Education Statistics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples methodology

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Reference period

2018-19 financial year

Released

4/12/2020

Collections

This publication presents results from the 2001, 2006, 2011 and 2016 Census of Population and Housing (Census), the 2008 and 2014-15 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey (NATSISS) and the 2012-13 and 2018-19 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS).

For the respective Methodologies, refer to the following:

Census

NATSISS

Explanatory notes, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey, 2008.
Explanatory notes, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey, 2014-15.

NATSIHS

Explanatory notes, Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2012-13.
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey Methodology, 2018-19.

Data definitions

Data definitions table

Measurement	Downloads table	Collection	Data items	Inclusions/Exclusions
Persons attending school	Preschool education, Primary education and Secondary education, tables 1.1-1.6	Census 2001-2016	Type of educational institution attending	Denominator includes all levels of educational institutions attending, including not stated and not applicable.
Whether missed days at school last week	Preschool education, Primary education and Secondary education, tables 2.1-2.2	NATSISS 2008, 2014-15	Whether child missed days at school in last week	Denominator includes ‘not stated’ whether missed days at school in last week
Whether missed days at school last week		NATSISS 2008, 2014-15	Year child currently attending at school [preschool, primary school (kindergarten/prep to year 6), secondary school (year 7 to year 10)]
How well school advised of child's progress	Preschool education, Primary education and Secondary education, tables 3.1-3.2	NATSISS 2008, 2014-15	How well school advised of child’s progress	Denominator includes ‘not known’ how well school advised of child’s progress
How well school advised of child's progress		NATSISS 2008, 2014-15	Year child currently attending at school [preschool, primary school (kindergarten/prep to year 6), secondary school (year 7 to year 10)]
Whether culture is being taught at school	Preschool education – table 4.1	NATSISS 2014-15	Whether culture being taught to child at school	N/A
Whether culture is being taught at school	Primary education and Secondary education – tables 4.1-4.2	NATSISS 2014-15	Year child currently attending at school [preschool, primary school (kindergarten/prep to year 6), secondary school (year 7 to year 10)]	N/A
Highest year of school completed	Secondary education – tables 5.1-5.2 (Survey), tables 6.1-6.6 (Census)	NATSISS 2008 and 2014-15, NATSIHS 2012-13 and 2018-19, Census 2001-2016	Highest year of school completed	Denominator for surveys include ‘never attended school’ for Highest year of school completed.
Highest year of school completed			Age (20+)	Denominator for census includes ‘did not go to school’ and excludes ‘not stated’.
Types of assistance that would help students complete year 12	Secondary education – table 7.1	NATSISS 2014-15	Types of assistance that would help child in secondary school complete year 12	Excludes those that do not usually attend school or are not currently attending secondary school.
	Secondary education – table 7.1	NATSISS 2014-15	Types of assistance that would help adult aged 15-19 years complete year 12	Excludes those that are not currently studying full-time at secondary school
Non-school education attendance	Non-school education – tables 1.1-1.6 (Census), table 2.1 (Survey)	Census 2001-2016	Type of educational institution attending	Student status excludes those not attending an institution and where the institution or the student status was not stated.
		Census 2001-2016	Full-time/part-time student status
		NATSISS 2008 and 2014-15, NATSIHS 2012-13 and 2018-19	Type of educational institution attending	Type of educational institution ‘Other’ includes Business college, Industry skills centre and Other.
			Whether currently studying full-time or part-time	Whether studying full-time or part-time excludes those not studying.
			Level of current non-school qualification	Level of current non-school qualification excludes those at secondary school only and whose level was not determined.
Level of highest non-school qualification	Non-school education – tables 3.1-3.2	Census 2001-2016	Non-school qualification: level of education	Excludes level of education inadequately described and not stated and includes not applicable (those without a non-school qualification).
			Type of educational institution attending	Excludes those currently studying at secondary school (Type of educational institution attending)
			Age (20+)
Whether has a non-school qualification at certificate III or above, 25-34 years (Census specifications are comparable with Closing the Gap Target)	Non-school Education – tables 4.1-4.6 (Census), tables 5.1-5.2 (Survey)	Census 2001-2016, NATSISS 2008 and 2014-15, NATSIHS 2012-13 and 2018-19	Level of highest educational attainment	Census- People whose highest level of educational attainment was inadequately described or not stated were excluded from both the numerator and denominator. In Census 2001-2011 a recode of Non-school qualification: level of education and Highest level of schooling completed is used to replicate the Level of highest educational attainment coding. These recodes exclude certificate level, nfd. Denominator excludes those whose level of highest educational attainment could not be determined.
			Age (25-34 years)	Survey – ‘Does not have a non-school qualification at certificate III or above’ includes certificate not further defined and those who never attended school and have no non-school qualifications. Denominator excludes those whose level of highest educational attainment could not be determined.
Whether attained year 12 or equivalent or certificate II or above	Highest educational attainment and intentions to study – tables 1.1-1.2	Census 2001-2016	Non-school qualification: level of education	People who had not attained a school qualification of year 12 or equivalent, and whose highest level of non-school qualification was determined to be certificate level but was not able to be further defined, were assumed to have attained below certificate level II and were therefore excluded from the numerator.
			Highest year of school completed	People who did not state if they had a non-school qualification (or whose level of education was inadequately described) and had not completed a school qualification of year 12 or equivalent, are excluded from the calculation (numerator and denominator). People who did not state their highest year of school completed and did not have a qualification at certificate II level or above are also excluded.
			Age (20+)
Whether attained year 12 or equivalent or certificate III or above (Specifications are comparable with Closing the Gap target for 20-24 year age group )	Highest educational attainment and intentions to study – tables 2.1-2.6 (Census), tables 3.1-3.2 (Survey)	Census 2001-2016	Non-school qualification: level of education/Level of highest non-school qualification	People who had not attained a school qualification of year 12 or equivalent, and whose highest level of non-school qualification was determined to be certificate level but was not able to be further defined, were assumed to have attained below certificate level III and were therefore excluded from the numerator.
			Highest year of school completed	People who did not state if they had a non-school qualification (or whose level of education was inadequately described) and had not completed a school qualification of year 12 or equivalent, are excluded from the calculation (numerator and denominator). People who did not state their highest year of school completed and did not have a qualification at certificate III level or above are also excluded.
			Age (20+)
Educational aspirations	Highest educational attainment and intentions to study – tables 4.1-4.2	NATSISS 2008, 2014-15	Whether wanted to study for an educational qualification in the last 12 months	Excludes those currently studying. Denominator for Whether has future educational intentions includes ‘intentions to study are unknown.
			Whether has future educational intentions
			Level of current study (not enrolled)
			Age (20+)
Whether culture taught at school	Highest educational attainment and intentions to study – tables 5.1-5.2	NATSISS 2014-15	Whether taught Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander culture at school or as part of further study	Excludes those who never attended school or undertook further studies
Whether culture taught at school		NATSISS 2014-15	Age (20+)

About ABS Geography

The Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) provides a framework of statistical areas used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and other organisations to enable the publication of statistics that are comparable and spatially integrated. The ASGS provides users with an integrated set of standard areas that can be used for analysing, visualising and integrating statistics produced by the ABS and other organisations. See here for further information about the ASGS.

The tables in this publication are presented by the following ASGS ABS Structures:

Main Structure
- State and Territory
Remoteness Structure
- Major cities, Inner Regional, Outer Regional, Remote and Non-remote.
Indigenous Structure
- Indigenous Regions (IREG), Indigenous Areas (IARE), Indigenous Locations (ILOC)

Census data is presented at all of the above Geography Structures, while the survey data is limited to State and Territory and Remoteness. Further information about ABS statistical geography and a diagram of how the various ABS Structures interrelate can be found here.

The Indigenous Structure is based on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ population distribution in the broader Australian community, so is ideal for analysis of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander data. In the ASGS Indigenous Structure, Indigenous Locations (ILOCs) are the smallest available unit. These are combined to create Indigenous Areas (IAREs) and then Indigenous Regions (IREGs). Further information about the Indigenous Structure can be found here.

Census data is also presented by the Non ABS Structure of Local Government Areas. Further information about the Non ABS Structures can be found here.

APA

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