I'm sure you know that Statistics Canada collects and publishes census and economic data, and you may even know about their other resources such as the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act Data Portal or the Culture Statistics Portal, but did you know that our national statistical agency also produces some great educational resources? 

Students can use Statistics Canada's growing suite of videos, podcasts, and other resources to quickly learn about current economic issues that are in the news and shaping our lives. From inflation to supply chain dynamics, if you need a fast and authoritative route to understanding core concepts, check out Statistics Canada!

To help you get started, here are a few sources that caught my eye... 

 Videos

Start with Statistics Canada's YouTube channel to find videos such as...

• What is GDP? – 4:11 minutes 
• An Overview of the CPI – 3:25 minutes 
• The Consumer Price Index and Your Experience of Price Change – 3:32 minutes 
• The Market Basket Measure: Canada's Official Measure of Poverty – 4:24 minutes 

Don't stop at YouTube — return to the Statistics Canada site for additional videos such as the series on Statistical data (e.g., Economic well-being across generations - Are millennials better or worse off? (2:02 minutes)).

 Podcasts

Check out the Eh Sayers podcast series for discussions with statisticians about stats that affect all of our lives, such as...

• Why Should You Care About Inflation? – 22:39 minutes 
• In a Movie About the Economy, Is Inflation the Bad Guy? – 13:12 minutes 
• Why Haven't We Ended Poverty Yet? – 33:57 minutes 
• Dude, Where's My Semiconductor? – 23:00 minutes 
• Who Wins and Who Loses in the Gig Economy? – 30:47 minutes

 And beyond!

The Statistics Canada site, much like a certain library site you may know, is huge and full of tempting distractions (e.g., the Baby Names Observatory!), so you might have missed other gems such as...

• The StatsCAN app for those who want the latest information on Canada's economy, society and environment literally at their fingertips. Why scroll endlessly through TikTok videos at the bus stop when you can <ahem> tap into expert analysis, fun facts, visuals, short stories and insight about our wonderful country? (For more tips on suggested commuting activities, check out my earlier post listing read-on-a-bus books & ebooks.) 
   
• Statistics Canada's many interactive data visualization tools and infographics... because trying to extract meaning from dense stats tables is rarely as efficient or enjoyable as from a well-designed picture or chart.
   
• StatsCAN Plus: Stay on top of the country’s statistical news throughout the day! (E.g., see these recent articles on statistics relevant to International Pronouns Day and World Egg Day.)

• 

  Data Literacy Training: The ability to derive meaningful information from data is increasingly a key skill in many jobs. Take charge of your own education on such an important topic! Use Statistics Canada's resources to learn about "working with data including the knowledge and skills to read, analyze, interpret, visualize and communicate data" and to "understand the use of data in decision-making." (For more on data literacy and data analytics, check the SFU Library's interactive learning resource: Sage Business Skills, home of a foundational Data Analytics module.)

• And (finally!), for those who need an even deeper understanding of data and statistics, explore Statistics Canada's list of the workshops, training and conferences they offer.

Happy learning!

— Mark

P.S.: As usual, I'm barely scratching the surface. Contact me to learn about more advanced learning resources that touch on both the collection and analysis of data & stats.
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Mark Bodnar
Economics & Business Librarian
mbodnar@sfu.ca