Emma Godmere
CUP Ottawa Bureau Chief

OTTAWA (CUP) — Never before have Canadians raised so much concern over statistics.

In the wake of the federal government’s decision to scrap the mandatory long-form census questionnaire sent to 20 per cent of Canadian homes every five years, the Canadian Federation of Students has raised red flags over the apparent winding-down of national, student-centric surveys.

According to CFS national chairperson Dave Molenhuis, a document was circulated in mid-June to stakeholder members of the National Advisory Group on Student Financial Assistance that suggested funding would not be renewed for the three youth-related surveys.

The Youth In Transition Survey, which examines young Canadians’ transitions between education, training and work; the National Longitudinal Survey on Children and Youth, which collects long-term data on the behavioural development and social communities of children from infancy to early adulthood; and the National Apprenticeship Survey, a less frequent survey that identifies issues with apprenticeship completion and effects on the labour market, were all identified as surveys carried out by Statistics Canada and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada that would not have their funding renewed.

“It’ll affect basically anyone interested in understanding who students are, [and] what the demographics are,” said Molenhuis. “It’s not just going to impact government decision making, which will be adrift without any kind of data to anchor itself to, but it also takes away the ability of the public to evaluate and critique government policy based on what the demographic information on students is. It’s problematic on a number of fronts.”

A spokesperson from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, alleging the CFS’ information was false, explained in an email that the National Apprenticeship Survey was only a one-time survey. The email explained that the other two surveys “were fully funded, are not yet complete, and findings still need to be analyzed.”

“The Government is acting responsibly by waiting for these surveys to be completed and evaluating them to make sure they were effective and relevant before committing taxpayer funding for another set of longitudinal surveys in future years,” the email stated.

Statistics Canada explained their portfolio of surveys are always changing and none of the three student-related surveys have been officially discontinued for the time being.

But, Molenhuis pointed to any potential reduction in survey data as a major concern, especially when compounded with the government’s recent changes to the census.

“If we are no longer going to make policy decisions based on empirical research, then what are we going to base those decisions on?” he said. “We need this data to be able to evaluate whether or not the billions of dollars that are going into post-secondary education are having any effect, and understand the relationship between post-secondary education and the economy.”

“Not having that information is definitely going to impact our organization’s ability to hold the government to account and the government itself to make appropriate decisions.”

The Conservative government mentioned the removal of the compulsory long-form survey in a document released on June 26. Completing census surveys has been required by law, including the long-form questionnaire, which only about one-fifth of Canadians received.

Federal Industry Minister Tony Clement expressed that the change was motivated by privacy complaints over some of the more detailed questions in the long-form survey, which covers education, income, cultural background and employment, among other topics.

But, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner says it’s received only three census-related complaints in the last 10 years.

Adding their name to the list of numerous organizations that have condemned the change, the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations released an open letter to Clement, highlighting the impact the change could have on student-related data.

“The long-form [survey] provides significant insight into how Canada’s system of higher learning is performing, how Canada compares to other countries with regard to post-secondary education, and helps to identify where, when and how all levels of government in Canada should invest in learning and training,” wrote newly-elected national director Zach Dayler.

“However, the soundness of this data could be put into significant jeopardy if the mandatory long form is replaced with a voluntary survey,” the letter continued. “Considering that Canada already suffers from a lack of adequate, comparable data on our post-secondary system, and that further cutbacks in the size and scope of learning data collected by federal ministries and departments is being contemplated, the ramifications of this alteration to census data collection must not be underestimated by the federal government.”

Statistics Canada’s chief statistician Munir A. Sheikh tendered his resignation July 21, explaining in an online statement that the government would not be able to achieve the same level of statistical data if optional surveys replaced mandatory surveys.

The statement has since been removed from the organization’s website and replaced with a message stating the federal agency is not in a position to comment on the advice it passed on to Clement.

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image: Flickr