Education News - July, 2013

This newsletter highlights the latest curriculum related teaching resources, student activities and statistical tools that have been developed by ABS Education Services as well as other ABS resources that are useful for schools.

Contents

1. CensusAtSchool News
2. Recorded Crime - Victims, Australia, 2012
3. An Idea for the Classroom: CaSMa 04 - Could the footprint belong to the person in the image?
4. Resources for Teachers: ABS Run That Town App
5. Topics @ a Glance: National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics
6. Year Book Giveaway
7. Conferences
8. Interesting Publications
9. Contact Details

A word from the editor

Welcome to the Term 3 edition of Ed News!

The theme for this edition is Crime and Justice.

In this edition, we explore this theme with articles profiling the Recorded Crime Victims, Australia, 2012 publication and Topics @ a Glance: National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics portal. Both of these resources open up exciting possibilities for classroom activities and I hope you find the data as interesting as I do.

Continuing with our theme in 'An Idea for the Classroom', I have chosen to feature CaSMa 04 - Could the footprint belong to the person in the image? This lesson challenges students to step into the role of forensic investigators using mathematics and CensusAtSchool data to solve a crime.

Speaking of CensusAtSchool, the 2013 Questionnaire is now closed. We are delighted with the response to the questionnaire and are excited to be entering the data release phase. Read on to 'CensusAtSchool News' for more information.

Term 3 is a busy time for Education Services. This term marks the return of the Free Year Book Giveaway. We ran this giveaway last year and had a fantastic response. This year we have even more historical year books to give away. More information can be found in the 'Year Book Giveaway' section of this newsletter. Term 3 is also the start of our conference season. To find out what conferences we have attended, refer to the 'Conferences' section.

For additional ABS data, statistics and resources, check out our 'Interesting Publications' section. These publications offer a gateway into a range of recently published Crime and Justice ABS products that I have found particularly interesting this month.

I hope you enjoy our July edition of Ed News. If you have any suggestions for articles or activities that you would like covered in the next edition of Ed News, please don't hesitate to contact Education Services on 1800 623 273.

Emma Salik

Tanya Perera has been working in Education Services since November 2011 and has now taken on a supervisory role within the team. Her primary responsibility is the Marketing and Promotions portfolio, which involves engaging with various internal and external stakeholders. She particularly enjoys project management work which gives her the opportunity to analyse CensusAtSchool data and use that data to tell stories. She has also worked in other departments within the ABS - the Census Management Unit for the 2011 Census of Population and Housing and the National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics.

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1. CensusAtSchool News

The 2013 Questionnaire is now closed! Thank you to all the teachers who have supported CensusAtSchool and had their students complete the questionnaire. Rest assured the fun isn't over! Completing the questionnaire is just one part of CensusAtSchool. Now is the time to explore the rich 2013 data and our large library of free resources. With National Mathematics Day coming up on 18 August, the 2013 CensusAtSchool data could form the basis for a great classroom activity.

2013 Questionnaire Quick Stats!

• The total number of questionnaires submitted was 23,745!
• Government schools contributed 63 percent of questionnaires in 2013 while non-government schools contributed 37 percent.
• Secondary school students had the highest participation (49 percent), followed by primary students (29 percent). Students at combined and special schools accounted for the remaining 22 percent of questionnaires submitted.
• Students in Victoria (27 percent), New South Wales (22 percent) and Queensland (21 percent) submitted the most questionnaires. Students from the Northern Territory, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia completed proportionally more questionnaires than their relative population.

2013 Data Available Now! 2013 data is now available through the Random Sampler.

Coming Soon! Watch out for the release of 2013 National Summary and Time Series Tables in September.

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2. Recorded Crime - Victims, Australia, 2012

There has recently been much discussion about crime following a number of high profile cases. The ABS National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics team collect rich crime and justice data and release a variety of publications. One such publication is Recorded Crime - Victims, Australia, 2012 (cat. no. 4510.0).

Did you know that motor vehicle theft has increased by 6 percent between 2011 and 2012? Did you also know that robberies were down 4 percent in 2012? These are just two examples of the rich data available to explore in the Recorded Crime Victimspublication.

You can start your investigation by using the Google search bar on the ABS website to search for the publication by its catalogue number - 4510.0 (Image 1). A new web page will load with search results. Click on the 'Latest Issue' link in the yellow box - this will take you to the current issue of the publication (Image 2).

Image 1 - Use the Google search bar to find catalogue number 4510.0 (Recorded Crime Victims)


Image 2 - The publication will appear as the first search result. Click the title to access the publication.


Image 3 - You will be directed to the publication contents page. From here you can explore the different types of data available.


Teacher Consultant: Ideas for the Classroom

• Challenge your students to write a crime fiction, making intertextual connections between the Recorded Crime Victims publication and their creation of characters. Are the characters created 'authentic' criminals? (Australian Curriculum English Year 10).
• Discuss: "What are the effects of perceptions of crime on liveability in an area?" (Australian Curriculum Geography Year 7).
• In the early New South Wales censuses there was a controversial question about 'convict status' that didn't just account for present status but also determined if a person had ever been a convict. Why would this question have been removed from the Census? Use the feature article Colonial censuses and musters in Reflecting a Nation: Stores from the 2011 Census, July 2011 (cat. no. 2071.0) to assist with this task.

3. An Idea for the Classroom: CaSMa 04 - Could the footprint belong to the person in the image?

Can your students solve a crime? CaSMa 04 - Could the footprint belong to the person in the image? is a fantastic lesson that challenges students to step into the role of forensic investigators and use real CensusAtSchool data to solve a crime.

In this lesson, students will be asked to investigate a footprint found at the crime scene and work out whether the footprint could belong to a man photographed at the scene of the crime. This lesson is best suited to students in years 8 to 12.

Do you have a classroom idea that uses ABS data or ABS Education products? Let us know at education@abs.gov.au and we can share it with schools around Australia.

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4. Resources for Teachers: ABS Run That Town App



Your students will love this app - it's a strategy game with a twist! Run That Town is a new app, developed by the ABS, that allows users to use real Census data to discover who's who in their area, and make decisions that will sway popular opinion in their favour. From practical projects to the outlandish, students will be able to 'run that town' and show what sort of a leader they are. Will they be popular, or get chased out of town by an angry mob?

Students can select to play with any Australian postal area and there are hundreds of projects they can choose for their town.

The best bit? It's free! Run That Town can be downloaded from the iTunes app store for free. All you need is an iTunes account, a wi-fi connection and a compatible iOS device. Let the gaming (and learning) begin!

5. Topics @ a Glance: National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics

Did you know that youth offenders (10-19 years) account for nearly a third (28 percent) of the total offender population? Does it surprise you that of the total prisoner population in 2012, 7 percent (2,201) are female, and 93 percent (27,182) are male? These are just two examples of the rich data you will find when you explore Topics @ a Glance: National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics.

Topics @ a Glance is an excellent way to access ABS data. You can access Topics @ a Glance by clicking on the link in the ABS main navigation bar (Image 1). Topics are organised into five main categories: Economy, Environment and Energy, Regional, People, and Industry (Image 2). Crime and Justice data can be found under the 'People' category.

Image 1 - You can access Topics @ a Glance from the main ABS navigation bar.


Image 2 - Topics @ a Glance main page.


How can I use Topics @ a Glance with my students? Topics @ a Glance is a great entry point to the wealth of Crime and Justice data that the ABS collects. It is a 'one stop shop' so to speak! In one easy to navigate location, you can find links to all Crime and Justice publications, source some quick stats, and access the 'Crime Victimisation in my state' interactive data tool.

Students can watch data come alive by interacting with the 'Crime Victimisation in my state' tool (Image 3). When students hover their mouse over a state or territory, data specific to that area will be displayed (Image 4).

Image 3 - Select 'Crime Victimisation in my state' from the navigation bar on the Topics @ A Glance - National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics home page.


Image 4 - Hover your mouse over a state/territory to view data.


6. Year Book Giveaway



ABS Year Books provide an overview of Australia's economic, social and environmental conditions with a statistically orientated focus. We currently have a limited supply of pre-2012 Year Books to give away for free. We had an overwhelmingly positive response when we ran this giveaway last year and hope to send more books to good homes this year. If you are interested, check out our Free Resources page for information on what's in stock and how you can place your order.

You can also view the latest ABS Year Book 2012 now online. To purchase a copy of the 2012 edition, contact the National Information Referral Service (NIRS) on 1300 135 070 or through their Information Consultancy Service page.

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7. Conferences

In May, our teacher consultant Vivienne McQuade conducted a PD in the ACT. She presented two sessions. The first session focussed on using ABS products to support deeper statistical understanding through the exciting range of entry points in the Australian Curriculum. The other session examined CensusAtSchool and the challenge of the complete statistical investigation process in teaching statistics.

Vivienne also attended and presented at the 2013 AAMT Conference in Melbourne earlier this month. In her presentation she demonstrated how statistics and probability fit in with the Australian Curriculum, profiling Education Services resources.

Upcoming conferences:

Keep an eye out for Education Services attending conferences in the second half of 2013. You can keep up to date between newsletters by visiting the Education Services home page.

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8. Interesting Publications

Crime and Justice News, July 2011 to June 2012 (cat. no. 4500.0)
This annual newsletter from the ABS National Centre for Crime and Justice provides information on current and upcoming projects, snapshot data from recent publications, and information about current issues in the crime and justice sector. The 2012-2013 newsletter is scheduled for release on Thursday 1 August.

In Focus: Crime and Justice Statistics, June 2013 (cat. no. 4524.0)
This edition of 'In Focus: Crime and Justice Statistics' explores the topic of victims of personal fraud. The publication examines data across a number of areas, including credit card fraud, identity theft and scams.

Corrective Services, Australia, March Quarter 2013 (cat. no. 4512.0)
This publication contains national information on persons in adult custody and community based corrections in Australia. There is a data cube available to download that contains data covering topics such as prisoner numbers and imprisonment rates by type of custody, the legal status for all prisoners and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners, and the numbers and rates of persons serving community based corrections orders. A PDF publication file is also available.

Criminal Courts, Australia, 2011-12 (cat. no. 4513.0)
This publication provides nationally comparable data showing the number of defendants dealt with by the Supreme, Magistrates' and Children's criminal courts. Topics covered include the characteristics of defendants. Data is presented for each state and territory, as well as for each of the three court levels. There are a number of data cubes available to download.

Recorded Crime - Offenders, 2011-12 (cat. no. 4519.0)
This publication explores data relating to the number and characteristics of alleged offenders who have been proceeded against by police. There are two data cubes available to download; one displays data by state and territories, the other by police proceedings.

Census, 2011: The 2011 Census data was released in three phases. The first data release occurred on 21 June 2012 (including core demographic data); and the second release occurred on 30 October 2012. The third release began on 28 March 2013 and will conclude at the end of 2013. The third release (supplementary data) relates to the dissemination of highly specialised products. Visit Census release plans for more information.

Remember: all ABS publications are free to download from the ABS website.

You can view the full range of previously released publications from the ABS on the Statistics by Release Date webpage.

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9. Contact Details

How to contact ABS Education Services

Free Call:	1800 623 273
Email:	education@abs.gov.au
Mail:	GPO Box 2796 Melbourne, 3001

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