--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/closing-the-aboriginal-education-gap-in-canada-assessing-progress-and-estimating-the-economic-benefits/" title: "Closing the Aboriginal Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T12:55:08+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T12:55:08+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "Aboriginal education gap" - "Canada" - "economic benefits" - "educational attainment" - "employment income" - "Indigenous" - "labour market" - "National Household Survey" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Indigenous Economic Development" - "Labour Markets" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # Closing the Aboriginal Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/closing-the-aboriginal-education-gap-in-canada-assessing-progress-and-estimating-the-economic-benefits/ # Closing the Aboriginal Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2015-03-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Calver, Matthew. 2015. “Closing the Aboriginal Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits.” CSLS Research Report 2015-03. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/closing-the-aboriginal-education-gap-in-canada-assessing-progress-and-estimating-the-economic-benefits/ ## Author: - Matthew Calver Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2015-03 June 2015 175 pages ## Related research [Closing the First Nations Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits — An Update Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) February 2023 | Report 2023-01 | 101 pages](https://csls.ca/research/closing-the-first-nations-education-gap-in-canada-assessing-progress-and-estimating-the-economic-benefits-an-update-2023-01/) [Measuring the Appropriate Outcomes for Better Decision-Making: A Framework to Guide the Analysis of Health Policy Matthew Calver March 2016 | Report 2016-03 | 132 pages](https://csls.ca/research/measuring-the-appropriate-outcomes-for-better-decision-making-a-framework-to-guide-the-analysis-of-health-policy-2016-03/) [Living Standards Domain of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing Andrew Sharpe, Christopher Ross November 2011 | Report 2011-17 | 124 pages](https://csls.ca/research/living-standards-domain-of-the-canadian-index-of-wellbeing-2011-17/) [Productivity: Key to Economic Success Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) March 1998 | Report 1998-01 | 99 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-key-to-economic-success/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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The first goal is to assess progress on the gaps in educational attainment and labour market outcomes between 2001 and 2011 and the consequences of any progress (or lack thereof) for the Canadian economy. The second goal is to produce updated estimates of the benefits of eliminating the educational attainment gap. Utilizing projections of the Aboriginal population in 2031 and data from the 2011 National Household survey, we estimate the effects of closing the educational attainment gap on Aboriginal labour market outcomes and national economic performance. We provide breakdowns of the benefits by province, sex, age, Aboriginal identity, registered Indian status, and residence on- and off-reserve. We project that the direct cumulative economic benefits to Canada of closing the educational attainment gap between 2011 and 2031 could be as large as $261 billion. Ce rapport poursuit deux grands objectifs. Le premier est d’évaluer les progrès réalisés dans la réduction des écarts de scolarité et de résultats sur le marché du travail entre 2001 et 2011, ainsi que les conséquences de ces progrès (ou de leur absence) pour l’économie canadienne. Le second est de produire des estimations actualisées des avantages liés à l’élimination de l’écart de scolarité. À l’aide de projections de la population autochtone pour 2031 et de données tirées de l’Enquête nationale auprès des ménages de 2011, nous estimons les effets de la fermeture de l’écart de scolarité sur les résultats des Autochtones sur le marché du travail et sur la performance économique nationale. Nous présentons des ventilations des avantages selon la province, le sexe, l’âge, l’identité autochtone, le statut d’Indien inscrit et la résidence en réserve ou hors réserve. Nous projetons que les avantages économiques cumulatifs directs pour le Canada découlant de la fermeture de l’écart de scolarité entre 2011 et 2031 pourraient atteindre 261 milliards de dollars. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2015-03-1.pdf)