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The Australian National University

Indigenous Education

Document: 2011 Census Papers

Using data from the two most recent censuses, the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) and the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC), this paper aims to provide an up-to-date picture of the schooling experience of Indigenous children. The major finding from the census analysis is that there have been significant improvements in the rate of Indigenous high school completion, both in absolute terms and relative to the non-Indigenous population.

Document: 2011 Census Papers

The aim of this paper is to provide an updated description of the level of participation of Indigenous children in early childhood education, as well as an analysis of the differences in outcomes between those children who do and do not attend.

Document: Working Paper

With the continuing high levels of Indigenous youth unemployment and low levels of school attendance among Indigenous youth, Indigenous communities and education systems are seeking new approaches to increase Indigenous youth participation in education, training and employment. This priority among Indigenous and government stakeholders is not restricted to Australia but also applies internationally among many Indigenous peoples. One potential source of employment is the natural resources sector.

Document: Topical Issue

This Topical Issue is based upon a submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Inquiry into language learning in Indigenous communities, and has a specific focus on lessons the authors have learnt from working with Indigenous peoples in remote regions as both educators and researchers. The focus is on the role of Indigenous languages in emergent development activity in remote Australia and the out-of-school language and literacy needs of Indigenous adolescents and young adults, with a focus on the digital economy.

Document: CAEPR Seminar

This paper was presented by Nicholas Biddle at the 'Social Science Perspectives on the 2008 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey' conference, 11-12 April 2001, The Australian National University, Canberra. The session title was 'Education and Indigenous development'.

Document: Working Paper

In the present era of evidence-based policy making in Indigenous affairs, where the monitoring and closure of socioeconomic gaps dominates the federal agenda, data have become paramount. Yet with regard to one of the cornerstones of the Labor government’s ‘Closing the Gaps’ initiative—Indigenous education—the reliability of the evidence base has been repeatedly called into question. Further, existing educational administrative data, as they are conventionally reported, fail to elucidate some of the key structural drivers of Indigenous educational disadvantage.