Between May and July this year, our school will be taking part in the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC). This is a nationwide census/survey of early childhood development held once every three years. The AEDC is an Australian Government initiative run by the Department of Education, Skills and Employment and includes all children in their first year of full-time school.
The AEDC provides vital information to communities about how children are developing in the crucial early years. AEDC data is relied upon by schools, early childhood organisations, researchers and government to inform planning and improve services and supports for children and families.
The AEDC Instrument is completed by teachers about children in their first year of full-time school. The AEDC is voluntary and is not a school test. The information collected gives a picture of how children are developing before they start school in five key areas or domains. It shows what is being done well, and what can be improved. This is why it is important for all children in their first year of full-time school to be included in the AEDC.
What does this mean for your child?
Children do not need to do anything to be included in the census and will attend class as usual throughout the data collection period, which will commence on Monday, 17th May. During the census, teachers will record information, including children’s names and dates of birth, based on their knowledge and observations of each child in their class. Teachers answer questions relating to the five key domains of early childhood development including; Physical health and wellbeing, Emotional maturity, Social competence, Language and cognitive skills (school-based) and Communication skills and general knowledge. You can see all the questions at https://www.aedc.gov.au/avedi.
You can be confident that your child’s privacy will be protected.
We understand how important it is to keep your child’s information private. This is why we use a secure site to collect and keep your child’s information. The AEDC is managed in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). The APPs regulate the collection, use, disclosure and storage of personal information by Australian government agencies, and some private sector organisations, and is part of the Privacy Act 1998 (Cth). APPs also form part of applicable state and territory privacy legislation and policies.
AEDC results for individual children are not reported and data about each child is de-identified. Children’s names, ages, addresses and schools are not included when AEDC information is made publicly available. Individual children cannot be identified when AEDC information is linked with information from other organisations (such as health departments).
You can see how data is collected and presented by visiting www.aedc.gov.au/data . Data from the 2021 collection will be presented in a similar way.
Access to the de-identified AEDC data is limited to the following groups:
Communities
Your child’s data will be combined with data from the other children living within the same community. Communities only receive information about how their children are doing when most schools and children participate.
Schools
Your child’s data will be combined with data from the other children in the school. Only schools have access to their school report and individual children cannot be identified.
Governments
State and Territory government and non-government (Catholic and Independent) schools receive de-identified information for all children in their schools.
Researchers
Researchers can apply for de-identified data from the AEDC program or for AEDC data linked to other data to answer research questions. For examples about how researchers have used AEDC data visit https://www.aedc.gov.au/snapshots.
What do parents need to do?
The department seeks your consent to collect personal information about your child from our school, for the purposes of the AEDC. This includes known information about your child’s health.
If you consent to the collection of your child’s information, you do not need to do anything.
If you do not consent to the collection of your child’s information, please contact Rose Marques via email rose.marques@cewa.edu.au before Monday, 17th May.
To find out more about the AEDC, please read the frequently asked questions section on the AEDC website at https://www.aedc.gov.au/parents/faqs or phone 1800 092 548.
Your child’s data will only be used for the purpose described in this letter. The Privacy Statement contained on the AEDC website provides detailed descriptions about protection and access and can be found at: www.aedc.gov.au/parents/privacy-statement
Finally if you could please complete the short online survey form below as it will assist us in answering some of the information requested in the assessment.
Thank you for supporting the AEDC.
Online Parent Survey Form
Leon Bolding
Principal