1 BARRIERS TO CITIZENSHIP

HOW ESL TEACHERS CAN HELP

BARRIERS TO CITIZENSHIP 1

FACTS AND FIGURES: 2

Government of Canada CIC website:

2011 – 248,748 new immigrants:

62.8 % ECONOMIC SKILLED IMMIGRANTS

22.7 % FAMILY CLASS IMMIGRNTS

11.2 % REFUGEES

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/statis

tics/facts2011/permanent/02.asp

The numbers: 3

Economic immigrants: 156,121

Family Class: 56,446

Refugees/

Humanitarian: 27,872

• FAMILY MEMBERS

• REFUGEES

84,318 NEW IMMIGRANTS …. 4

NO LANGUAGE

TESTING REQUIRED

Knowledge of English or French? 5

6

Sponsored family members

need citizenship

• Full integration

• Membership

Refugees need citizenship 7

• Full integration

• Membership

• Can’t return home

• Stateless

• No passport

Grants of citizenship annually 8

Gov of Canada website – report 2008-09 (most

recent available)

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications

/cit-ann-report-2008.asp#year

Applications received: 240,960

Applications approved: 173,976

Some headlines: 9

Ipsos-Reid study by The Dominion Institute

in 2007:“60% of Canadians fail mock

citizenship test”

Canadian Press Nov 28, 2010:

“Citizenship-test failures skyrocket”

from 4-8% to 30%

Toronto Star, Mar 16, 2012: “New rules

double rate of citizenship refusal”

Keys to passing test:

10

Language proficiency

(in English or French)

Education

2011: Family + Refugees = 84,318

11

84,318 new immigrants

in 2011, admitted with

no language or

education requirement

12

Barriers to language

acquisition for refugees

• Survivors of torture

• Survivors of war

• PTSD

• Interruptions in education

• Disabilities/poverty

Where do refugees come from? 13

IRB Statistics for 2011 with success rate:

Iran – 81% (state oppression)

Afghanistan – 78% (civil war)

Somalia – 77% (failed state since 1991)

Nigeria – 63% (civil unrest)

Sri Lanka – 57% (civil war for 40 + years)

Haiti – 48% (civil unrest, disaster, gender issues)

Mexico – 17% (drug wars and corruption, gender)

Hungary – 8% (increasing racism against Roma, Jews)

14

Example #1

• Vietnamese woman born 1960

• Experienced Vietnam war and

post war

• Never attended school

• Canada - 1989 as stateless

refugee

#1 continued 15

• Married and 3 children in

Canada

• 1996 husband left her

• ESL classes in 1990s but could

not pass language tests

#1 continued 16

• 10 years, 4 applications for citizenship

• Failed every time

• 2008 came to PCLS

• Documented PTSD and learning

disability

• Written submissions seeking exemption

17

• 2009 given “accommodation” –

oral test with citizenship judge

(no exemption)

• Granted citizenship after 20

years in Canada

18

Example #2

• Jamaican woman born 1978

• Sponsored to Canada at age 18

• Did not finish high school in Jamaica

• Speaks English but problems with literacy

• Applied for citizenship twice but failed

test

• Requests exemption from test or

accommodation

19

• Receives audiotape of the 70

page booklet for citizenship

• Can’t understand how to use

audio tape

• Tested a few days later

and fails again

20

• PCLS appeals to Federal Court

on ground of unfairness

• DOJ lawyer consents to new test

• Passes oral test

• Granted Citizenship

FACTS ON ILLITERACY IN CANADA 21

Human Resources and Skills Development :

52% of Canadians are Level 3 or above

(Level 3 is minimum for functional literacy in Canada)

Question: What level of literacy is necessary to learn a new language?

Example #3 22

Tibetan man born 1964

Lived as a nomad, no formal

schooling

Speaks Tibetan dialect and illiterate

in Tibetan

2002 accepted as Convention

refugee in Canada

#3 continued… 23

• 2004 - permanent resident

• Working and supporting himself in

Canada

• Described as “asset” by employer

• He is stateless – only home is

Canada

#3 continued 24

Applied for citizenship three times

Refused on language and

knowledge

2010 sought assistance from PCLS

#3 continued 25

New application submitted in 2010

request for exemption from language and knowledge requirement

Evidence from ESL teacher, community members

Still awaiting decision on exemption or accommodation

Example #4 26

Woman from Eritrea, born 1968

Experienced constant civil war,

interrupted schooling

Conscripted into Eritrean military

during civil war with Ethiopia and

gravely injured in 1999 – spent a

year in hospital recovering but suffers

severe PTSD

#4 continued 27

Became permanent resident of

Canada in 2005 with her

husband who is legally blind

Cares for her husband and

their three young children

#4 continued 28

2007 her husband and eldest son

passed the test to become citizens

but she failed the test

She applied again and in 2010

again failed the test

#4 continued 29

In 2011 PCLS applied for her to be

exempted from the language and

knowledge requirement based on

medical evidence of her PTSD and

learning disability

Still waiting for decision on

accommodation or exemption

New Language requirements

as of Nov 1st, 2012 30

Third party test results showing

proof of language proficiency –

used in immigration application

(IELTS test)

Proof of English Language

Proficiency Index Program

New language requirements cont.… 31

Proof of completion of secondary

or post-secondary education in

English (or French) in Canada or

abroad

Proof of CLBN/NCLC in speaking

and listening (LINC/CLIC

certificate)

ESL teachers are on the frontlines 32

You are in position to

identify the cases where

exemptions or

accommodation will be

needed

What can you do? 33

Refer those clients who do

not have the capacity to

acquire English language

proficiency to appropriate

services….

34

Provide letters explaining

their efforts to learn

language, literacy issues, etc.

CONCLUSION

With your help, we can

help these clients obtain

citizenship through

“accommodation” or

their disability or through

exemptions on

humanitarian grounds.

35

© Geri Sadoway, Parkdale Community Legal Services, November 2012