To fulfill their graduation requirements, seniors in CCSD took the civics exam in their American Government and Political Science classes on Sept. 4 and 5.

In previous years, teachers were able to administer the exam anytime during the semester, but with district changes, they were required to give the exam the first week of September. 

“I think the district was basically trying to ensure that all students took the test,” Political Science teacher Joseph Juliano said. “They wanted a very fixed time period so that everyone would do it at the same time, and then they can go and double-check who still needs to do it.”

The exam was made a graduation requirement following the passing of Nevada Senate Bill 322 in 2017 to ensure that Nevada students have a fundamental understanding of American civics. Modeled after the U.S. citizenship test, the exam is made up of 50 multiple-choice questions, covering the foundations of the U.S. government and history. 

“I don’t love the idea of having [students] do the civics test because it’s pretty basic information that’s not aligned with our state standards,” Juliano said. “I’d much rather have a test that tests students on whether or not they’ve actually learned all the core social studies standards…I think the skills that they develop over the course of the social studies classes will benefit them more than a pretty basic content test.”

The questions on the exam consisted of topics like past and current presidents, the U.S. Senate, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and specific amendments. 

“I did not feel ready, because I didn’t really know what was on this test,” senior Simon Asfaw said. “I didn’t know how I was going to do. I didn’t know what to even study for, but when I took the test, I kind of felt relief, because it was easier than I expected.”

On average, students have been scoring anywhere from 80%-90%. 

“One way you can look at it is basically through their whole education, from all through middle school and through their history classes in high school,” Juliano said. “Little by little, students have built up knowledge about the United States, the history, and the government …[which] helped prepare students for it.”