Thesis (PhD) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1997. / Bibliography : p. 253-267.

Thesis (PhD) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 276-304).

Thesis (PhD) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1998. / Bibliography : p. 164-171.

Thesis (M.A. (Hons.)- Visual Arts) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1997. / The thesis includes : Appendix 1- Catalogue of Works which comprises 59 coloured slides. The intent of this body of work is to visually interpret the book of poems "Akhenaten" by the Australian contemporary poet, Dorothy Porter. Thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Arts (Honuors) Visual Arts, University of Western Sydney, Nepean, Faculty of Visual and Performing Arts. Bibliography : p. 58-61.

Thesis (PhD) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1998. / Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (1998), School of Employment Relations, University of Western Sydney, Nepean. Bibliography : p. 232-257.

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1998. / Submitted to the Faculty of Education, The University of Western Sydney, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy April 1998. Bibliography : p. 331-384.

Thesis (Ph. D) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1999. / "An enquiry into the relationship between place and space, and the writiing life, with reference to journals and poetry written by Diane Fahey, and to works by Eavan Boland, Annie Dillard, and May Sarton" -- p. ii. Thesis submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, School of Communication and Media Studies, University of Western Sydney, Nepean. Bibliography : p. 259-264.

This study is an exploratory study, descriptive in nature and investigates the familiarity and practices of midwives and women with regard to complementary therapies during pregnancy and labour. The study was conducted in four major hospitals in Western Sydney, namely Nepean, Jamieson, Blue Mountains Anzac Memorial and Hawkesbury hospitals. The findings showed that in the main the midwives and women were familiar and made use of four therapies, ie. aromatherapy, massage, music and hydrotherapy. The midwives practiced without any significant training in these therapies. Hospital policies were almost non existant in relation to the practice of complementary therapies and nurses often felt frustrated at not being able to implement complementary therapies. The main issues that emerged from the study were the need for education for the midwives related to specific complementary therapies, hospital policies conducive to the practice of complementary therapies and research into the efficacy of the different complementary therapies. The women need further exposure to complementary therapies and education in the respective therapies if they are to feel empowered in dealing with the stress of their daily lives / Master of Nursing (Hons)

An ecological study of Emydura macquarii macquarii in the south-east region of Australia was conducted between October 1995 and March 1998. E. m. macquarii is an abundant and widespread species of short-necked turtle that is highly variable in morphology and related life history attributes. No study in Australia had previously looked at geographic variation in biological traits in freshwater turtles, hence the level of variation in E. m. macquarii had been poorly documented. The principal aims of this study were to investigate the plasticity of life history traits across populations of E. m. macquarii and to speculate on possible causes. A more intensive study was also conducted on a rare and suspected declining population of E. m. macquarii in the Nepean River to determine whether relevant management and conservation measures; were required. The study involved comparing various life history attributes between five populations of E. m. macquarii (Brisbane River, Macleay River, Hunter River, Nepean River and Murray River). The populations were specifically chosen to account for the range of variation in body size within this subspecies. Body size (maximum size, size at maturity, growth rates), population structures (sex ratios, age and size structures), reproductive traits (clutch mass, clutch size, egg size, egg content, etc.) and other attributes were collected for each population. Patterns of life history traits, both within and among populations, were explored so that causes of variation could be sought. Geographic variation in Body Size and other Related Life History Traits Body size in E. m. macquarii differed markedly between populations. Females ranged in maximum sizes (carapace length) of 180 mm in the Macleay River to over 300 mm in the Murray River. E. m. macquarii was sexually dimorphic across all populations with females larger than males in all cases. Maximum body size was positively related to the size at which a turtle matures. The size at maturity in turn was positively related to juvenile growth rates. Age was a more important factor for males in terms of timing of maturity whereas in females it was body size. Morphological variation was not only great between populations, but also within populations. Maximum body size was unrelated to latitude; hence it was inferred that habitat productivity had the most important influence on geographic variation in body size. Population structures also differed between populations. Sex ratios did not differ in the Brisbane, Macleay and Murray Rivers. However, a male bias was present in the Nepean River population and a female bias in the Hunter River. Juveniles were scarce in the Brisbane and Macleay Rivers but numerous in the Nepean and Hunter Rivers. Geographic Variation in Reproduction There was large variation in reproductive traits across populations of E. m. macquarii. Nesting season began as early as mid-September in the Brisbane River and as late as December in the Hunter River, and continued until early January. Populations in the Hunter and Murray Rivers are likely to produce only one clutch per season while populations from the Macleay and Nepean Rivers can produce two, and on some occasions, three clutches annually. The majority of females would appear to reproduce every year. Clutch mass, clutch size, and egg size varied greatly both within and among populations. A large proportion of variation in reproductive traits was due to the effects of body size. E. m. macquarii from large-bodied populations such as in the Brisbane and Murray Rivers produced bigger eggs than small-bodied populations. Within a population, clutch mass, clutch size, and egg size were all correlated with body size, except the Nepean River. The variability of egg size was smaller in large-bodied populations where egg size was more constant. Not all variation in reproductive traits was due to body size. Some of this variation was due to annual differences within a population. Reproductive traits within a population are relatively plastic, most likely a result of changing environmental conditions. Another source is the trade-off between egg size and clutch size. A negative relationship was found between egg size and clutch size (except the Brisbane River). Reproductive variation was also influenced by latitudinal effects. Turtles at lower latitudes produces more clutches, relatively smaller clutch sizes, clutch mass and larger eggs than populations at higher latitudes. Annual reproductive output is greater in tropical populations because they can produce more clutches per year in an extended breeding season. Eggs that were incubated at warmer temperatures hatched faster and produced smaller hatchlings. Incubation temperatures above 30�C increased egg mortality and hatchling deformities, suggesting this is above the optimum developmental temperature for E. m. macquarii. Hatchling size was positively related to egg size, hence hatchling sizes was on average larger in the Murray and Brisbane rivers. However, population differences remained in hatchling size after adjustments were made for egg size. For example, hatchlings from the Hunter River were smaller than those from the Macleay River despite the egg size being the same. These differences were most likely due to the shorter incubation periods of hatchlings from the Hunter River. Nepean River The Nepean River population of E. m. macquarii is at the southern coastal limit of its range. This is a locally rare population, which is believed to be declining. This study aimed at determining the distribution, abundance, and population dynamics to assess whether any conservation management actions were required. E. m. macquarii in the Nepean River was mainly concentrated between Penrith and Nortons Basin, although even here it was found at a very low density (10.6 - 12.1 per hectare). The largest male caught was 227 mm while the largest female was 260.4 mm. Males generally mature between 140 - 150 mm in carapace length and at four or five years of age. Females mature at 185 -195 mm and at six to seven years of age. Compared with other populations of E. macquarii, Nepean River turtles grow rapidly, mature quickly, are dominated by juveniles, have a male bias and have a high reproductive output. Far from being a population on the decline, the life history traits suggest a population that is young and expanding. There are considered to be two possible scenarios as to why the Nepean River population is at such a low density when it appears to be thriving. The first scenario is that the distribution of the population on the edge of its range may mean that a small and fluctuating population size may be a natural feature due to sub-optimal environmental conditions. A second scenario is that the population in the Nepean River has only recently become established from dumped pet turtles.

This field study report is concerned with the development, implementation and evaluation of a Diploma of Special Education (UG2) teacher training program. In March, 1974, the Advanced Education Beard of Mew South Wales requested that Nepean College of Advanced Education, Westmead, implement a one year training course for Generalist (Resource) Teachers in Special Education to begin in February, 1975. The lecturers in special education, Mr. Richard Fee and Mr. George Comino, proceed to design a training program which departed radically from the approach adopted by the other colleges of advanced education in New South Wales (Mitchell, Newcastle, Kuring-gai, Alexander Mackie). Instead of following the noncategorical/ commonality approach used at these colleges, Nepean chose the categorical method. With this method, the education of a number of different handicapped children is studied separately (i.e. mentally retarded, orthopaedically handicapped, etc.) rather than by studying the various disorders collectively (i.e. Exceptional Children in Society, Exceptional Children in School, etc.). In order to evaluate the effectiveness of Nepean's approach to training special education teachers, on-going and summative evaluation in a variety of forms was carried out during the first semester. This evaluation which included the administration of a pilot Teacher Competency in Special Education Self-Rating Scale clearly demonstrated that the first intake of 29 students made significant increases in their ability to teach exceptional children. The results of the evaluation also assisted the lecturers in determining areas of course weakness which could be alleviated during the second semester.