I was very confident. I know everything. I know all the meanings.
All the questions they asked me, I know the answers.”
– Jean Joel, new citizen from Haiti
A “one size fits all” class for aspiring new citizens can help a lot of people, but it can exclude many others who are passionate about becoming citizens of the country they love. The Immigrant Learning Center has helped hundreds of people become United States citizens, many of whom might not have passed the United States citizenship test on their own.
Every aspiring new American must pass an interview with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) consisting of a civics quiz, a reading and writing component, and personal questions based on their application. Many classes focus on preparing students for the 100 civics questions. That is necessary, but it’s usually not enough.
Since our first Citizenship Class in 1997, we have learned a lot about helping people from a wide variety of backgrounds pass their interviews and become United States citizens. We’ve learned that what they need to know isn’t always obvious until it is too late. Here are six keys we’ve discovered to helping anyone who qualifies make their dream of becoming an American come true.
1. Assess English Fluency
Although there is one part of the interview explicitly set up to test English fluency, the entire interview is essentially an English exam, from saying hello to saying “you’re approved.” A native English speaker is going to have vastly different needs from someone with barely enough English fluency to get by.
We have two levels of citizenship classes, and there is still a lot of variability the teacher needs to consider within each class. All of our classes cover some level of English instruction. While students with low fluency might need more in-depth lessons, even fairly fluent students may need to brush up on context-specific vocabulary. For example, they need to know which finger is the “index finger” when the USCIS officer is fingerprinting them.
From the very first interaction with a student up until the end, the teacher conducts ongoing formal and informal assessments of their English abilities. The results of these assessments inform the instruction and allows them to adjust the lessons as they move along.
Didier
Didier couldn’t find a citizenship class that would accept him due to his low English skills, but specialized lessons based on his fluency gave him the tools he needed to pass the exam.
2. Have Conversations
As we said earlier, every part of the interview is essentially an English exam. That includes making “small talk” with the USCIS officer. So, every class includes some time for conversation practice, with the students in small groups or one-on-one with a teacher or volunteer, organized by English fluency.
Sometimes, they practice “everyday English” questions, such as “How was your weekend?” or “What do you do for work?” Other times, they practice multiple ways to answer interview questions like the ones on the N-400 form so they aren’t thrown off when the USCIS officer goes “off script” and asks them “who” when they were expecting “when.”
It’s hard for the teacher to be everywhere at once, so this is one way dedicated volunteers are crucial to the program’s success.
Ali
Ali was in a PhD history program in Turkey, but starting over made him feel like he’s “five years old in USA.” All of the practice conversations in citizenship class let him walk into his USCIS interview feeling confident.
3. Demystify the Process
This interview is probably the highest stakes test any of these students will take in their lives. The more they know what to expect, the less unnecessary stress they have and the more likely they are to succeed.
We try to make students aware of everything that’s going to happen from the moment they enter the building until the moment they exit, including: checking in, being in the waiting room, talking with the officer, taking the oath to tell the truth, turning over their green card, passport, and state ID, taking their photo and fingerprints, answering civics questions, completing the reading and writing tests, clarifying application questions, receiving the results form, and signing off on their personal information.
How do we know all these details? Our successful students tell us all about it. We do a detailed debrief with each student, often in front of the entire class. The aspiring Americans in the class get to hear about the experience first-hand, and it’s an opportunity to celebrate the success of the newest citizen. When that’s not possible, we do individual debriefs.
4. Personalize Instruction
In addition to English proficiency, there are a lot of other factors that can influence the likelihood of success. A student who has six months to prepare for their first interview will have different needs than a student who has two weeks to prepare for their second interview after failing the first time. Other factors include their level of education, complexity of their application, differences in their spoken vs written English abilities and more.
The teacher considers the needs of each student while planning lessons. This is only possible by breaking the class into small groups or even individual exercises, and support from volunteer teacher aides is again crucial. Students might even be placed in different small groups depending on the exercise. A student might be in one group for civics, for example, and another group for conversation on the same day.
This level of personalization is a lot of work, and not every program will be able to pull it off. That should not discourage anyone from trying. Any amount of personalization or “leveling” is going to increase the chances of success for the whole class.
5. Conduct Mock Interviews
Nothing builds confidence like practice. Every citizenship class practices the civics questions, but there is so much more to prepare for. At The Immigrant Learning Center, we practice the entire interview, simulating each step we covered in “demystifying the process.”
The aspiring citizen needs to be comfortable talking about themselves in English. As part of their application, they must answer an extensive set of personal questions. We do not offer legal advice, but we do try to make sure our students understand what the most important questions on the citizenship form mean. We do this with in-class instruction, a detailed study guide and a self-study video series.
This is important even if the student submitted the application before starting class so they might uncover any accidentally wrong answers or context they need to understand.
The mock interviewer tailors the interview to the student’s completed application and aims for overkill. In other words, we try to ask more questions than the officer is likely to. That way the student will be prepared for anything.
Saloua
Saloua knew that a difficult custody and immigration battle from her past would come up during her U.S. citizenship interview. Thankfully, The ILC helped her know what to expect and how to explain it to the officer.
6. Expand Capacity with Volunteers
This last “key” is the cornerstone that holds the rest of the program up. Our comprehensive, individualized approach would not be possible without a dedicated group of volunteers. Fortunately, there are kind, talented people who are not only willing to help but fully enjoy getting to know and support new Americans both in person and online.
Onboarding is not difficult. After the volunteer is screened, they observe some classes and at least one mock interview. They start small, working on simple exercises in a small group or one-on-one, and slowly move to more complicated content as they gain experience. They also need to understand that their role is to implement the teacher’s plan and not to offer legal advice or get involved in the students’ personal lives.
Bonus: More Resources
As you can see, there’s a lot that goes into running a successful citizenship class and serving the full range of aspiring citizens who need our help. Thanks to the tireless efforts of our teachers and volunteers, The Immigrant Learning Center’s Citizenship Classes are highly regarded. Due to our ongoing commitment to serving our students, we are able to offer classes five days a week with students at all English fluency levels who all might have different needs and with personalization to meet the individual learning needs of each student.
However, not every program can meet these standards, whether it’s due to a lack of resources or time. To help both teachers and aspiring Americans, we offer a Citizenship Resource Hub filled with citizenship exam resources including practice questions and a guide to prepping students for the interview.
To support our work with new Americans, please consider making a donation.