March 4, 1996
(Education and Training)

Major gains announced in Newfoundland's postsecondary education levels
Indicators show gap disappearing between Newfoundland and Canada on key measures

The first Indicators report on postsecondary education in Newfoundland and Labrador has been released, marking an important milestone in Canadian education by being the first report of its kind ever produced in Canada. The 150-page document covers all sectors of higher education including university, public colleges, and private training institutions. It shows some impressive statistics in a number of areas, but also pinpoints several areas of concern. On the positive side, Newfoundlanders have made several encouraging gains in postsecondary participation and education levels, particularly among females, who are entering postsecondary education in ever-increasing numbers. However, there is bad news for males in the report, and some disturbing trends in the migration of educated people to the mainland.

Specifically, the province's young adults have made considerable improvements in their education levels, with gains in postsecondary participation by 18-24 year-olds almost doubling those gains for Canada as a whole. Chris Decker, Minister of Education and Training, points out: "The gap in higher education between our province and the rest of Canada is becoming a myth. Our general education levels for 18-24 year- olds are now virtually the same as the Canadian average. Our university participation rates are higher than the national average. If the present trend continues, Newfoundland and Labrador will soon have education levels equal to the best in the country."

The report gives especially good news about the involvement of Newfoundland's females, who have made significant gains in education levels. More and more females are now entering our colleges and university, and more females are graduating. The flip side of that shows a disconcerting trend for males, with fewer of them, relative to females, enroling in and completing postsecondary programs. However, it is the continuing migration out of the province of our educated young adults that creates the most disturbing findings.

"Perhaps the worst news is that we're losing our best" states Mr. Decker. "In other words...yes we're graduating more and more people, but they're not staying here. We're losing our educated young adults in record numbers. We need to create a promising future for our graduates here, in Newfoundland and Labrador."

The report is a product of the Indicators project, a system of ongoing education measurement and reporting, developed in Newfoundland for students, educators, and the public. The document has drawn attention from educational agencies across Canada. In pointing this out, Mr. Decker noted that Newfoundland is in fact a leading province in the country for improvement and accountability in education. "The very fact that we have released this report is in itself a major accomplishment. We were one of the first provinces to develop K-12 reports, and we are now actually the first ever to prepare a postsecondary report of this magnitude. I'm very proud of the work the department is doing in the area of assessment and accountability. In publishing this type of report we're fulfilling our mandate to inform the public on the performance of the higher education system in the province. This one doesn't have all the elements we'd like to have, but it's an important first step, and we look forward to each subsequent report getting better and better."

Mr. Decker went on to say: "We've set accountability in our education system as a priority, as we work toward a goal of achieving world-class standards in our education and training. We've got lots of work ahead of us, but this report shows that, step-by-step, we're getting there."

For more information or to arrange for an interview, please contact:

Gerald Galway                 Carl Cooper
Indicators Project Manager    Director of Public Relations
Education and Training        Education and Training
Confederation Building        Confederation Building
St. John's, NF                St. John's, NF
A1B 4J6                       A1B 4J6
(709) 729-4043                (709) 729-0048
e-mail ggalway@edu.gov.nf.ca  e-mail ccooper@edu.gov.nf.ca