Results from 2009, 2012, 2015, 2018 and 2021 data collections
The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) is a measure of young children’s development in their first year of full-time school and collected by teachers across all school sectors.
The fifth wave of AEDC was collected in 2021, the first in 2009.
The AEDC data shows us how well children are faring and monitors developmental vulnerability over time. We can unpack these results with communities to understand what may be driving change.
You can download a PDF summary of the results.
Overall, the 2021 results for Victoria are relatively stable, which is positive in the context of disrupted learning and participation associated with the global pandemic.
Around 74,000 children participated in the AEDC in Victoria in 2021.
Around 305,000 children participated in the AEDC in Australia in 2021.
AEDC domains
The AEDC domains are:
- Physical health and wellbeing
- Social competence
- Language and cognitive skills
- Communication skills and general knowledge
- Emotional maturity
In 2021 in Victoria, the highest developmental vulnerability was in social competence, and the lowest development vulnerability was in language and cognitive skills.
Physical health and wellbeing
Overall, developmental vulnerability in Physical Health and Wellbeing increased between 2009 and 2021.
There has been no significant change since 2018.
- 2009: 7.7%
- 2012: 7.8%
- 2015: 7.9%
- 2018: 8.2%
- 2021: 8.1%
Social competence
Developmental vulnerability in Social Competence has fluctuated between 2009 and 2021, and overall it has increased.
There has been no significant change since 2018.
- 2009: 8.4%
- 2012: 8.1%
- 2015: 8.7%
- 2018: 8.8%
- 2021: 9.0%
Language and cognitive skills
Overall, developmental vulnerability in Language and Cognitive Skills has increased between 2009 and 2021.
Developmental vulnerability in Language and Cognitive Skills has increased since 2018.
- 2009: 6.1%
- 2012: 6.1%
- 2015: 6.3%
- 2018: 6.4%
- 2021: 7.2%
Emotional maturity
Developmental vulnerability in Emotional Maturity has fluctuated between 2009 and 2021, and overall it has decreased.
Developmental vulnerability in Emotional Maturity has decreased since 2018.
- 2009: 8.3%
- 2012: 7.2%
- 2015: 8.0%
- 2018: 8.1%
- 2021: 7.7%
Communication skills and general knowledge
Overall, developmental vulnerability in Communication Skills and General Knowledge decreased between 2009 and 2021.
There has been no significant change since 2018.
- 2009: 8.3%
- 2012: 8.0%
- 2015: 7.6%
- 2018: 7.4%
- 2021: 7.4%
Vulnerability on two or more domains
Children in Victoria had overall lower developmental vulnerability on two or more domains compared to the rest of Australia.
Overall, developmental vulnerability has not changed significantly since 2015. There has been no significant change since 2018.
- 2009: 10.0%
- 2012: 9.5%
- 2015: 9.9%
- 2018: 10.1%
- 2021: 10.2%
About 1 in 10 children were developmentally vulnerable on two or more domains in 2021
Vulnerability on one or more domains
Children in Victoria had overall lower developmental vulnerability on one or more domains compared to the rest of Australia.
Overall, developmental vulnerability on one or more domains has decreased between 2009 and 2021. There has been no significant change since 2018.
- 2009: 20.3%
- 2012: 19.5%
- 2015: 19.9%
- 2018: 19.9%
- 2021: 19.9%
About 1 in 5 children were developmentally vulnerable on one or more domains in 2021.
Updated