National Adult Literacy Database

The high school completion rate for Aboriginal students falls well short of the Canadian average. Recent research has highlighted student mobility as a major barrier to successful completion of high school.

The authors of this paper argue that low completion rates among Aboriginal students in families who move more frequently suggest that the educational system is not currently meeting the needs of mobile students in general and mobile Aboriginal students in particular.

In Australia, steps have been taken to identify best practices developed by schools to support mobile students. The authors suggest that these practices are likely to be effective in Canadian contexts that, like Australia, have large numbers of mobile Aboriginal students.

These practices include fostering positive attitudes toward student mobility; developing strategies for successful enrolment, transition, and orientation; transferring student information; and building flexibility to meet learning needs.