QUEENSLAND


DATA QUALITY STATEMENT

In 2011, Queensland (Qld) was responsible for one data collection in relation to preschool programs, the 'Early Childhood Education and Care Services Census' (ECECSC), which collected data using both Aggregate level and Unit Record Level (URL) data collection methodologies.


Early Childhood Education and Care Services Census

Institutional Environment
The organisation responsible for the 2011 ECECSC is Qld Department of Education and Training (DET). Data for the 2011 ECECSC were collected under the Child Care Act 2002 (Qld).

Relevance
Data collected from the ECECSC enabled Qld DET to report on a variety of matters, such as the performance of the early childhood education and care sector, to the Qld and Australian Governments, and the community. The data were used to provide evidence for policy and program development and planning and also used to update Qld's child care information system to ensure data were accurate and current.

Scope: The 2011 ECECSC included all children who were enrolled in a licensed child care service in Qld. This included children that were enrolled in services that were providing approved preschool programs and children who were officially enrolled in a Bound for Success pre-Prep program at the time of the ECECSC.

The scope for data provided on workers included all staff employed in licensed child care services that consented to their information being provided.

Coverage: The 2011 ECECSC achieved complete coverage of approved service providers in receipt of Qld government funding. The ECECSC was also compulsory for Bound for Success programs delivered in government managed schools. For government funded preschool programs delivered in non-government managed services and Long Day Care (LDC) centres with a signed service agreement with Qld DET, it was a contractual requirement to participate in the ECECSC, although it was not compulsory. Data were also collected from unfunded providers, however participation in the ECECSC was voluntary, and therefore the ECECSC did not achieve complete coverage due to non-response. Qld reported a high response rate from unfunded providers for the collection.

Data collection methods:
The 2011 ECECSC collected data for the following statistical entities:

1. Funded approved programs (URL data collection methodology):

• Child: Data at the child record level

• Service provider organisation: Data at the service provider record level

• Worker: Data at the worker record level.

2. Unfunded providers (Aggregate level data collection methodology):

• Child: Totals for children enrolled and attending preschool programs at the service provider record level

• Service provider organisation: Data at the service provider record level

• Worker: Data at the worker record level.

Timeliness
The ECECSC is an annual collection and in 2011 was undertaken in the week commencing 1 August. For all service providers excluding community preschools, the reference period was 1 August to 7 August 2011. For community preschools, the reference period was 25 July to 7 August 2011. This reference fortnight was adopted for these service providers to reflect their preschool delivery model. This reference fortnight was then derived by Qld to a one week reference period to enable comparison with other service providers across Qld and other jurisdictions for the National ECEC Collection.

Completion of the data processing and validation stages occurred in the 3 months following the collection, at which time data were delivered to the ABS.

Data sourced from the ECECSC for the purposes of the National ECEC Collection are published by the ABS in Experimental Estimates of Preschool Education, Australia, 2011 (cat. no. 4240.0).

Accuracy
For the 2011 ECECSC, service providers collected child level demographic information via a registration and/or enrolment form. In most instances, this information was stored in a data repository (government or non-government), however some information was stored as filed records.

Service providers were required to record and retain details of staff qualifications. Qld adopted the principle of equivalency and considered teachers to hold 4 year equivalency qualifications in the following situations:

• A teacher that was registered with the Qld College of Teachers (QCT) who held an approved 2 or 3 year early childhood qualification.

• A primary teacher who has full registration with the QCT and who is studying towards an approved 2 or 3 year early childhood qualification.

Data from the repository and files were then used by service providers to complete the relevant on-line ECECSC form. A limited number of services supplied information through paper-based forms that were equivalent to the on-line form. This information was then stored in the ECECSC data repository. Data for the 2011 National ECEC Collection were then sourced from the ECECSC data repository.

As part of the internal validation process for 2011, Qld DET included explanatory notes with the on-line forms to assist service providers with definitions and responses. A limited number of edit checks were built into the online form, which ensured that valid data were supplied. Data supplied by service providers underwent a range of validation and edit checks to ensure that the information was complete, internally consistent and fell within fixed known parameters for relevant questions. During the data validation process, where information was not supplied, data were substituted from other parts of the service’s data supply. Only in certain circumstances were service providers contacted to collect missing information.

No adjustment for item or full non-response was undertaken. No adjustment for any known or predicted undercount has been undertaken.  

Coherence
For the purposes of the National ECEC Collection, data collected through the 2011 ECECSC using a URL data collection methodology, were not directly comparable with 2010 data as the base-year data were collected using an Aggregate level collection methodology. Qld's data collected using a URL data collection methodology in 2011 were comparable with data collected using an Aggregate level methodology, at the child episode level only.

Specific data elements which were collected using methods which did not align with the ECEC National Minimum Data Set (ECEC NMDS) specifications are outlined below and should be taken into account when analysing the data collected. An analysis of the coherence of this collection with other jurisdictional collections should be undertaken on an individual basis, taking into account any data elements that are not consistent with the ECEC NMDS specifications, outlined below.

Data Element	Details of Deviation
Statistical linkage key (Child)	There were quality issues with the statistical linkage key.
Preschool program delivery indicator (Worker)	This data element cannot be reported as Qld does not collect data on whether the worker delivered a preschool program for at least 1 hour.
Hours worked in preschool program delivery (Worker)	The number of hours worked in delivering a preschool program is not collected.

Data Element	Details of Deviation
Number of children attending a preschool program	This data element could not be disaggregated by the child level data element ‘Sex’.
Number of children enrolled in a preschool program	This data element could not be disaggregated by the child level data element ‘Sex’.
Number of Indigenous children attending a preschool program	This data element could not be disaggregated by the child level data element ‘Sex’ and was only available at the level of ‘Indigenous’ or ‘non-Indigenous’.
Number of Indigenous children enrolled in a preschool program	This data element could not be disaggregated by the child level data element ‘Sex’ and was only available at the level of ‘Indigenous’ or ‘non-Indigenous’.

Counts of Children:
In the collection reference period, it is possible for a child to be concurrently enrolled in and attending two or more preschool programs. In order to address collection requirements, it is important to be able to collate all matching child records.

Children in a Preschool Program in 2011 and in the Year before Full-time Schooling:
For Qld, counts of children enrolled in and attending preschool programs in 2011 and in the year before full-time schooling, were not able to be derived as data were reported using a combination of URL and Aggregate methodologies. As a result, data for Qld. could only be presented in terms of episodes of enrolment and attendance in preschool programs.

Interpretability
Qld provided a range of information to assist in the collection and reporting of data, such as explanatory notes for providers. The explanatory notes, together with printable copies of ECECSC collection forms, are available from the Qld DET website: http://deta.qld.gov.au/earlychildhood/.

Accessibility
Data sourced from the ECECSC for the 2011 National ECEC Collection are published at the state and territory level in Experimental Estimates of Preschool Education, Australia, 2011 on the ABS website. Data from the ECECSC are also published in sector fact sheets and various other forms on the Qld DET website.

Information Source
The information contained within this report has been sourced from Qld DET in consultation with the ABS. Further information is available at the Qld DET website http://deta.qld.gov.au/earlychildhood/.

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