Newsletter
Number 2, March 2002
This is a
newsletter for academic researchers in the Toronto region using, or
interested in using, Statistics Canada microdata. The Toronto Region -
Statistics Canada RDC is a joint initiative between the University of
Toronto, York University, Ryerson University, and Statistics Canada.
Contents:
1. Upcoming
workshops and presentations
2. Current RDC
data holdings
3. New surveys
available for analysis
4. RDC proposal
submission process
5. Statistics
Canada Research Stipend
6. Contact us
1) Upcoming
Workshops and Presentations
a)
NPHS workshop on variance estimation using bootstrap weights
Francois
Brisebois, Senior Methodologist for Statistics Canada’s Household Survey
Method Division, will be here on Friday March 22 to offer its users the
"NPHS Bootstrap Hands-on Workshop". The primary goal of this workshop is
to allow NPHS data users to understand the variance estimation process
using the bootstrap method, the recommended method of the survey. The
workshop focuses on the use of the "bootvar" program (distributed with
the NPHS data) which facilitates variance estimation for totals, ratios
and different regression models, among other things. Exercises are
given throughout the day, allowing practical experience with the
"bootvar" program. Many other aspects related to the bootstrap method,
such as the theory behind it, the creation of bootstrap weights, and
the use of CV tables are also part of the workshop. Other than a basic
knowledge of the survey, the only pre-requisite necessary to attend
this workshop is a basic knowledge of SAS software (or another similar
type of programming software). At the end of this workshop, the
participants will have demystified all of their illusions related to
the bootstrap method's use within the NPHS, and from then on will be
able to calculate the precision of their estimates themselves.
This workshop is
only open to researchers who have been approved to access NPHS master
data files at the Toronto RDC (see RDC proposal submission process). If
you are interested, please contact Tina Hotton at 416-946-8105 or through email.
b)
Presentation on the Youth in Transition Survey (YITS) and Statistics
Canada's Programme for International Student Assessment datasets (PISA)
A presentation
on OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment datasets and
Statistics Canada’s Youth in Transition Survey will be held at the RDC
on Thursday April 11 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Marc Lachance and
Fernando Cartwright of Statistics Canada will give the workshop. These
sessions will provide participants with a good overview of the PISA
study and the Youth in Transition Survey for both cohorts, the
15-year-old cohort and the 18/20-year-old as well as the PISA scaling
(IRT), the weight theories/techniques, the calculation of the standard
errors, and the analytical techniques, such as hierarchical linear
models (HLM), used for the production of the first results released in
December 2001 and January 2002. It will also provide an overview of the
PISA and YITS database structure, how to access the Public International
PISA databases and master YITS data files at the RDC.
For more
information on the first release of YITS (18-20 year-old cohort), please
visit: http://www.pisa.gc.ca/publications_e.shtml
This workshop is
open to anyone who is interested, but space is limited. If you are
interested, please contact Tina Hotton at 416-946-8105 or through email.
c)
Presentation on the Workplace and Employee Survey (WES)
Howard Krebs, of
Statistics Canada, will be at the RDC in May (date still to be
determined) to discuss WES data access possibilities at the RDC and
through remote data access.
This
presentation is open to anyone who is interested. Please contact Tina
Hotton at 416-946-8105 or through email to confirm the date
and time.
d)
Presentation on the Community Care Health Survey (CCHS)
Yves Beland, of
Statistics Canada, will be at the RDC in May (date still to be
determined) to give an overview of CCHS survey design and variance
estimation.
This
presentation is open to anyone who is interested. Please contact Tina
Hotton at 416-946-8105 or through email to confirm the date
and time.
2) Current
data holdings
The Toronto RDC
currently has four longitudinal surveys available for analysis– WES,
SLID, NLSCY and the NPHS.
The Workplace and Employee Survey (WES)
The 1999
employee microdata from the Workplace and Employee Survey are now
available at the Research Data Centre. This is the first cycle of data
for this unique longitudinal survey. For more information on WES, please
visit: http://www.statcan.ca/english/concepts/wes.htm or contact us by email or by telephone at
(416) 946-8105.
The Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID)
The microdata
from the 1999 cycle of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics are now
available at the Research Data Centre. The RDC now has the SLID
microdata from 1993 to 1999. This includes panel 1 respondents from 1993
to 1998, panel 2 respondents from 1996 to 1999, and the first year of
data (1999) for panel 3 respondents. For more information on SLID,
please visit: http://www.statcan.ca/english/SLID/diction.htm or contact us by email or by telephone at
(416) 946-8105.
The National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY)
We currently
have three cycles of NLSCY data (1994-5) (1996-7) (1998-9) at the RDC.
Data for the 2000-2001 survey years will be available at the end of the
year. For more information on the NLSCY, please visit: http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/89F0077XIE/free.htm or contact us by email or by telephone at
(416) 946-8105.
The National Population Health Survey (NPHS)
The RDC
currently has three cycles of NPHS data (1994-95, 1996-97, and 1998-99),
and a fourth cycle will be available in the spring of 2002. For more
information on the NPHS, please visit: http://www.statcan.ca/english/sdds/3225.htm or contact us by email or by telephone at
(416) 946-8105.
3) New
surveys available for analysis
Canadian
Longitudinal Youth in Transition Survey (YITS)
YITS is a survey
designed to provide longitudinal data to study school-work transitions
of adolescents and young adults. Content includes measurement of major
transitions in young peoples lives including virtually all formal
educational experiences and most labour-market experiences. Measured
factors influencing pathways also include – family background, school
experiences, achievement, aspirations and expectations, and employment
experiences. The implementation plan encompasses a longitudinal survey
for each of two cohorts, ages 15 and 18-20. These cohorts will be
surveyed every two years.
For more
information on this survey check out http://www.statcan.ca/english/sdds/4435.htm
The Community Care Health Survey (CCHS)
The CCHS is a
new survey being conducted by Statistics Canada to provide regular and
timely cross-sectional estimates of health determinants, health status
and health system utilization for 136 health regions across the country.
The CCHS began collection in September 2000 and has been in the field
every month from that point forward. Each two-year collection cycle will
be comprised of two distinct surveys: a health region-level survey in
the first year with a total sample of 130,000 and a provincial-level
survey in the second year with a total sample of 30,000.
For more
information on this survey check out http://www.statcan.ca/english/concepts/health/index.htm
Other Statistics
Canada household surveys will be made available at the RDC if a proposal
to access the data is accepted. For documentation on other Statistics
Canada surveys, please refer to the Statistics Canada website: http://www.statcan.ca.
4) RDC
proposal submission process
To access the
RDC, researchers must submit a project proposal to a review committee
operating under the auspices of the Social Sciences and Humanities
Research Council (SSHRC) and Statistics Canada. The process is done
through an on-line application system accessible at (http://www.sshrc.ca/web/apply/application/rdc_application_e.asp). For more
information on the Toronto RDC and how to apply for access, please visit
our new website at: http://sites.utoronto.ca/rdc.
Dr. Blair
Wheaton, the Academic Director for the RDC, would be happy to review
your proposal prior to its submission to ensure that all of the required
information is present. Please send your proposals to us by email.
5)
Statistics Canada Research Stipend
Statistics
Canada is seeking to support Ph.D. candidates working on their theses
who are interested in using one of a variety of newly available
microdata from longitudinal surveys or administrative datasets. The
program offers both access to the master versions of these data at our
Ottawa headquarters, and limited financial support.
A number of
stipends will be offered for the 2002/2003 academic year. Stipend
holders will become deemed employees of Statistics Canada and are
expected to spend the majority of their time at the head office in
Ottawa. The stipend is intended as compensation for the costs of moving
off-campus, and will consist of $15,000 ($1,875 per month for a maximum
of eight months). Office and computing equipment will be made available
to successful candidates, and they may begin their work any time before
October 1, 2002.
Proposals are
invited from registered Doctoral students currently engaged in writing
their theses either at a Canadian or a non-Canadian university.
Proposals will
be judged by the extent to which they:
a) clearly
articulate the hypotheses or issues being examined
b) demonstrate a
detailed awareness of one of the data sources and its appropriateness
and limitations for the proposed study
c) outline when
applicable, the limitations of the public use version of the data for
the issue being addressed and offer a rationale for access to the master
file
The proposal
should also contain a copy of the candidate’s curriculum vitae, graduate
and undergraduate transcripts, and a confidential reference letter from
the thesis advisor (sent under separate cover) verifying that the
candidate is a registered student engaged in thesis work as well as
offering an assessment of the candidate’s ability to complete the
proposed project. Candidates may also include copies of preliminary
chapter drafts that use the public use version of the data.
Candidates are
encouraged to submit their proposals as soon as possible to: Statistics
Canada Research Stipend c/o Miles Corak Statistics Canada 24th floor,
R.H. Coats Building Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0T6
Proposals should
arrive no later than April 15, 2002. Further information can be obtained
by contacting Miles Corak at (613) 951-9047.
All proposals
received by the deadline will be acknowledged. The decision of stipends
to be awarded will be made by May 15, 2002.
6) Contact us
For further
information on the RDC or on any other item in this newsletter, please
contact:
Tina Hotton,
Statistics Canada Analyst
Toronto
Region-Statistics Canada RDC
Robarts Library,
Room 7032
130 St. George
St. Toronto, ON M5S 1A5
Email
Tel: 416-946-8105
Fax: 416-946-8104
The Toronto RDC
Steering Committee can be contacted through:
Dr. Blair
Wheaton, Toronto RDC Academic Director
University of
Toronto
222 College
Street, room 106
Toronto, ON M5T
3J1
Tel: 416-978-7065
Fax: 416-978-4771