Canadian Council on Learning | Conseil Canadien sur l'Apprentissage

Parents allowing less time for video/computer games than television

Annual learning survey released today

February 23, 2009 Ottawa—A recent survey by the Canadian Council on Learning (CCL) shows that parents are allowing their young children significantly less time to play video/computer games than to watch television, videos and DVDs.

In the 2008 Survey on Canadian Attitudes toward Learning, a majority of parents (73%) report permitting their young children (aged 2–5) to watch television, videos and DVDs for more than one hour per day. However, where playing video/computer games is concerned, only 20% of parents allow their children more than one hour per day.

The survey also found that 45% of Canadians believe elementary and high schools are meeting or exceeding their overall expectations with respect to preparing students for work—a significant decrease since 2007, when 51% Canadians expressed satisfaction in this regard.

The annual survey is designed by CCL in consultation with, and administered by, Statistics Canada. In spring 2008, more than 5,400 Canadians aged 18–74 shared their opinions, beliefs and experiences pertaining to lifelong learning.

Among the survey’s other findings:

Early childhood learning

• Parents whose children have not attended any form of child care (55%) are more likely to use libraries, museums and parks than parents whose children regularly attend child-care services (45%).

Learning in elementary and high schools/structured learning

• More than 60% of Canadians believe elementary and high schools are meeting or exceeding their expectations for teaching computer skills, reading, writing and math; and preparing students for further education.
• Respondents born outside of Canada are generally more satisfied with elementary and high schools in Canada than those born in Canada.
• Most Canadians (96%) agree that high school programs that include work experience should be available to all students. However, of parent respondents whose children’s schools do not offer such programs, only 36% would encourage their children to participate if they were available.

Workplace learning

• Slightly more than half (51%) of non-retired Canadians have taken formal work-related training (training toward a degree, diploma or certificate related to a job or career) within the past year.
• Older workers are less likely to participate in formal work-related training than those in younger age groups. For example, only 35% of adults aged 55–64 had taken training within the past year, compared to 67% of adults aged 18–24.
• Of respondents who had not taken training within the past year, 60% would be more likely to participate in work-related training if they could get paid time off for training, and 55% would be more likely if they received financial assistance to pay for training costs.
• Canadians with more education are more likely to have employers who support their formal work-related training.

Health-related learning

• Canadians without a high school diploma are much less likely to use the internet as a source for health-related information than those with more education.
• Canadians with more education are more skeptical of the reliability of certain sources of health information. Of Canadians with a university degree, 43% report not using media such as television and radio to learn about health issues due to concerns of reliability; while only 18% of Canadians without a high school diploma report concerns about the reliability of those sources.

This is the third iteration of the annual Survey of Canadian Attitudes toward Learning.

“The Survey of Canadian Attitudes toward Learning sheds light on how people approach learning, from childhood to the senior years,” said Dr. Paul Cappon, President and CEO of the Canadian Council on Learning. “The survey also highlights the many factors that affect learning—including income, personal and financial support, as well as level of education. These variables are important to recognize, because learning is directly related to quality of life.”

Results from the Survey of Canadian Attitudes toward Learning can be found at www.ccl-cca.ca/scal/.

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The Canadian Council on Learning is an independent, not-for-profit corporation funded through an agreement with Human Resources and Social Development Canada. Its mandate is to promote and support evidence-based decisions about learning throughout all stages of life, from early childhood through to the senior years.

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