Life in the UK Test

According to BritishTest.com, history questions are soon to be included in the Life in the UK test.  Britain’s leading training provider quotes David Cameron and offers a set of questions based on the First Chapter of the official manual, – even if it is NOT YET part of the real test.  For more information, visit http://www.britishtest.com/history-questions.

Taking an inventory of the things owned by an individual or family, scores of items are likely to be brought forth to be numbered and listed. Some people may start with major physical possessions such as a house or vehicle, while others may concentrate on more abstract ideas such as their state of health. No matter how short or how long the list of anyone in particular, however, a set of values is sure to be present on all, helping to represent the ideas and experiences that have gone into shaping a person or group over time. Values are highly treasured by some people, and are less-often celebrated by others, and while people may not always agree on values themselves, they are likely to find patches of common ground if they’re able to discuss and express their values in meaningful ways. One of the most meaningful ways in which people are able to express their values is to participate in voting and other practices essential to interacting with their country of residence. In the UK, voting is a major part of national identity and allows citizens to take part in defining and polishing the values of the nation itself. Immigrants may not always feel a need to participate in voting as they attempt to settle and establish themselves in a new country, but without taking the citizenship test and completing the requirements of legal permanent status, personal values can suffer in terms of their ability to make an impact on the shape and character of the nation.

Taking an inventory of the things owned by an individual or family, scores of items are likely to be brought forth to be numbered and listed. Some people may start with major physical possessions such as a house or vehicle, while others may concentrate on more abstract ideas such as their state of health. No matter how short or how long the list of anyone in particular, however, a set of values is sure to be present on all, helping to represent the ideas and experiences that have gone into shaping a person or group over time. Values are highly treasured by some people, and are less-often celebrated by others, and while people may not always agree on values themselves, they are likely to find patches of common ground if they’re able to discuss and express their values in meaningful ways. One of the most meaningful ways in which people are able to express their values is to participate in voting and other practices essential to interacting with their country of residence. In the UK, voting is a major part of national identity and allows citizens to take part in defining and polishing the values of the nation itself. Immigrants may not always feel a need to participate in voting as they attempt to settle and establish themselves in a new country, but without taking the citizenship test and completing the requirements of legal permanent status, personal values can suffer in terms of their ability to make an impact on the shape and character of the nation.     Part of the great value of cultural diversity in any nation is the fact that values and ideals stem from various parts of the world, allowing for a greater range of philosophies, traditions, and past times to be represented. While people from a given part of the world may hold the idea that their particular value as newcomers is to be found in specific acts or outward appearances, many of the greatest treasures of divers backgrounds is delivered in the form of values. These values can help give substance to laws and privileges, help invent and maintain social programs, and ultimately direct the course of national action. Though it is often tempting to think that a single person’s values and an individual vote are far from able to have a direct influence on the country as a whole, it is the spirit and fact of participation that help make the country run, and every bit of personal or family involvement is essential.     One of the biggest challenges that immigrants often face when considering taking the UK citizenship test and going through with the naturalization process is the idea that they’re leaving their identities behind, or are somehow rejecting their pasts. Of course, through voting and expressing personal values, retaining this sense of identity is especially easy, and people who frequently engage with the local and national communities as citizens tend to enjoy a closer and more clear connection to their backgrounds.

All types of citizenships in the UK had almost no chance for appeal. Basically the UK Border agency made clear that for them to reconsider an application a letter needed to be set to them in order to review. Sounds simple but there were some tricks to it.

The rejection came in the form of an official UK Border Agency letter stating the reasons why your application was denied. Of course non of this impacted in your permanent residency status. It only impacted in your tax per year and your civil rights since you are not a citizen. For the appeal process you needed to send a letter to the UK B. Agency explaining why you where in disagreement with the decision based on their own letter. If there was a paper missing or a miss interpretation you had to send the copy of the originals with the letter for them to be reviewed. It the best of cases you could have an interview with an administrative to walk through your lodge and finally clarify the situation.

From September 1^st 2010 this same process will have a FEE applied to it. By the price of £100 you will be able to appeal your citizenship application. That is only to start the process at the Border Agencies. They will review the paperwork you submitted and take a decision based on your dispute. If you are unlucky and the Agency rejects the application again you won’t be refunded a penny, UK needs to cover the administrative expenses of reviewing your lodge.

If you are indeed lucky you will be refunded £20 since the remaining £80 will be used for the ceremony expenses. Oh!, you thought you paid for that when you submitted the lodge in the first place? Well we understand your mistake; the fact that we at the UK Border Agency made a mistake and rejected the lodge in the first place so you had to appeal and pay an extra fee of £100 to finally be reimbursed 20 for a citizenship ceremony you already paid for is just a small detail in your mind. Don’t pay attention to it.

And don’t even remember the fact that you paid for the Like in the UK booklet and later to sit for the test, careful as many times as you needed to reach the passing score.

What are you going to do next with your rightfully reimbursed £20? A Guinness?

Sitting and passing the ‘Life in the UK Test’ is mandatory for the majority those applying for British citizenship or ‘indefinite leave to remain’ in the UK (those without sufficient language skills are required to pass an ESOL course). It was introduced in 2005 to ensure that settlers in the UK were both able to communicate with others and understood key facts and concepts about modern British society. It was hoped that this would promote integration and help ease any potential friction between the many different cultures that exist today in the UK, whilst encouraging newcomers to contribute to society. At the moment, applicants are allowed to fail the test as many times as they need to, providing they wait at least week in between tests and pay the fee each time they resit.

The test is notoriously difficult, with applicants required to commit to memory a wealth of facts, figures and statistics of varying degrees of relevance to day-to-day UK life. Statistics show that in 2009 just under a third of those taking the test failed, although these failed to show how many of these were first time or repeated tests. There was no official reason given for allowing applicants to sit the test as many times as needed. Perhaps it sends out a positive, welcoming message to would-be applicants. Or by making the questions difficult and drawing all the questions from government-produced material is it a case of money-spinning? Those applying for citizenship or settlement will already have spent many hundreds of pounds in application fees, what would a few more hurt?

There is little doubting that tighter immigration controls, such as the mandatory Life in the UK Test, were introduced to alleviate the burgeoning immigration levels that the UK has experienced in recent years. There seems little point then, in introducing the requirement of passing a difficult test, peppered with statistics to be committed to memory and regurgitated if the exam then becomes little more than a memory test, one which those who fail can take over and over again. Detractors could argue that this sends out a confused message to would-be immigrants, that the government is attempting to take a bold stance on immigration, without upsetting too many people – seeming to say, ‘We want to make it tougher for you to come here, but not that tough’. Indeed at times, the guide can seem more like a brochure promoting the benefits of British political correctness and multi-culturalism than the study material for a citizenship test. Perhaps the British authorities should look to Canada, which offers those who have failed the citizenship test the chance to undertake a brief interview with a specially appointed immigration judge. A more personal approach, with oral interaction and a chance to show off understanding and intelligence might prove a more appealing option than a banal computerised test, and might giver those applying a greater incentive to study and pass first time.

Recently released figures revealed that in 2009 just under a third of all foreigners applying for residency or citizenship in the UK failed the ‘Life in the UK Test’. Of the 906,464 applicants, 263,641 failed the UK citizenship test which is a key requirement for those seeking to obtain British citizenship or settlement. It was designed to test migrants’ knowledge of  not only the English language but also important information about British society. Previous Prime Minister Gordon Brown, whose Labour government implemented the ‘Life in the UK Test’ requirement, insisted that ‘Becoming a citizen is an important act, because they are getting rights and in return for that they have to accept responsibilities’. He claimed that ‘You should be able to speak the English language, you should be able to understand and speak about British cultural traditions’.

In 2009 the highest number of applications came from India, with 79.2% of the 100,001 who sat the test passing. Elsewhere in the Indian subcontinent, Pakistan provided the second most (63.8% of 68,279) and Bangladesh the fifth most although with a much lower success rate (44% of 38,085).

The third most came from the Philippines where 78.1% of the 53,609 passed the test, and the forth from Iraq with only 47.9% of the 40,200 applicants achieved the 75% pass mark. There appears a correlation between language proficiency and success in the test, with applicants from English-speaking countries in general faring much better. Applicants from the USA, Canada and Australia, for example, scored 97.7%, 96.9% and 98.0% respectively. Turkey (30,014) and Afghanistan (29,650), although providing the eighth and ninth most applicants, only achieved pass rates of 45.% and 47.8% respectively.

The multiple-choice test, which comprises 24 questions covering such subjects as the politics, culture and history of the UK and lasts 45 minutes, has faced its fair share of criticism since its introduction in 2005.

The scarcity of questions related to key moments in British history has been met with disapproval, especially when obscure questions ask, for example, what year British women were given the right to divorce their husbands (answer: 1857). According to historian Dominic Sandbrook, ‘the questions betray a  weird obsession with immigration, multiculturalism and the intimate workings of the welfare system’. Critics have argued that in attempting to capture the essence of ‘Britishness’ the makers of the test missed the mark, with the result an irrelevant quiz which the majority of British citizens by birth would probably fail.
The scepticism of the ‘Life in the UK Test’ was recently echoed by American author Bill Bryson, a long-time resident in the UK. He recently told an audience that although he is eligible for British citizenship and would like to apply, he is afraid of failing the ‘Life in the UK Test’ and what the reaction in the media would be.

Dominic Sandbrook, Daily Mail

Life in the UK Test Results in Full

Starting October 1, 2007, it is no longer legal to sell tobacco to people younger than 18 in Great Britain.  Because the questions in the Life in the UK Test are based on the manual “Life in the UK – A Journey to Citizenship”, and nobody is required to know more than what is in that book, it is most likely that the question about minimum smoking age will be removed until the new edition of the manual comes out, where this change will be reflected.

Note that this change does not affect Northern Ireland.

For more information about the change in the tobacco law, visit Smokefree.

According to the official answer published in the Hansard on April 18, 2006, 7 373 people could not pass the Life in the UK test between November 1, 2005 and March 1, 2006. It means that approximately 60 people failed the test every day.

This is what the Life in the UK Test will look like.

The little boxes on the top allow you to move between questions. Each of the 24 boxes stands for one question.

You can select a different question by clicking a box with your mouse. You can also move to the desired box by using the keyboard.

A white box means that you have not yet visited a question.
A white box with a blue outline means you have visited a question but not answered it.
A blue box means you have answered a question.

Using the boxes to move around the test lets you visit questions first and return to them later. This is especially useful when you’re not sure what the answer to a question is, or if you want to change a previous answer.

Selecting Hear the question turns on the audio. This reads out the question to you. There may be a slight delay before you can hear the question.

Selecting Next question takes you to the next question in the test.
Selecting Previous question returns you to the previous question in the test.

Questions left to answer tells you how many questions you have left to answer. Questions answered tells you how many you have answered.

The timer counts down your time from when you start the test.

It is always there, so you know how much time you have left.

Halfway through the test time, you will get a time alert. You will get two more time alerts: ten and two minutes before the test ends.

To select the first answer, press the number 1.
To select the second answer, press the number 2.
To select the third answer, press the number 3.
To select the fourth answer, press the number 4.

To deselect an answer, press the relevant number key again.

To move to the next question, select N.
To move to the previous question, select P.
To hear the question, select H.
To finish the test, select F.

When you move to an answer, the area around it turns grey. This means the answer is active and you can select it. If you are using a mouse, your pointer arrow will also change to a pointer finger.

Once you select an answer, the area around it turns white. If you have selected a radio button, a dot will also appear in the circle. If you have selected a tick box, a tick will appear in the box.

The Finish test button ends the test.

You select Finish test when you have completed all 24 questions. If you run out of time, your test will end automatically. You will not be allowed to finish your current question.

Don’t worry if you select Finish test by mistake; you will be asked to confirm your decision.

Remember: none of your answers are final until you select Finish test and confirm your decision.