A person’s citizenship can be determined in several ways. Most people are automatically granted citizenship to the nation-state in which they are born. In some cases, a child may have the right to the citizenship of one or both of their parents (if different from the location where the child was born). People can also apply for citizenship following rules and regulations set by a particular nation-state. A person may have multiple citizenships and a person who does not have citizenship of any state is said to be stateless.
Source: Evans, M. and Reynolds, C. (2004). Introduction: Educating for Global Citizenship in a Changing World. Retrieved from http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/cidec/UserFiles/File/Research/Global_Citizenship_Education/intro.pdf
A good citizen is informed of their country’s history, their rights and privileges, knowledgeable of Aboriginal people, protect the environment and most importantly, a good citizen is respecting and understanding of others. My current knowledge, skills, values and behaviours are continuously improving to align with what I expect from good citizens. For instance, I voted for the first time in the 2019 federal election. I believe that is just one of the many steps I still have to take in order to positively contribute to the country I live in. As the years passed, I am trying to become aware of issues concerning what it means to be a good citizen.
I took on the Toronto Public Library Citizenship test and got an average of 80%. The passing score is 75% making it possible for me to become a Canadian citizen if I had to take it. I believe the questions are meaningful. It is divided into different sections including “The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship”, “Government, Elections and Voting Procedures” and “Facts About Canada, its History, Geography and Symbols”. This ensures that different topics about Canada are covered. I think the main purpose of the test is to see if the citizen-to-be is knowledgeable about the fundamentals of what it is to be a Canadian citizen. If I had to devise a citizenship test for new immigrants, I would ask situational questions focusing on topics of Tolerance and Respect. If there was not this kind of test, another form to use could be hours of volunteering or involvement in their community.
Supranational governance through the United Nations and other international organizations such as the World Bank, World Trade Organization, and International Monetary Fund could hold more promise than national government in terms of globalization and helping developing countries to still benefit from it. Because these organizations run internationally, they are able to cover most countries in the world and connect to them. For instance, the United Nations are responsible for different aspects of globalization so they are required to act with transparency and accountability, as the rest of the world depends on them in keeping the relations among nations. Unlike national governments, most of the time, especially in a developing country, their main focus is their own country.