chapter 3. educational attainment · 2018. 10. 30. · 3. educational attainment the research on...

3. Educational Attainment The research on educationalattainment (educational levels) andthe labour market is unequivocal.High levels of educationalattainment are consistently linkedwith well-paying occupations thatprovide individuals with status andfinancial security. Recent studiesindicate that the relationshipbetween education and earnings ispositive, strong and persistent forboth young graduates and olderworkers. High educationalattainment is also one of thestrongest predictors of anindividual’s ability to accessemployment opportunities offeringauthority and autonomy in theworkplace such as supervisory andmanagement positions.

According to the Atlantic ProvincesEconomic Council, between 1992and 1996 44,700 net jobs havebeen discontinued for AtlanticCanadians with a high schooleducation or less. Over that sameperiod, 71,000 net jobs have beencreated for Atlantic Canadians witheducational levels above highschool graduation.

The closure of the ground fisheryhas no doubt influenced thisdevelopment, but the same trend isoccurring across Canada. Duringthose four years of economicgrowth in the Canadian economy asa whole, employment amongCanadians with a high schooldiploma or less is down almostseven percent. In contrast,employment creation for workerswith more than a high schooldiploma has increased by 18.2%.

This chapter focuses on educationalattainment within the population ofNewfoundland and Labrador. Itprofiles educational levels over timeand compares improvements in thisprovince with those of the Countrygenerally. It also examines genderdifferences in educationalattainment levels and therelationships among education,employment and dependence ongovernment support benefits.

The sources for educationalattainment data are the CanadianCensus, Statistics Canada’s LabourForce Survey and School LeaversFollow-up Survey as well as thedatabases of the ProvincialDepartments of Education andHuman Resources and Employmentand the Federal Department ofHuman Resources Development.

3.1 What is the profile ofeducational attainment inNewfoundland?

In the past, reports of the loweducational attainment levels in thepopulation of Newfoundland haveportrayed the Province lessfavourably than other provinces inCanada. It has been widely reportedthat the general level of schooling inthis province continues to be lowerthan the national average.Estimates of educational attainmentfrom the Canadian census, studiesof literacy and numeracy, and untilrecently, graduation rates fromsecondary school have all indicatedlower levels of education among thecitizens of this province whencompared to our Canadiancounterparts. To a large extent thissituation continues to exist despitesubstantial improvements in theprovision of educationalinfrastructure and opportunities

Educational Attainment 29

since confederation and particularlywithin the last 30 years.

In this document, the educationalattainment of adults is described interms of the number of years ofschooling attained or the acquisitionof a certificate, diploma or degree.

Figure 3.1.1 presents a 1996educational attainment profile forNewfoundland and Canada basedon data from Statistics Canada’s1996 Labour Force Survey. Whencompared to the national average,the chart clearly shows that a lowerpercentage of the adult population(defined as the population aged 15and over) in Newfoundland (34.2%)had attained a postsecondarycertificate, degree or diploma thanthe national average (39.4%).Similarly, a higher proportion of theProvince’s adult population had lessthan a high school education -42.0% compared to 31.9%nationally.

When the data are examined at alower level of aggregation and forindividuals in the 20-34 year-old agegroup (Figure 3.1.2), someinteresting results emerge. Forexample, the proportion of theNewfoundland population with apostsecondary certificate ordiploma exceeds the nationalaverage for this segment of thepopulation and there is nosubstantial difference between theProvince and the Country withrespect to the group of individualswith some postsecondaryeducation. Nevertheless, comparedto Canada, as a whole, the Provincecontinues to have relatively fewerpeople with a university degree anda relatively greater number with lessthan high school completion in this20-34 year-old age group.

Although high levels ofout-migration among youngereducated Newfoundlanders isslowing the rate at which theProvince can reach nationalattainment levels, it is clear that theProvince will soon close the gap.Figures 3.1.3 presents a pie chartwhich shows a breakdown of theproportion of the Newfoundlandpopulation aged 15 and over with“less than high school” and Figure

3.1.4 presents a similar chart forthose “with a postsecondarycertificate, diploma or degree”.Among those in the Province with“less than high school” 46.3% were50 years of age or older. Only 8.6%were in the 20-29 year old agegroup. Similarly, of those with a“certificate, diploma or degree”81.3% were younger than 50 yearsof age.

30 Postsecondary Indicators '98

These indicators show that theProvince continues to experiencelower than average educationalattainment levels in its generalpopulation, but this is largely aresult of extremely low attainmentamong older adults, particularlythose older than fifty. They alsoshow strong attainment amongyounger population groups withinthe Province, especially in theproportion with a postsecondarycertificate or diploma. It isanticipated that as the populationages, the percentage of people withless than high school will decreaserelative to the national average andthe percentage with higherattainment levels will increase.Other indicators such as the highschool graduation rate, ABE andGED activity, and postsecondaryparticipation measures tend tosupport these assertions.

3.2 How has the level ofeducational attainmentchanged?

What must be considered in anycurrent comparison of education

levels between Newfoundland andthe Country generally is theeducational profile of this province,historically. Just 20 years ago morethan 70% of the people in thisprovince had not completed highschool. Newfoundland has had tomove a very great distance to reachCanadian standards in educationalattainment. While educational

attainment levels in Newfoundlandremain lower than the levels forCanada as a whole, it is clear thatthis province has made someremarkable gains in educationalattainment over the 20-year periodbetween 1976 and 1996. The rate ofimprovement has been significant.

Figure 3.2.1 provides educationalattainment levels by attainmentcategory for the population aged 15and over for the years 1976, 1986and 1996. In 1976, approximately40% of the adult population in thisprovince had not attained even aGrade 9 education. By 1986 thispercentage had decreased to26.6% and in 1996 stood at 18.7%.This represents a real decrease ofmore than 100% over the twenty-year period. Similarly increases inattainment were seen at the highereducation levels. For example, theproportion of adults aged 15 andover with high school graduationand above increased from 29.4% in1976 to 58.1% in 1996, a 98%increase. The most significant gain,however, was in the proportion of


the population with a certificate ordiploma rising from 10.6% to 26.7%over the period.

When the same 20 yearcomparisons described above areexamined for the population aged20-34 (Figure 3.2.2) improvementsin the educational profile of thisgroup, in some cases, are even

more pronounced. Whereas in 1976over half the population of 20-34year-olds (54%) had not completedhigh school, by 1996 thispercentage had decreased to20.5%. Similar improvements wereseen in high school attainmentlevels and in the numbers of peoplewho had completed postsecondaryeducation. The proportion of 20-34

year-olds with university degrees,for example, increased by 67% overthe four census periods.

Figure 3.2.3 provides a comparisonof the educational attainment levelsof younger and older age groups forthe years 1976, 1986 and 1996. Thestacked bar graph shows theproportion of the population withhigh school graduation or aboveand the proportion with less thanhigh school for the 20-34 year-oldage group and for the 35 and olderage group. The chart shows theProvince has made considerablegains over the period and that thosewith less than a high schooleducation are mainly older adults.More than three-quarters of the20-34 year-olds have completedsecondary school. However, thedata show that there are still asignificant number of older adults inthe population who do not have ahigh school education or theequivalent.

Was the magnitude of theimprovements seen in theeducational attainment of theNewfoundland populationcharacteristic of the Canadianpopulation? In a word, no. Whileeducational levels amongCanadians, as a whole, did increasesubstantially, the gain was highestin Newfoundland. For example,between 1976 and 1996, levels ofcollege and university attainment inthis province increased at a greaterrate than the national average. Overthe 20 year period, the proportion ofthis province’s population with acollege certificate or diploma or auniversity degree or diplomaincreased by 143% compared to theCanadian average increase of 119%.

Over the same period, and for thesame population group, the


proportion of those with less thanhigh school decreased by 47% forthe Country as a whole comparedto a decrease of 41% for thisprovince.

These indicators describe aprovince that is still behind theCanadian average in terms ofgeneral levels of educationalattainment, but one that is rapidlycatching up to national levels. Withthe Province’s escalating highschool graduation rates, relativelylow dropout rates and thesubstantial gains made inpostsecondary participation, it isexpected that educationalattainment levels will continue tomove closer to the national leveland eventually close the attainmentgap. There is, however, the concernthat some of these gains are beingoffset by high levels of out-migrationon the part of our younger, morehighly educated population.

3.3 What gender differencesexist in educationalattainment?

Educational attainment levels offemales have improved significantlyover the 20 year period from 1976 to1996. Census data were combinedwith the results of the 1996 LabourForce Survey to derive a picture ofeducational attainment by genderpresented in Figures 3.3.1 and3.3.2. The population group understudy in these charts are youngeradults, 20-34 years of age.Compared to 1976 when thepercentage of males with acertificate, diploma or degree, at24.2% was slightly higher than the23.2% of females at this level,postsecondary attainment offemales in 1986 exceeded that ofmales. This gender differenceincreased since 1986 and the most

current figures for 1996 showfemale postsecondary attainment ofa certificate, diploma or degree tobe approximately 12 percentagepoints above that of males.

Figure 3.3.2 compares 1996educational attainment levels bygender for this province with those

of Canada as a whole. The dataconfirm gender differences in highschool attainment levels describedearlier in this chapter based on atime series of high schoolgraduation rates. Among 20-34year-olds, 82.2% of females hadattained a high school education,considerably less than the


Canadian average for femaleswhich was 87.1% in 1996. Thiscompares to 77% for males in thisprovince and 82.9% for Canadianmales generally.

Gender differences are apparentalso at the postsecondary level. Thepercentage of females in theProvince with a postsecondarydesignation at the certificate,diploma or degree level was greaterthan the percentage of males bothprovincially and nationally.Postsecondary attainment offemales in Newfoundland within thisage group was also slightly abovethe national average for females.Compared to the female rate of52.1%, only 40.3% of malesprovincially and 46.5% nationallyhad attained a postsecondarycertificate, diploma or degree.

In conclusion, the indicators ofattainment show that the proportionof females with a certificate,diploma or degree increased by122% over a 20-year period.However, male attainment levelshave not increased at the same rateso that there currently exists asubstantial gender difference infavour of females. This differenceexists both nationally andprovincially. Fewer younger malesthan females in Canada have atleast a high school certificate andfewer have attained apostsecondary certificate, diplomaor degree. The data further suggestthat for Newfoundland thisdifference has increased markedlyover the past ten years.

3.4 How does theproportion of young adultswith high schoolgraduation comparenationally?

Graduation from high school isvalued in our society. It is theminimum requirement for entry intomost postsecondary educationprograms and for some low leveloccupations in the labour force.Because recent secondary schoolgraduates constitute the largestcomponent of the population of newentrants into postsecondaryinstitutions, their success ingraduating from the school systemis included in this compendium ofpostsecondary indicators.

The commonly accepted method ofdetermining graduation rates in theschool system involves a calculationof age-specific ratios of graduatesto the population. The ratios foreach age are then added to arriveat an estimate of graduates. Section3.2 described significantimprovements in the high school

graduation rates in recent years.This improvement is illustrated inFigure 3.4.1. Over the ten-yearperiod 1987 to 1996 the graduationrate increased by 31% from 62.7%to 82.2%. Of course the actualnumber of graduates, as describedin Section 1.4, is decreasing and isexpected to continue to decreaseuntil well into the next century.

More females than males aregraduating in this province, aphenomenon identified inNewfoundland a number of yearsago, but one that is not unique tothis province. Over the past severalyears differences of about 12percentage points between maleand female graduation rates inNewfoundland have not beenuncommon. It does seem, however,that the discrepancy between maleand female performance, whilesubstantial, is not increasing anyfurther. It is likely there will continueto be more female high schoolgraduates entering thepostsecondary system for theforeseeable future, but that the gap


between males and females willlessen as the graduation rate forfemales reaches its ceiling earlierthan the rate for males.

Despite the marked increase ingraduation levels seen in Figure3.4.1, information from StatisticsCanada’s 1995 School LeaversFollow-up Survey and other sources

indicate Newfoundland still has thelowest proportion of young adultswith high school graduation amongCanadian provinces. Figures 3.4.2and 3.4.3 show the percentage ofhigh school graduates in thepopulation aged 22-24 by provinceand by gender and province.Although Newfoundland trails theother provinces on this measure, it

is clear that differences amongprovinces are very small, rangingfrom 79.3% in this province to 88%in Ontario. The difference betweenthis province and the nationalaverage is slightly less than sixpercentage points. The genderdifference described above isevident in the data derived from theStatistics Canada study. Thepercentage of female high schoolgraduates in the 22-24 year oldpopulation exceeds that for males inevery Canadian province andcorrespondingly, for the Country asa whole.

The overall increase in theproportion of high school graduatesin this province may be a result ofseveral factors. It is likely that morestudents are seeing the value ofcompleting their education and arestaying in school to graduation. Inaddition, current economic andemployment conditions and thedecease in the availability of lowskill occupations have severelycurtailed the opportunities forstudents to leave school early togain employment. It is believed thata combination of these and otherfactors, including a host of federaland provincial initiatives aimed atkeeping students in school arecontributors to the gains seen forthis indicator.

3.5 How does the number ofhigh school non-completersin the population of youngadults compare nationally?

The complement of the indicatorspresented in Section 3.4 is thepercentage of young adults aged22-24 who have not completedsecondary school (Figure 3.5.1).The 1995 School Leavers Follow-upSurvey conducted by StatisticsCanada estimates this province’s


non-completion rate for this agegroup at 19.7%, the highest level inthe Country. High schoolnon-completion is also high inPrince Edward Island and Quebecat 19.2% and 17.2%, respectively.Reasons why the proportion ofnon-completers within 22-24year-olds is so high in this provinceare believed to be twofold. Firstly,

those individuals in the surveywould have graduated fromsecondary school approximatelybetween 1987 and 1991.Graduation rates during this periodwere still relatively low - between63% and 65%. Secondly,out-migration among educatedyoung adults has been particularlyhigh in recent years, as discussed

in Section 1.7 of this report. In fact,in 1995, the year of the SchoolLeavers Follow-up Survey, 31%(approximately 2,500) ofout-migrants were in the 20-24 yearold age group and most of theseindividuals are likely to havecompleted at least high school.

Gender differences observed in theproportion of those with high schoolnon-completion are the reverse ofthose for high school graduation.Figure 3.5.2 shows that significantlymore males than females do notcomplete secondary school and thisis common to all provinces. Thedifference between the gendersappears most acute in NewBrunswick, Ontario and the WesternProvinces. This is somewhatsurprising since gender differencesin high school graduation rates arebelieved to be greater in the Atlanticregion than elsewhere in Canada.

3.6 How is employmentrelated to educationalattainment?

Data from Statistics Canada’sLabour Force Survey provide anestimate of the educationalattainment levels of unemployedpersons provincially and forCanada, generally. Figure 3.6.1presents the unemployment rate bylevel of educational attainment forNewfoundland and Canada in 1995,the most current year for which dataare available. Unemployment isdefined as the number of peopleunemployed with a given level ofeducation expressed as apercentage of the labour force withthe same level of education. Thechart shows a clear relationshipbetween education andunemployment. Those individualswith higher levels of educational


attainment are less likely to bewithout a job.

In Newfoundland, compared to anunemployment rate of 11.1% forthose with a postsecondarycertificate, diploma or degree,27.2% of those with less than highschool were unemployed in 1995.Among the high school graduatesand those with some postsecondaryeducation in the labour force, 15.9%and 15.0% respectively, wereunemployed. The same trend seenfor the Province applies nationally.Lower education levels mean higherunemployment levels, although theextent of unemployment is higherfor all attainment categories inNewfoundland, a reflection of higherunemployment generally.Employment opportunities for thosewith less than a high schooleducation are particularly poor inNewfoundland.

A second source providinginformation on employment successby education level comes from theDepartment of Education’s

Postsecondary Graduate Follow-upSurvey. This survey has beenadministered to graduates frompostsecondary institutions inNewfoundland for a number ofyears. Figure 3.6.2 provides datafrom the survey of 1995 graduates.The surveys are completed

approximately 16 months aftergraduation.

The chart illustrates the averagepercentage of graduates withfull-time employment related to andunrelated to the graduates’ trainingover the 16 month period followinggraduation. The chart also showsthe average percentage ofgraduates in each category whowere engaged in full-time training. Itis evident that postsecondarygraduates completing programs oflonger duration had greater successin finding full-time work and full-timework related to their training. For thecollege sector, the percentage ofrecent graduates employed in atraining related activity ranged from19.4% for one-year privateprograms to 45.4% for three-yearpublic programs. For MemorialUniversity graduates, an average of34.3% with undergraduate degrees,77.5% with Masters degrees and64.1% with diplomas were engagedin training-related activities over the16 month study period. It should benoted that a significant 20.8% of


graduates with undergraduatedegrees were engaged in full-timeschool and that many of theMemorial graduates from diplomaprograms already had at least anundergraduate degree prior to thecompletion of their diplomaprogram.

Overall, the data from both sourcessupport the conclusion thatsuccessful employment is closelyrelated to educational attainment.The higher the level of education thegreater the likelihood ofemployment. In addition, the datasupport the assertion that higherlevels of postsecondary attainmentincrease the likelihood ofemployment in a training-relatedarea.

3.7 How is participation inthe labour force related toeducational attainment?

In Section 3.6 the relationshipbetween education andunemployment was examined. It isknown that those with low levels ofeducation are more likely to beunemployed. Educationalattainment is also related, in asimilar way, to participation in thelabour force; that is those with lowlevels of education are less likely tobe a part of the labour force.

The labour force refers to thosemembers of the civilian populationof a particular age group who areeither employed or are unemployedand seeking work or available forwork. The labour force participationrate describes the labour forceexpressed as a percentage of thepopulation of a given age category.Participation in the labour forcemeans essentially that a person isworking or ready and willing to work.

Figure 3.7.1 provides data derivedfrom Statistics Canada’s 1995Labour Force Survey. Very fewpoorly educated adults haveemployment on a regular basis. Inthis province less than one-third ofthose aged 25 or older without ahigh school education were actuallyin the labour force. When theunemployment rate for this group at27.2% is considered, it is obviousthat fewer than one-quarter of thosewithout a high school education inthe population are actually working.The situation nationally is slightlybetter with 41.9% of those in thisage category without a high schooleducation participating in the labourforce and unemployment at 12.8%.Comparatively, in 1995 amongthose with a certificate, diploma ordegree, the labour forceparticipation rate approached 80%both provincially and nationally andunemployment is lowest amongthese postsecondary graduates.

Overall, the data for bothNewfoundland and Canadagenerally, confirm that as

educational attainment levelsincrease, participation in the labourforce increases and unemploymentdecreases.

3.8 What is the level ofeducational attainment ofthose receivinggovernment supportbenefits?

The link between educationalattainment and employment is welldocumented and is discussed atlength in this report. The 1986Report of the Royal Commission onEmployment and Unemploymentheld one basic assumption withrespect to the employability of theProvince’s people, “that thepopulation of the Province, in ruralas well as urban areas, in the fisheryas well as service industries, be welleducated.” The commission wasclear in its view that educationprovided people the means toexploit a wide variety of employmentopportunities, whether they be inrural communities, in larger townsand cities within the Province, or


outside of Newfoundland. It seemsobvious now that many of thosewith the appropriate educationalbackground chose to pursueopportunities abroad. For many,however, without a strong educationreliance on social assistance is asignificant likelihood.

Educational attainment levels ofadults who received socialassistance payments in 1996 werecompared with similar data for1991. In 1996 there wereapproximately 65,000 adultsbetween the ages of 18 and 65 whoreceived at least one socialassistance payment during the year.About 50,000 of these were “headsof households”. The head of ahousehold is generally defined asthe contact person in the clienthousehold and does not necessarilyrefer to any particular gender. On amonth-by month basis there arenormally about 36,000 cases at anygiven time with a flow rate ofapproximately 3,000. In other wordsthere are 3,000 new cases everymonth and 3,000 cases arediscontinued. Whenever there is anew applicant for social assistancethe highest level of educationalattainment is recorded. As a resultthe information provided herereflects educational attainment atthe point of entry and does notreflect any upgrading that may havebeen completed during the periodindividuals are receiving benefits.

Figure 3.8.1 depicts the educationalattainment levels of socialassistance benefits recipientscompared to the general adultpopulation in this province for 1996.Educational levels are significantlylower for social assistancerecipients. In fact, compared to 42%for the general population, the datashow that in more than 70% of

cases, social assistance clients hadnot completed high school. Only8.5% of those who received benefitsin 1996 had continued beyond highschool and into some form ofpostsecondary education. Thiscompares to 42.4% of adultsgenerally.

An examination of the situation in1996 as compared to 1991 showsthat educational attainment levelsfor social assistance clients haveimproved, but only marginally.Figure 3.8.2 shows that over thefive-year period the percentage ofclients aged 18-65 with less thanhigh school completion decreasedfrom 75.4% to 70.4%. Similarly, theproportion of those clients withgreater than a high schooleducation increased from 5% in1991 to 8.5% in 1996.

Among younger social assistanceclients (Figure 3.8.3), there was agreater improvement in theireducational profile. Fewer had lessthan a high school education andthere were more with some

postsecondary education. Overall,in 1996 there were more clientsreceiving assistance in the 18-24year-old age group than in 1991and this is a concern. The increaseis greatest among those with a highschool education although moreyoung adults with postsecondaryeducation or training also requiredsocial assistance in 1996 than fiveyears earlier, likely a result of asluggish economy in 1996.

The comparison with 1991 indicatesa slight shift in the educationalprofile of social assistancerecipients over the five-year period.It is clear, however that attainmentlevels of social assistancedependents are significantlydifferent from those of the generalpopulation. The segment of theadult population receiving socialassistance continues to becomposed of poorly educatedindividuals, most of whom wouldstand little chance of obtaininggainful employment, even in aperiod of economic upswing. Therecommendation of this report


echoes those of previousresearchers. In order to preparesocial assistance clients foropportunities to re-enter the labourforce in a meaningful way, theireducation levels need to beupgraded. It is unreasonable tobelieve that the 70% of dependentswith less than a high school

education would be qualified to getjobs at even the lowest level, giventheir educational backgrounds. Thisis of particular concern for theyounger dependents who have thepotential to become reliant ongovernment assistance for the restof their lives. Virtually anyexpenditure that sees the majority of

recipients reach a level of educationthat would allow them to enter theworkforce or enter some form ofpostsecondary training would likelypay dividends in reducing theamount government spends onsocial assistance.

However, further improvement in thegraduation rates for young peoplewill not address the problem of loweducational attainment among thecurrent adult population, and inparticular, among social assistancerecipients. This is a major social andeconomic concern which requiresthe development of a consensusamong social and governmentagencies about the appropriatestrategies to give these individualsthe prerequisite education andtraining to find or developemployment opportunities in this oranother province.

3.9 What is the level ofeducational attainment ofthose involved in the TAGSprogram?

In July 1992, the FederalGovernment made a decision toclose the northern cod fishery, theculmination of a series of eventsthat had an unprecedented effecton the fishing and processingsector and the network of fisherysupport industries. By May 1994,with no indication that groundfishstocks were recovering and withstocks in other areas of thenortheast Atlantic on the decline,Government declared groundfisheries in the Atlantic and Quebecregions closed. The fisherymoratorium effectively displacedabout 40,000 harvesting andprocessing workers, 70 percent ofwhom were residents ofNewfoundland. To respond to thecrisis the federal Department of


Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) andHuman Resources DevelopmentCanada (HRDC) established theNorthern Cod Adjustment andRetraining Program (NCARP) andThe Atlantic Groundfish Strategy(TAGS). The total budget for TAGSwas $1.9 billion.

TAGS was designed as an incomesupport measure to address thefinancial need of those whoseearnings would be severely limitedor eliminated altogether as a resultof the moratorium. TAGS alsoincluded an educational componentunder the “active programming”segment of the program. It soonbecame clear that the fishery of thefuture would be considerablydifferent from the fishery prior to1992. There would be fewerlicenses to harvest groundfish,fewer processing plants and, ingeneral, fewer employmentopportunities in the fishery. In fact,one of the stated goals of the TAGSprogram was “to have 50% ofclients eligible for TAGS adjustedout by the end of the strategy”. TheTAGS funding providedopportunities for fisheries workers toseek alternatives outside thegroundfishery through training anda variety of other programsincluding license buy-back andearly retirement provisions.

Given the reality that a significantnumber of those employed in thefishery prior to the moratoriumwould need to seek employment inother sectors and the relationshipbetween employment success andeducational attainment, theeducation levels of TAGS recipientsare explored in this report. It shouldbe noted that the trainingcomponent of TAGS was curtailedin August 1996. While no newtraining was approved beyond that

point, HRDC did continue tosupport TAGS clients who enteredprograms prior to the cancellation ofthe training component. Table 3.9.1and Figure 3.9.1 provide theeducational attainment levels ofTAGS recipients at the beginning ofthe program and as of July 1997,some three years after the initialavailability of training under TAGS.

In total, 27,922 individuals wereregistered for the TAGS program inthis province. Sixty-five percent ofthese were male. At the beginningof TAGS, in 1994, 70.2% had lessthan a high school education.Another 19.2% had completed highschool. Only 9.6% of TAGSrecipients had completed apostsecondary certificate, diplomaor degree program. Over theapproximately two years duringwhich education and trainingprograms were available just over55% of TAGS recipients took someform of sponsored training. Somepeople were involved in more thanone program. As of July 1997, 1,750were still enrolled in an educational

course or program. Some of thistraining, if successfully completed,would lead to an increase ineducational attainment. Forexample, approximately one-third oftraining was Adult Basic Education.Other forms of training consisted ofpersonal development courseswhich may have been beneficial tothe individual, but did not result inan increased level of educationalattainment. Still other training couldbe classified as skills training which,in some cases, would have resultedin a certificate, diploma or degreebut in many situations would havemeant no change in the formaleducational level of the learner, asdefined by the standard attainmentcategories of Statistics Canada.Many of these skills trainingprograms, such as courses incomputer literacy, wouldundoubtedly aid individuals infinding alternative employment.Other types of skills training weredirectly related to the fishery itselfand while doing little to assistpeople to find work outside the


fishery, would assist those whowould be remaining in the industry.

The analysis of current educationalattainment levels of TAGS clientsconducted by the Department ofEducation for this report used theTAGS training data base of HRDCas of July 1997. At that point mostof the training under the activeprogramming component of the

funding was complete. As noted,however, there were still someTAGS clients - approximately sixpercent - involved in some form ofeducation or training. It should benoted that current educationalattainment levels reported in thisdocument are based on adetermination on an individual basisof whether completion of theprogram of study would raise

education levels (see footnotes toTable 3.9.1).

Following TAGS-sponsored training,there were modest improvements inthe educational attainment levels ofclients. Compared to 70.1% ofclients who had not completed highschool at the beginning of themoratorium, 62.6% were still in thiscategory after the TAGS training.

Educational Attainment CategoryUpon Entry to TAGS Program

Following Completion ofTAGS- Sponsored Training

(July 1997)

Percent CumulativePercent Percent Cumulative

Percent

University Degree 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2

Postsecondary Diploma 1.8 2.0 4.3 4.5

Postsecondary Certificate 7.7 9.7 12.0 16.5

Some Postsecondary 1.0 10.7 5.4 21.9

High School Completion 19.2 29.9 15.5 37.4

Some Secondary 29.0 58.9 25.9 63.3

0-8 Years 41.1 100 36.7 100

1. All ABE training of all time durations was allocated based on the course description. There was no indication of the level of ABE training inapproximately half of the ABE records in the training database. Those ABE records with the level unknown were allocated as “Some Secondary”.

2. All courses of fewer than 50 calendar days in duration were allocated as having not improved the educational attainment of the recipient withthe exception of ABE as noted above.

3. All MUN, FFAW and Hospital Training was allocated one record at a time in the Training database based on the duration of the course incalendar days and the course description and course title. See the footnote below regarding the Fishing Trades.

4. All Marine, Public College and Private College Courses and those which were from unknown institutions were roughly allocated by the durationof the program. Those programs which were 50 days to 149 calendar days were generally allocated as “Some Postsecondary”. Those programswhich were 150 days to 399 calendar days were generally allocated as “Certificate”. Those programs which were 400 days to 2,200 calendar dayswere generally allocated as “Diploma”. However, the course description field and the title field were examined in the case of each record, whichresulted in many exceptions being made. The exceptions worked in both directions. Some longer programs were deemed to add nothing to astudent’s educational level. In contrast, some short duration programs were deemed to have a more significant effect on the student’s educationalattainment.

5. The educational attainment allocated based on fishing trades programs taken at all institutions, and specifically at the FFAW and MarineInstitute, were allocated as indicated. Watchkeeping Mate - Some Postsecondary, Fishing Masters IV - Some Postsecondary, Fishing Masters III -Certificate, Fishing Masters II - Diploma and Fishing Masters I - Diploma.

6. As of July 1997, 1,750 clients were still involved in some form of TAGS-sponsored education or training.

7. 493 records with unknown educational attainment levels were proportionally allocated to other categories.

Table 3.9.1: Educational Attainment Levels of TAGS Clients before and after TAGS-Sponsored Education andTraining Programs


Many of those who were alreadyhigh school graduates advancedtheir education by completingpostsecondary programs. Thepercentage of those with only a highschool certificate decreased byalmost 20% to 15.5% while thepercentage of those with apostsecondary certificate, diplomaor degree increased from 9.7% to16.5% a rise of 70% over 1994levels. Overall the percentage ofTAGS clients with high schoolcompletion or greater increasedfrom 29.9% before TAGS training to37.4% following TAGS training, a25.0% increase.

Whether the educationalopportunities provided by theTAGS-sponsored training resulted ineducational improvements that weresignificant enough to meet theprogram’s goals is not a question tobe addressed in this report. Somegains were made in the educationalattainment levels of a segment ofthe population with traditionally low

levels of education and thisrepresents an important stepforward. Many people in the fishharvesting and processing sectorsare now better prepared to moveinto other occupations in the labourforce than they were three yearsago. However, the fact that almosttwo-thirds of those involved in thefishery do not have a high schooleducation, even after TAGS training,remains a serious concern.

It should be noted, however, thatwhile many of the programscompleted under the TAGS activeprogramming option did not resultin an increase in educationalattainment, they were, neverthelessbeneficial to the recipient and wouldhave value to employment seekersor to those who will remain in thefishery. For example, a number ofthese programs focused on thesmall boat operation as a business,safety and navigation, marineemergency duties and so on.

The value of returning to a formaleducational setting also has intrinsicvalue. It may be the impetus formany to enrol in other courses oreducational programs which maylead to increases in attainment orthe development of other skillsbeneficial in gaining or maintainingemployment.

In addition, the benefit to childrenwho observe their parents or adultsiblings engaged in learning cannotbe estimated, but is likely to bepositive. Parents who have beenengaged in academic programsprovide positive role models tochildren, particularly in family orcommunity settings where there hasbeen a history of low academicachievement. In short, theeducational opportunities providedunder TAGS can only be viewed aspositive.


chapter 3. educational attainment · 2018. 10. 30. · 3. educational attainment the research on...

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