Learning

Aboriginal Canadian High School Completion Rates

Significance

• Educational attainment is a main determinant of individuals’ future living standards.

• Education is strongly linked with future employment status and income level.

• High school completion is especially important, because it is considered the bare minimum level of education necessary for the vast majority of jobs.

Core Indicator

• Aboriginal Canadian high school completion rates are used as a proxy to future employment and living standards.

• In 2006, the unemployment rate for Aboriginal Canadians who had completed high school was 11.4 percent, compared to 22.5 percent for those who had not completed high school.

Canada’s Major CMAs

• Aboriginal Canadian high school completion rates were lower than the total population high school completion rates for almost all of Canada’s major census metropolitan areas (CMAs) in 2006 (see following chart).

• The only exception was St. John’s, where the overall high school completion rate was 78.3 percent and the Aboriginal Canadian rate was 78.8 percent, a 0.5 percentage point difference (note that Aboriginal people represented 1.1% of the total St. John in 2006).

• The CMAs with the largest discrepancies were Edmonton (17.9 percent difference) and Hamilton (17.7 percent difference).

Aboriginal Canadian and Overall High School Completion Rates for Major CMAs, 2006

Source: Aboriginal Population Profile, Census (2006).

St. Jo

hn's

Québec

Halifax

Kingston

Ottawa

Montréal

Vanco

uver

Toro

nto

Sudbury

Calgary

Victoria

London

Kitchen

er

Winnipeg

Edmonton

Hamilto

n

Canad

a0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

90.0

Aboriginal Canadian High School Completion Rate Overall high school completion rate

CMA Trends (2001 to 2006)

• In 2006, 56.3 percent of Aboriginal Canadians 15 years of age and over had completed high school (an increase of 4.3% since 2001 – see following chart).

• The rate had increased in all major CMAs except for Calgary and Kitchener who saw declines of 1.6 and 1.5 percentage points, respectively.

• Kingston had the largest increase (10.1%), followed by Winnipeg (8.1%).

Percentage Point Change in the Aboriginal Canadian High School Completion Rate, 2001 to 2006

Source: Statistics Canada, Census (2001 and 2006).

Kings

ton

Win

nipe

g

Halifax

Sudb

ury

Vanco

uver

Québe

c

Mon

tréal

Hamilt

on

St. J

ohn's

Canad

a

Toron

to

Victor

ia

Edmon

ton

Londo

n

Ottawa

Kitche

ner

Calgary

-4.0

-2.0

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0