Social Zones

Question:

I’m helping a student who’s looking at demographic changes in a particular Saskatoon neighbourhood over time. In the 1946 census of the prairies  I found a table for Saskatoon and Regina broken down by social zones, but no further explanation as to the areas of the cities to which the numbers apply. In 1951 there is a CT reference map that is similarly numbered. Did social zones morph into CTs?

Answer:

Here is a map of the social zones for Saskatoon used in the 1946 Census:

​https://archive.org/details/1946981946FV31949engfra/page/n565


On a cursory glance, they appear to be the same as the Census Tract boundaries used in the 1951 Census, but the student will need to compare them more closely.

With thanks to the U of Toronto Map and Data Library's Historical Census page for the link to the 1946 publications digitized by the Internet Archive, and the 1951 CT map.

On page 201 of Statistics Canada - Cat. No. 92-351-UPE 1996 Census Dictionary - Final Edition, under Remark:

            Census tracts were called "Social Areas" in 1941 and 1946.

I would venture social zone or social area definitions were used in the 1941 and 1946 censuses.  These were later replaced with census tract beginning with the 1951 census.

2016 Census Release -- Age & Sex

Question
Just looking over today's release, I note that in 2016, there are average ages posted for all geographic units except census tracts, where median age is given. Previous census years used average age everywhere. What's the reasoning behind using median age for census tracts?

Answer
"Here's the reason why we moved to average age instead of median age:

In the past, Statistics Canada has been using median age as an indicator summarizing population age structure.  However, we have decided to move to average age in 2016.  Among others, a reason for the change is the fact that median age will not adjust as well when all baby boomers have moved to older ages. Median age does not account for shifts in the age structure at older ages, as it only divides the population in two groups of equal size.  Mean age will adjust better for the changes in the age distribution at older ages, for example when boomers reach age 85 and above.

Thus, as population aging has just accelerated in Canada, we believe mean age will be more consistent with the other key messages than median age."

Education in Census 2006 by Census Tract

Question

I have a researcher interested in looking at the ‘No certificate, diploma or degree’ variable in Education for both sexes ages 20-24 (custom range) for specific Census Tracts from the 2006 Census.

Answer

The client should be able to download the following 2006 Census table. They will need to download the entire table in IVT format so will have to install the Beyond 20/20 table browser (see instructions within the download tab).

They can then find the CTs within the table.

Topic-based tabulation: Highest Certificate, Diploma or Degree (14), Age Groups (10A) and Sex (3) for the Population 15 Years and Over of Census Metropolitan Areas, Tracted Census Agglomerations and Census Tracts, 2006 Census - 20% Sample Data

http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=93608&PRID=0&PTYPE=88971,97154&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2006&THEME=75&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=

NHS data on age group X highest certificate at Census Tract level?

Question

I’m looking for data from the 2011 National Household Survey which cross-tabulates age with education level at the Census Tract level.

I found the following data table (99-012-X2011055) on the Statistics Canada website which provides the data at the subdivision level, but not CT. The same table was on the DLI’s EFT site.

Highest Certificate, Diploma or Degree (7), Age Groups (8B), Major Field of Study - Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) 2011 (14), Labour Force Status (8), Attendance at School (3) and Sex (3) for the Population Aged 15 Years and Over, in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Divisions and Census Subdivisions, 2011 National Household Survey

Have I overlooked something, or is the data not available publicly or through the DLI?

Answer

There is the following table at the CT level for Highest Certificate, Diploma or Degree but it does not cross-tabulate with age.

Profile - Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity, Aboriginal Peoples, Labour and Education, and Mobility and Migration for Census Metropolitan Areas, Tracted Census Agglomerations and Census Tracts, National Household Survey, 2011

There is also the NHS profile, but again, it only has an age breakdown of the highest certificate, diploma or degree by population 15+ and Total population aged 25 to 64 years by highest certificate, diploma or degree.

Downloadable at the CT level:

http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/dp-pd/prof/details/download-telecharger/comprehensive/comp-ivt-xml-nhs-enm.cfm?Lang=E

This would need to be done via a custom tabulation through the closest regional office.

Census Tables by Occupation

Question

In the 2001 Census the following table was released by Census tract:

Occupation - 2001 National Occupational Classification for Statistics (60), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for Labour Force 15 Years and Over (20% sample data) 95F0384XCB01002.

Am I correct that NO tables that include occupation were released for 2006 at the Census Tract level? If you have a handy explanation I can pass on to the student, it would be nice. It does seem odd, as it would appear this would be a popular table.

Answer

The 2006 Census topic-based tabulations on occupation don't seem to include tables with data at the Census Tract level but labour force by sex by occupation at the Census Tract level are available in the 2006 Census complete cumulative profile: http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/rel/Lp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=1&PID=0&PRID=0&PTYPE=89103&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2006&THEME=81&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=

For 2006 these data would unfortunately only be available as a custom table. If this is of interest to the student, I will refer you to an Account-Executive in our Montreal Regional Office who can give you a cost estimate for such a table.

Our census contacts have looked into why this table wasn't produced for 2006 and sent us this explanation: "There are a few reasons why this table was not reproduced for 2006. First, a cross-tabulation this size at the CT level had a lot of empty cells, so this table would have come under review from a data perspective. Also the content for the entire 2006 Census dissemination cycle was reviewed and streamlined across all topics. It was decided not to apply the standard geographic hierarchies to the basic cross-tabulations and so the CT level was not applied to all tables."

I hope that this information is helpful. If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.