Accuracy and reliability

Overall accuracy

The overall precision of the results regarding activities such as interaction and instrumental teaching as well as key figures for the music schools' staff is assessed to be adequate. This is mainly because data on staff, ensemble and instrument instruction is reported directly from the music schools' management systems, which form the basis for, for example, remuneration and student payment. The registration of MGK students in the administrative systems is assessed to be of varying quality. Data regarding preschool classes is registered differently at individual schools. In addition, the extent of music schools 'activities in schools and institutions, as well as outward-looking information and motivation activities in, for example, cultural houses and libraries, is underestimated due to difficulties in registering these in schools' management systems. These activities are therefore considered to be underrepresented in the statistics, but it is not possible to indicate to what extent. The overall precision of the music schools' state grants is estimated to be very high as the data basis for this is based on a single, authoritative source. The municipal grants are removed from the statistics from 2018/2019 and onwards, as these grants are calculated differently in the individual municipalities.

Sampling error

Not relevant for these statistics.

Non-sampling error

Sources of uncertainty may be incorrect records of students' personal identification numbers, academic and instrument codes etc. in the music schools’ student administration systems as well as erroneous assessment/information in the questionnaire responses.

Accounts of student activity include all students no matter how long students have participated. If a student has opted out of a course, the music school will typically offer his/her seat to another student. In such cases, both students are included in the account. Similarly, administrative changes in music schools during the season may result in changes to the student composition of individual classes. In exceptional cases, this situation may lead to the school's student administration system showing the existence of two classes while only one class has been actually taught. Such situation implies an overestimate of the number of students.

The music schools annually report lists of student for the individual courses to the schools' administration system, which is managed by SpeedAdmin. In the case where SpeedAdmin does not receive all student lists from a music school in a given season, there will be a lack of registration of the students' activities in the statistics. Statistics Denmark checks pupil numbers for errors at a macro level, which is why it may happen that missing reports of individual programs for a given municipality are not identified in the error check. If there is a lack of reporting of a large number of students from a music school, the school and SpeedAdmin are informed with a view to improving the registration and reporting practices going forward.

Due to the lack of reporting companion programs to the schools' administration system for a municipality in the 2021/22 season, the number of activity students and unique students for the course "preschool" and "subjects in total" is approximately 500 activity students/unique students too low in the tables SKOLM02A and SKOLM02B.

Quality management

Statistics Denmark follows the recommendations on organisation and management of quality given in the Code of Practice for European Statistics (CoP) and the implementation guidelines given in the Quality Assurance Framework of the European Statistical System (QAF). A Working Group on Quality and a central quality assurance function have been established to continuously carry through control of products and processes.

Quality assurance

Statistics Denmark follows the principles in the Code of Practice for European Statistics (CoP) and uses the Quality Assurance Framework of the European Statistical System (QAF) for the implementation of the principles. This involves continuous decentralized and central control of products and processes based on documentation following international standards. The central quality assurance function reports to the Working Group on Quality. Reports include suggestions for improvement that are assessed, decided and subsequently implemented.

Quality assessment

The overall accuracy of the results on activities such as ensemble and instrumental instruction as well as key figures for finance and personnel is estimated to be adequate. The activity of pre-school classes is considered to be under-represented in the statistics due to faulty registration practices by some music schools. The extent of music schools' activities in schools and institutions, as well as off-site information and motivation activities in, for example, cultural houses and libraries, is missing/underestimated due to difficulties in registering these in schools' management systems. There are no sampling errors as this statistics represents a census.

Data revision - policy

Statistics Denmark revises published figures in accordance with the Revision Policy for Statistics Denmark. The common procedures and principles of the Revision Policy are for some statistics supplemented by a specific revision practice.

Data revision practice

A revision of the table of the financial key figures for state subsidies to the music schools was done during the summer of 2023. This is because new data based on the music schools' accounts have been reported. As a rule, the statistics are not affected by ongoing revisions, unless a major error report has not been observed during data processing when publishing the statistics.