Think back for a minute. How many of you remember the four or five pages of facts that you most likely crammed the night before the dreaded and required NIU constitution test?

Most of you probably don’t remember a lot of the information on which you were tested. Many of us fall into that category and that is unfortunate because it defeats the entire purpose of the test requirement. The lessons to be learned in the taking of the constitution test could and should be more effectively presented.

As NIU students and U.S. citizens, we are faced with the responsibility of learning how our country works. As politics affect our lives more and more everyday, it is important to be able to sort out what we read in the news about the White House, Congress and Capitol Hill.

Instead of requiring a test on the U.S. Constitution similar to the test given in high school and even earlier, NIU should require a three credit hour government class for all students.

“Another required class?” the campus collectively moans. Yes.

Put a class like POLS 100 in the catalog as core curriculum requirements, right next to speech and English. Knowing how to speak and write is important, but knowing what you are speaking and writing about in terms of government and politics is of equal significance. Fully understanding how government works is the key to becoming an informed citizen, not simply memorizing a study guide that might soon be forgotten.