 out of 7. Deutschland uber alles!!111!!!

BTW, I take my jackboots in a size 10.

that's size 44 in germany

[RS_Leo1A5]

thats an easy test...
no doubt there will also be answers for them on the internet... it won't change anything but nice try.
Actually, both questions and answers will be publicly known so you can study for the test - but you won't know which randomly selected 33 questions from the 300-questions-catalogue will be in your test until it begins... (it's somewhat modelled after the German driver's license test).

[NavyTimes]

6 out of 7, but I had to blindly guess on number of states and that capital thingy. :D

Ich bin a kraut und proud of eet!

[OHamann]

7 of 7, easy stuff.

[fish&chips]

7 of 7, easy stuff.


6 out of 7, but I had to blindly guess on number of states and that capital thingy. :D

Ich bin a kraut und proud of eet!

p-) Sorry guys, but as it seems you didn't even read the whole article nor the entire thread. So let me rain on your parade and tell you that the real wannabe-kraut has to pass this test:


Actually, both questions and answers will be publicly known so you can study for the test - but you won't know which randomly selected 33 questions from the 300-questions-catalogue will be in your test until it begins... (it's somewhat modelled after the German driver's license test).

[Rudolph]

4 / 7.....

[PeterRJG]

6/7.

Why "Federal States"? Over here it's the union of the states that makes things federal, so the term "federal states" makes little sense.

Fuggit, it's Germany.

[LazerLordz]

High time these things were applied.

I'm waiting for one to be implemented in Singapore too.

[Bushranger]

7/7 all the way from OZ i guess my backpacking days did help, it was such a blur.

[fish&chips]

6/7.

Why "Federal States"? Over here it's the union of the states that makes things federal, so the term "federal states" makes little sense.

Fuggit, it's Germany.

Well, you could as well call them States of the Federation but "Federal State" is simply a more direct translation of the term "Bundesland".

[PeterRJG]

Well, you could as well call them States of the Federation but "Federal State" is simply a more direct translation of the term "Bundesland".

Yeah, I figured it was a lost in translation thing - I was just having a gentle dig.

[pimpdawgin]

Why is this controversial? Plenty of other countries have tests similar to this. Seems pretty reasonable to me.

[fish&chips]

It is controversial because the test is meant to keep the bad guys out and only admit those who are really "interested" in their new home country. So far, so good. The sad news is though that any hypocrite and undercover jihadist can easily learn up on the questions and thus foil the authorities.

Ticking off 33 boxes with general knowledge about Germany doesn't really tell a lot about the individual's true motivation to become a German citizen imho. Apart from that, I bet you that about half of the "real" Germans would miserably fail at that test.

[deagle]

i think its a good thing. we have driving tests so why not a citizens test ?? its a very reasonable idea .

[fish&chips]

i think its a good thing. we have driving tests so why not a citizens test ?? its a very reasonable idea .

It is certainly a good thing to have a test of sorts. But I for one don't like the way it's going to be done. There should be another method of testing the applicants, but... which one?

[little icebear]

It is certainly a good thing to have a test of sorts. But I for one don't like the way it's going to be done. There should be another method of testing the applicants, but... which one?

A Quest... a journey, long and dangerous. It´s gotta involve slaying dragons or something like that. p-)

[little icebear]

A competition in a TV show would be another possibility... "Germany´s Next Citizen". I know, it´s not that cool but it´s somehow hip these days.

[fish&chips]

You might be on to something there. Let them search Fafnir the dragon and then quiz them about the medicinal effects of dragon blood and all that. Günther Jauch might have a new show: "Wer wird deutscher Staatsbürger?" p-)

[pimpdawgin]

It is controversial because the test is meant to keep the bad guys out and only admit those who are really "interested" in their new home country. So far, so good. The sad news is though that any hypocrite and undercover jihadist can easily learn up on the questions and thus foil the authorities.

Ticking off 33 boxes with general knowledge about Germany doesn't really tell a lot about the individual's true motivation to become a German citizen imho. Apart from that, I bet you that about half of the "real" Germans would miserably fail at that test.

You are absolutely correct. What I meant in my post is that it's shocking, to me, that even this is controversial. This test should be just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to getting citizenship or even residency.
I'm not a racist/xenophobe but there has got to be some way to stem the tide of islamification in Europe. Such high reproductive rates combined with low European ones, and I am scared what Europe will look like in 30-50 years. By look like I don't mean the skin colour, or any of that crap. I mean the cultural and social landscape. Will there be sharia law when the majority of voting-age citizens have been raised in a traditional Muslim upbringing? Who knows.

[nullterm]

Sounds perfectly reasonable to me. I don't see where the controversy would be. It's at the discretion of each country what criteria it wishes to apply to it's would be citizens.

[little icebear]

Will there be sharia law when the majority of voting-age citizens have been raised in a traditional Muslim upbringing? Who knows.

If they try to ban pork or beer in Germany, there will be a very short "clash of civilizations", my friend. p-)