Footprints in Time
the Longitudinal Study of
Indigenous Children
Department of Families,
Housing, Community Services
and Indigenous Affairs
The opinions, comments and analysis expressed in this presentation are
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Minister
for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and
cannot be taken in any way as expressions of Government policy.
Outline of this presentation
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Why do we need this Study
Key research questions
Methodology – strengths and weaknesses
Examples of the sort of information LSIC
uniquely provides
• How to access LSIC data
Why LSIC
• Importance of child development to overall
outcomes
• Closing the Gap indicators
– Halve the gap in mortality for under 5s
– Halve the gap for Indigenous students in reading,
writing and numeracy
• Lack of other data sources eg LSAC
Key research questions
1. What do Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
children need to have the best start in life to grow
up strong?
2. What helps Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
children to stay on track or get them to become
healthier, more positive and strong?
3. How are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
children raised?
Key research questions (continued)
4. What is the importance
of family, extended
family and community in
the early years of life
and when growing up?
Also of interest:
5. How can services and other types of support make a
difference to the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander children?
Methodology
• LSIC sample is reflective, not representative
• Local Indigenous research staff conduct
interviews
• Extensive community engagement including
feedback to communities participating in the
Study
Torres Strait
Derby
Broome
Fitzroy
valley
Darwin,
Galiwin’ku
Mt Isa
Doomadgee
Mornington
Brisbane
Dubbo
Katherine
Sydney
Alice
Shepparton
Adelaide
NSW South
Coast
Data collection
• Annual face-to-face quantitative interviews
with parents and carers of Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander children
• Annual survey with older children
• Teacher/carer questionnaire
• Selected qualitative interviews to explore
particular stories and provide context
Who are the Footprints kids?
Two age cohorts of Study Children (SC):
6 - 18 months, now aged 2 ½ - 3 ½ (B cohort)
3 - 4 ½ years, now aged 5 ½ - 7 (K cohort)
Children are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Parents may not be (14% of main carers non-Indigenous)
Wave 1 in 2008
B cohort – 959 babies
K cohort – 720 children
Wave 2 in 2009 – 86% retention
Content
• Wave 1
Maternal health and care, birth weight, postnatal
depression and treatment, home visits
• Wave 2
Mobility, starting school, child support, how parents cope
with stress, stolen generations, and parents’ values for
children
• Wave 3
Questions for children about school, homelessness and
gambling, trust of services, whether homes have
working toilets, fridges etc
Level of Relative Isolation (LORI) for LSIC sites
W. Sydney
Adelaide
SE Qld
Shepparton
None
Dubbo
Low
NSW Sth Coast
Derby, Broome
Moderate
M t Isa & North
High/Extreme
Top End
Alice Springs
Torres Strait
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Does your house have any major things that
need fixing?
100%
Other
80%
No
60%
Yes
40%
20%
0%
None
Low
Moderate
LORI scale
High/extrem e
Is this a good community for little kids?
100%
80%
Other
Really bad
60%
Not so good
OK
40%
Very good/good
20%
0%
None
Low
Moderate
LORI scale
High/extreme
Proportion of birth mothers who had regular
checkups during pregnancy by LORI
%
98
97
96
95
94
93
92
91
90
89
None
Low
LORI scale
Moderate
High/extreme
Length of breastfeeding (wave 1 and 2 data)
50
45
40
Percent
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Never breastfed
0-6 months
Elsewhere
6-12 months
Torres Strait
over 12 months
Length of breastfeeding (wave 1 and 2 data)
60
50
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Never breastfed
0-6 months
Elsewhere
6-12 months
Kimberley
over 12 months
What is publicly available?
Oct 2009 – Wave 1 community report, Key Summary
Report, DVD and site reports released
Feb 2010 – Wave 1 Parent 1 data released
Oct 2010 – Wave 1 Study child data to users
Oct 2010 – Wave 2 community report, Key Summary
Report scheduled for release with DVD
and site reports for communities
Mar 2011 – Wave 2 Parent 1 data release
To apply for the data log on to:
http://www.fahcsia.gov.au/lsic
Available in SAS, STATA and SPSS formats
For further information contact:
LSIC@fahcsia.gov.au
Enquiries about the data:
LSICdata@fahcsia.gov.au