In this thesis I propose to address what are, in my view, significant educational problems: how to tease out and analyse those principles, concerning equity and social justice, which underlie a particular program of teacher education. I want to discuss the kinds of principles, issues and considerations which have to be faced when designing such a program as the Diploma of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students at James Cook University. The issues I will address are these: (a) The extent to which the notion of equality of educational opportunity is being addressed in the provision of teacher-education programs in Queensland in general, and James Cook University in particular; (chapter 1). (b) Ways in which the Diploma of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) p r o g r am aims to produce teachers able to act as agents of bi-cultural transmission; (chapters 2 and 3). (c) The value, usefulness and desirability of James Cook University setting up a teacher-education program specifically for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from geographically remote communities, thus increasing the participation rates of Aborigines and Islanders in teacher-education programs; (chapters 4 and 5). This process of analysis has led me to structure the thesis around three dimensions: (i) The historical context of the program; (ii) The program as one response to the problems faced by educational institutions in meeting the educational needs of Aboriginal people; (iii) A basis for the next phase in the development of new programs of teacher - education for indigenous students living in remote communities. This is a qualitative research project, based on my interpretation of available documentation, my use of relevant literature, and my own involvement as planner of, and teacher in the program. It is not a quantitative research project. The structure of the thesis has, as its introduction, an analysis of the extremely complex situation which exists at James Cook University. This analysis leads to a search for a set of principles to provide the theoretical underpinning of the program, which in turn leads through a combination of theory and practice to the "praxis" of the program as a model of equity and educational practice in teacher-education. The thesis is concluded by the presentation of the current stage in the development of a program for teacher-education students in remote communi ties. The conceptual framework for my thesis has been developed through my determination to increase my understanding of the complexities of developing teacher-education programs for indigenous students at James Cook University. The thesis is developed through case study techniques including: personal observation and recording of my work as Program Planner; a situational analysis of the historical background, leading up to the development of the Diploma of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) ; a discussion of the stages through which the development team proceeded with intentionality and empathy towards its task of constructing a specific program of teacher-education; and my use of existing literature to comprehend the educational and social problems which the program attemted to alleviate. Throughout my thesis the specificity of the "case", and the eclectic position I have adopted, have acted as boundaries of my conceptual framework. My thesis attempts to show that the "case" of the development of teacher-education programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students at James Cook University, although an idiosyncratic instance , is valuable as illumination , if not for generalisation, and thus has a credibility and usefulness. The characteristics of the case-study method are frequently more appropriate to expansion is than reductionist activities, and I have tried to show how the different perspectives of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, together with the beliefs, attitudes and values of such different interest-groups as university academics, Commonwealth and State Education Department bureaucrats, and teachers and parents in schools, have emphasised both the importance of questioning assumptions and the importance of critical, experiential understanding.

Copies of author's previously published articles inserted. / Includes corrigendum. / Bibliography: leaves 97-106. / xiii, 106, [69] leaves, [31] leaves of plates : ill. (some col.), maps ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This thesis reports an investigation of the etiology of ScSMD (sugarcane striate mosaic disease) by biological and microscopic studies and by nucleic acid studies. Studies of ScSMD affected sugarcane are followed by the detection, isolation, cloning and partial sequencing of a disease specific dsRNA, and the tentative classification of the putative viral agent from the partial sequence. This study also describes the ScSMD associated virion and an improved protocol for the purification of dsRNA. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Crop Protection, 1997

An ecological study was undertaken on four populations of Krefft�s River Turtle Emydura krefftii inhabiting the Townsville Area of Tropical North Queensland. Two sites were located in the Ross River, which runs through the urban areas of Townsville, and two sites were in rural areas at Alligator Creek and Stuart Creek (known as the Townsville Creeks). Earlier studies of the populations in Ross River had determined that the turtles existed at an exceptionally high density, that is, they were superabundant, and so the Townsville Creek sites were chosen as low abundance sites for comparison. The first aim of this study was to determine if there had been any demographic consequences caused by the abundance of turtle populations of the Ross River. Secondly, the project aimed to determine if the impoundments in the Ross River had affected the freshwater turtle fauna. Specifically this study aimed to determine if there were any difference between the growth, size at maturity, sexual dimorphism, size distribution, and diet of Emydura krefftii inhabiting two very different populations. A mark-recapture program estimated the turtle population sizes at between 490 and 5350 turtles per hectare. Most populations exhibited a predominant female sex-bias over the sampling period. Growth rates were rapid in juveniles but slowed once sexual maturity was attained; in males, growth basically stopped at maturity, but in females, growth continued post-maturity, although at a slower rate. Sexual maturity was at 6-7 years of age for males, which corresponded to a carapace length of 150-160 mm, and 8-10 years of age for females, which corresponded to a carapace length of 185-240 mm. The turtles were omnivorous, although in the Ross River they ate more submerged vegetation (by percent amount and occurrence) than those of the Townsville Creeks. Turtles in Townsville Creeks ingested more windfall fruit and terrestrial insects.