Government to change immigration language assessment

This fall Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney proposed changing the way new citizens' language abilities are assessed.  The changes would require adult citizenship applicants to provide 'objective evidence' of their language ability - in English or French. The goal is outlined, and the methods listed. However, some of the information may be confusing to readers.

People applying for citizenship can demonstrate their skills by including third party language test results; proof of secondary or post-secondary education in either language; or, 'evidence of achieving CLB/NCL4 in certain government funded training programs'. This is where the statement in the Citizenship and Immigration Canada enewsletter may need some translation.

There are obvious advantages to functional literacy in the languages of one's country. However, as with all countries, governments and organizations, abbreviations and acronyms can make a simple task both time consuming and difficult. CLB is the Canadian Language Benchmarks. An online search for NCL4 turned up results for National Cricket League and Norwegian Cruise Lines. I am told it is most likely the French version of CLB. But a definitive answer was not found.

The importance of clear communications, and plain language, in everyday life is gaining strength in our client-oriented society. But, it is even more important for information that can potentially have a huge - and lasting - impact on a person's life, be presented clearly, with enough information that the user can act on it confidently. With that as a benchmark, time spent searching for acronyms could easily be shortened.