Indigenous-Education-Review_DRAFT

Review of Indigenous Education in the Northern Territory
Bruce Wilson
Figure 1 – Northern Territory Indigenous Households 8 by number of persons usually resident and Geolocation
60%
Per Cent of Households
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Very Remote
Remote
Provincial
0%
One Two Three Four Five Six or
more
Number of persons usually resident
The Indigenous population has a median age of 23 (up from 21 at the 2001 census), compared with
34 (and stable) for the non‐Indigenous population, so while only 30% of the Northern Territory
population is Indigenous, the school population is about 40% Indigenous.
Internet connectivity
Internet connectivity gives a sense of the remoteness and isolation of many parts of the Territory.
The large majority of non‐Indigenous households have internet connections while less than half
(41%) of all Indigenous households and only 18% of very remote Indigenous households are
connected. This data is a corrective to those who believe that most educational problems will be
solved by the ICT revolution: in many Indigenous households, the revolution is yet to arrive.
Schooling
Only 29% of the Northern Territory Indigenous population attends school beyond Year 10. The
majority (54%) of the non‐Indigenous population complete Year 12.
DRAFT
Figure 2 – Highest Level of Schooling, Northern Territory Population 15 and over by Indigenous Status
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Indigenous
Non‐Indigenous
8 An Indigenous household is any household that had at least one person of any age as a resident at the time of the Census
who identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin
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