A new report has found that increasing school attendance among Indigenous students is the single greatest factor needed to close the gap or reduce the disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. The “Mind the Gap” report by the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) has revealed a significant achievement gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians by the time students reach Year 3. Report author Glenn Fahey, an expert in education policy, said despite receiving 38 percent more funding than non-Indigenous students, this initial achievement gap is never overcome by the time students finish school. “By school-leaving age, the average Indigenous Australian student is around two and a half years behind the average non-Indigenous one,” Fahey said in a statement. The study found that student attendance accounted for 15 percent of the gap, yet only 36 percent of Indigenous students in high school attend school every nine in 10 days, compared to …