The term 'Intermittently Closed and Open Lake or Lagoon (ICOLL)' has been adopted in NSW to described wave dominated barrier estuaries with an intermittent connection to the ocean. ICOLLs can also be found in south east Queensland, south-west Western Australia, and some parts of Victoria and Tasmania, although they are not the dominant estuary type as in NSW. From an international perspective, ICOLLs are also found in South Africa, New Zealand, Mexico and the Atlantic coast of Brazil and Uruguay. Within NSW, ICOLLs are mostly located south of Sydney, due to the high wave activity and close proximity of the Great Dividing Range to the coast, which results in small coastal catchments and thus small fluvial and sediment runoff. The distinguishing difference between ICOLLs and other estuary types is the variable condition of their entrances, which also makes them the most sensitive type of estuary to human interference (HRC, 2002; Boyd et al., 1992). The sensitivity of ICOLLs to external inputs has been described in this thesis based on their morphometric characteristics, which includes their size, shape and predominant entrance condition. NSW ICOLLs exhibit a wide range of physical conditions. Some ICOLLs are rarely open to the ocean, while others are rarely closed. Also, some ICOLLs have experienced extensive development within their catchments, while some are located mostly or wholly within National Parks and other protected reserves. When closed, ICOLLs behave like terminal lakes, retaining and assimilating 100% of the external inputs delivered to the system. When open, tidal flushing assists with advection and dispersion of inputs, however, significant tidal attenuation across the entrance still limits opportunities for effective removal of pollutants. The majority of NSW ICOLLs are considered to be mostly closed (i.e., have a closed entrance for more than 60% of the time), while remaining ICOLLs tend to be mostly open (i.e., have a closed entrance for less than 20% of the time). Few ICOLLs have entrances that are open and closed for roughly equal proportions of time, thus resulting in a distinctive bimodal behaviour of entrance condition (i.e., mostly open or mostly closed). NSW ICOLLs tend to be mostly closed unless (i) the catchment is larger than 100km2, and/or (ii) the exposure of the entrance to ocean swell waves is less than 60 degrees and/or (iii) the entrance channel contains geomorphic controls (e.g. shallow bedrock outcrops). Unless opened artificially, ICOLLs will generally remain closed until a sufficient volume of catchment runoff accumulates within the waterway to increase water levels to a level that overtops (breaches) the entrance sand berm. Once breached, high velocity flows over the berm cause scour and the development of a formalised entrance channel, which increases exponentially until an optimum width and depth has been reached (determined by the hydrostatic head, geomorphic controls and tidal conditions at the time). Following entrance breakout and lowering of the lagoon level, sand is reworked back into the entrance under the influence of flood tides and wave processes. The environmental condition of ICOLLs has generally been assumed as being dependent on the state of the catchment and the associated input of nutrients (form and magnitude) to the system. Biogeochemical processes also are reported to influence the condition of ICOLLs, particularly denitrification, which is controlled by the organic load on the bed and the extent of benthic algae and macrophytic productivity. In addition to this, however, it is demonstrated that the predominant and prevailing entrance conditions (i.e. open or closed) also influence the physical, chemical and biological environments. ICOLLs are particularly susceptible to the impacts of future climate change. This thesis provides a description of expected impacts on NSW ICOLLs environments associated in response to future climate changes, based on a detailed appreciation of physical processes and their follow-on consequences. Impacts on ICOLLs are expected as a result of increasing sea level, altered rainfall patterns, and modified offshore wave climate. A survey of relevant government officials has revealed that more than 50% of NSW ICOLLs are artificially opened before water levels reach the height of the natural entrance sand berm. Artificial entrance opening is mostly carried out to mitigate inundation of public and/or private assets around ICOLL foreshores, such as roads, backyards, farming lands and on-site sewage (septic) systems. Truncation of the hydraulic regime of ICOLLs can modify other physical, chemical and biological processes, and can result in deleterious impacts such as the terrestrialisation of estuarine wetlands and foreshores. Few statutory environmental planning mechanisms protect ICOLLs from future degradation. This thesis has identified the key issues that potentially compromise ICOLL integrity and sustainability, which include the expected future population growth in coastal NSW (thus increasing pressure for intensification of development within ICOLL catchments), future climate change (particularly increases in sea level), and the increased demand for amenity, particularly during summer holiday periods (i.e. 'summer impacts'). A series of management models have been developed to address key issues. The models comprise a suite of strategies that target future development and existing management practices, through a range of new or modified planning instruments. Models for the future management of ICOLL entrances aim to prevent artificial openings in the long-term. This requires, however, the systematic relocation, raising or flood-proofing of public and private assets that have been established on land that is potentially subject to inundation. Increasing sea levels in the future will compound the need for improved entrance management. Pro-active, integrated and adaptive management strategies need to be implemented today to minimise the on-going conflict and potential for continued environmental degradation in the future.

The line of road originally intended to link Sydney with the booming settlements of the Hunter Valley underwent a ten year survey and construction period, beginning in 1825 with Heneage Finch's hastily selected, winding line, and ending in 1836 with two small road gangs caught in a continuous cycle of construction and decay. In the interim period, however, the road had aroused the enthusiasm of the best surveyors and engineers available in the colony. These men envisioned a fine, all-encompassing, permanent thoroughfare - a most appropriate goal in view of the contemporary optimism with regard to the colony's future. The structures and formations were impressive and etensive and built as far as possible according to the latest principles emerging from the road building revolution in Britain. The methods were, of necessity, simplified in response to the colonial conditions of rugged terrain, vast distances and the large but unskilled and, for the main part, unwilling convict labour force. The results were highly successful, as is stille vident today, and never failed to impress early travellers and reassure them that they were, after all, in a 'civilised' country. The road never actually fulfilled its builders' plans. A steamboat service established between Sydney and the Hunter Valley robbed it of its role as a vital link, and other more hospitable or more direct routes were discovered and used by what traffic did proceed on land. After the few remaining gangs were finally withdrawn, seciton after section quickly fell into disuse and abandonment. Both the grand and modest structures and formations were left neglected, and thus preserved, to the present day.

Construction of a 1:250,000 scale regolith-landform map of the Cobar area of central New South Wales (NSW) Australia, demonstrates the presence of a wide range of previously undescribed regolith materials, landforms and landscape features in the region. The map covers the east-west extent of the Cobar Basin, extends to the west onto the Darling River Floodplain, and east onto rocks of the Girilambone Group. The mapping area is centred on the Cobar township and covers -14,730 krn2 between 303113 and 446113 E and 6483184 and 6586183 N (AGO 66, MGA Zone 55). 48 regolithlandform units have been identified, including both transported (alluvial, colluvial, aeolian, lacustrine) and in situ materials. A range of siliceous, ferruginous and calcareous indurated materials are also present. Four major drainage types have been identified based on lithological, sedimentological and topographic differences in alluvial materials. The 4 drainage types include: 1) modern drainage; 2) maghemite and quartzose gravels elevated 1-2 m relative to the modern drainage; 3) higher topographically inverted, and at least partly silicified, gravels; and, 4) sediments of Cretaceous origin. Multiple phases of drainage stability and instability from the Cretaceous to the present are indicated within the sediments. Breaching of drainage divides and increased dissection of the modern drainage, especially to the south of Cobar, indicate possible tectonic movement across a major regolith-landform boundary in the southern map area. Colluvial materials are more widespread to the north of Cobar reflecting the increased landscape dissection to the south. Colluvial fans are preserved adjacent to major rangefronts. Aeolian and lacustrine materials include longitudinal dunefields of the Darling River floodplain, source bordering dunes, and small lunettes associated with the Barnato Lakes system. Regolith-landform mapping at Cobar has been used to assess the applicability of previously developed landscape evolution models of the Cobar Block and surrounding region, and to develop a new landscape evolution model for the region. The new landscape evolution model of Cobar indicates minimal deposition of Cretaceous sediments, succeeded by high-energy early Tertiary fluvial regimes across the Cobar landscape. Weathering and sediment deposition continued into the Miocene, coupled with deep valley incision on the Cobar Block associated with early Oligocene regression. By the close of the Miocene, the Cobar Block had eroded to predominantly bedrock terrain and widespread filling of previously incised valleys occurred. A decrease in erosion and fluvial activity led to the formation of the modern drainage during the Pliocene-early Quaternary, followed by the formation of alluvial, aeolian and lacustrine deposits in the later Quaternary. Regionally, Eromanga Basin sediments were not extensive over the Cobar Block, and low rates of erosion are recorded at Cobar from the Cretaceous to the present. Former northerly drainage did exist in this area in the Cretaceous, but was limited in distribution. By at least the Early Tertiary the Cobar area was a structural high and drainage systems of the region had assumed their current configuration. These findings do not support interpretations of AFTT data of significant cover and subsequent stripping over the Cobar Block in the Early Tertiary. Evidence of landscape evolution from the Cretaceous to the present suggests that the Cobar landscape has been responding to changes in the primary landscape forming factors of lithology, climate and to a lesser degree, tectonics. Variations in the these three primary landscape forming factors have contributed to ongoing weathering, relatively continuous deposition, and periods of relative stability and instability, particularly in response to climatic and baselevel fluctuations, within a dynamically evolving landscape throughout the entire Tertiary. Former landscape evolution models of peneplanation and pediplanation, based on correlation of palaeosurfaces including duricrusts, a deep weathering profile developed during extended planation in the Early Tertiary, and tectonism during the late Tertiary in the Cobar area, are not supported by evidence preserved in regolith-landform features at Cobar.

This study examines ways in which Australian governments, at national and state level, have developed policy responses to the issue of regional service delivery in the post new public management environment. It argues that new public management has changed many institutional arrangements in Australia and led to new public policy approaches based on those reforms. The study compares the approaches taken by federal and state governments in determining service levels for regional communities. The period under consideration is 1996-2001, coinciding first with the election of new NSW and federal governments and their subsequent re-election. Four cases studies are used to analyse a range of activities designed to provide services at local and regional levels, identifying key indicators of policy successes based on coordinated and integrated regional services combined with technology-based solutions that can be adapted to local community needs. The research draws on new governance theory and principles of effective coordination to propose a new model for determining appropriate service delivery. This model highlights the importance of local participation in decision-making, a regional planning focus, social and environmental sustainability, and the engagement of local communities as key determinants of regional policy success.

The red fox occurs across a very broad range of habitats, and displays great behavioural flexibility under different environmental conditions. In Australia, mounting concern over the impacts of foxes on livestock and native fauna has highlighted a need for more information on fox ecology under Australian conditions as a fundamental step towards developing more strategic means of managing foxes. This study explores ranging behaviour, dispersal, use of dens, activity rhythms, population dynamics and diet in the absence of management in productive agricultural land in the central tablelands of New South Wales. The study was conducted from June 1994 to June 1997 on private property near Murringo, NSW Australia (34°15� S, 148°30� E). The site was primarily sheep and cattle grazing land and had a history of no fox management. Rainfall was considerably below average for much of the study. A total of 83 foxes were trapped over 3931 trapnights, of which 50 were fitted with radio-collars (23 adult and 6 juvenile females, 12 adult and 9 juvenile males) and 26 released with eartags only (all juveniles: 10 females, 16 males). Thirty-three foxes were radio-tracked using fixed towers between March 1995 and December 1996, with between 11 and 28 foxes tracked at any time. Mean home range size was 446.1 ha ± 69.8 se using 95% Minimum Convex Polygons (MCP), and 276.4 ha ± 36.3 se using 95% kernel utilisation distributions. Male home ranges defined by MCP were significantly larger than female ranges, but no significant difference was found using 95% kernels. Core ranges were estimated to be 133.4 ha ± 23.7 se using 50% MCP and 59.8 ha ± 6.1 se using 95% kernels, with no significant difference between sexes. No significant differences were found between range sizes of adults and juveniles or between years or seasons. While most home ranges were steady for the duration of the study, some foxes were observed to shift range location and 4 foxes displayed nomadic behaviour for at least some of the study. There was a high incidence of overlapping home ranges, most commonly between females or males and females but occasionally between males, but core areas were usually separate. Fully overlapping core areas were observed in 1995 but not in 1996. Juvenile foxes were significantly more likely to disperse than adults, and usually travelled further (juveniles 61.1 km 31.6 ± se; adults 5.9 km 1.1 ± se). Males and females were equally likely to disperse, and there was no significant difference in the distance travelled. The furthest distances were 285 km and 140 km, but mean distance of dispersal excluding these animals was 12.3 km ± 4.3 se (n = 13). Thorough surveys across a 16.4 km² area located 200 dens, with 68 of these active in 1995 and 96 active in 1996. Density of breeding foxes was estimated to be 0.55 and 0.52 adult foxes/km² in 1995 and 1996 respectively based on natal den counts. Density estimates based on active den counts, which include non-breeding foxes, were 0.91and 1.30 foxes/km² in 1995 and 1996 respectively. These estimates appear lower than other studies in similar habitats but this is likely due to using a half home range boundary strip around the surveyed area in the present study. Application of mark-recapture analysis found very high �recapture� rates of dens and gave a similar estimate of the total number of dens to that observed directly. Natal dens were regularly distributed across the study area, whereas active dens tended to be in clusters. There was a high turnover of which dens were used each year, but the total number of natal dens was similar across years (16 in 1995 and 17 in 1996). Natal dens were more likely to be used on repeat occasions than other dens, but not necessarily by the same vixen. Litter size based on sightings of emergent cubs was 2.8. Foxes were predominantly nocturnal, with a major peak in activity about an hour after sunset. A new method of analysing activity rhythm data using Fourier series to mathematically describe animal movements was developed, that allowed systematic identification of the cyclical components underlying overall movement patterns. General fox behaviour could be clearly described by a 24-hour and a 12-hour cyclical component when corrected for variation in daylength. The rising and setting of the sun appeared to be a major trigger underlying movement patterns. Seasonal and sex differences were observed in patterns of activity. The annual rate of increase of the fox population was found to vary around a mean of zero between June 1994 and June 1997. A major drop in fox numbers as estimated by spotlight counts occurred in the second half of 1995, but numbers recovered by the end of 1996. Kaplan-Meier analysis of radio-tagged foxes found annual adult survival was generally very high (0.56-0.96) with lowest survival between July and October. Causes of mortality were human-related outside the site and apparently of natural causes within the site. However foxes dying of natural causes outside the site were unlikely to be found. There was no overall movement of foxes into or out of the site. Immigration was detected following the drop in fox numbers in late 1995, but there was no evidence of immigration prior to this period although emigration occurred. A sensitivity analysis was conducted on the effects of a small change in life history parameters on finite rate of increase using published data as well as adult mortality data from the present study. The two most influential life-history parameters were adult and juvenile survival, while changes in fecundity and age at first reproduction had much less impact on finite rate of increase. In terms of management, in which fertility control is being considered as an alternative to lethal control, this implies that a small change in fecundity may cause less change in the rate of increase of foxes than lethal control. Foxes were culled in June 1997 on completion of the study. Estimated density using a Petersen estimate was 2.4-5.3 foxes/km² and index-manipulation-index was 1.4-3.2 foxes/km². The different methods used to cull foxes appeared to target different age groups within the population, and were generally biased in favour of younger foxes. Success at killing animals was low, leading to large standard errors in the population estimates. Stomachs of foxes shot in the Orange district were found to contain predominantly rabbit and carrion, with invertebrates present when abundant. These findings were not strictly representative of the diet of foxes in the study area, where rabbits were scarce. Foxes scavenged heavily on lamb carcasses within the study site. The quantity of fresh lamb carrion removed from a lambing paddock in winter 1996 was estimated to support 13-24 foxes, with available fresh lamb theoretically able to support 240-440 foxes. Density based on removal of fresh carcasses was estimated to be 0.83-1.5 foxes/km².

Landholders in the Booberoi to Quandialla (B-Q) Transect area, located in central west NSW, have been concerned about an emerging dryland salinity problem since the late 1990�s (Wooldridge 2002, pers. comm. Muller 2002, pers. comm.) with borehole information and electromagnetic induction investigations supporting anecdotal observations. The presence of indicator vegetation, waterlogging of soils and salinisation of land are becoming increasingly prevalent, with two well-documented sites including �Strathairlie� near Quandialla, and �Back Creek� near West Wyalong. The B-Q Transect area lies within the Bland Creek Catchment, a broad open plain of subdued topography and restricted drainage receiving sediments from elevated rises located to the west, south and east. Significant deposits of transported alluvial materials have in-filled the catchment to depths in excess of 160 m and have posed a particular impediment to regional-scale mineral exploration. Stream flow across the alluvial plains and low angle alluvial fans is intermittent with most of the flow being diverted into groundwater storage or lost to evaporation. Rarely do streams flow into Lake Cowal to the north. A partial electromagnetic (EM) induction survey coupled with a long term bore and piezometer network monitoring program have been implemented by the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources (DIPNR � formerly Department of Land and Water Conservation) Central West NSW Salt Group. These programs allow for initial, broad-scale evaluation of the magnitude and spatial distribution of the salinity problem but fail to pinpoint remaining sites at risk as well as the mechanisms of salt emplacement. As part of an approach to assist with hazard mitigation and land management, two regolith-landform maps are being compiled using 1:20,000 scales in the Back Creek and Quandialla areas. A third, more regional regolith-landform map at 1:50,000 scale (Holzapfel & Moore 2003a, b & c) provides context for the more detailed mapping areas. The new regolith-landform maps will aid in interpretation of existing geophysical techniques, help piece together the three-dimensional characteristics of the Bland Creek catchment, aid in the development of a shallow fluid flow and palaeotopographic model and assist land managers in formulating land management units (LMU�s). The three-dimensional integration of regolith-landform mapping, electromagnetic studies, bore information and other geophysical methods is critical in determining the interaction, distribution and movement of groundwater in the Bland Creek Catchment as buried palaeochannels represent preferred fluid pathways. The distribution of these palaeochannels has implications for future dryland salinity outbreaks, the remediation of current outbreaks and mineral exploration closer to the well-known Wyalong Goldfield (Lawrie et al., 1999). The western quarter of the B-Q Transect area partially overlaps with the recently completed GILMORE Project (Lawrie et al., 2003a,b & c), a multi-disciplinary study, coordinated by Geoscience Australia (GA) and the Bureau of Rural Sciences (BRS). Regolith-landform information in addition to gamma-ray spectrometry, magnetics, airborne electromagnetics and a digital elevation model acquired by the GILMORE Project have been incorporated into regolith-landform maps over the B-Q Transect. The incorporation of these datasets has helped not only extend the usefulness of the GILMORE Project data but provide a consistent, regolith-landform coverage for the broader Bland Creek Catchment. Regolith-landform mapping has been successful in highlighting major recharge zones for local and intermediate flow systems. The mechanisms for dryland salinity at two well-known sites have also been determined. Increasing salt stores are occurring through evaporation of intermittent floodwaters sourced from floodplains, back plains and broad meandering existing creek systems and recharging partially exposed palaeochannels intersecting the surface. Due to the shallow nature of these partially exposed palaeochannels, evaporation further concentrates the salt load in the soil profile. It is unknown if mapped shallow palaeochannels further away from current drainage systems are affected by rising salt loads. Regolith-landform mapping highlights two additional risk factors common to the 1:50,000 and 1:20,000 scale B-Q Transect mapping areas including widespread waterlogging of soils and wind erosion. Due to the subdued topography, features such as gilgai, fences and roads are having an effect on drainage modification. Wind erosion was also observed to play a major role within the B-Q Transect with significant loss of topsoil creating hardened clay surfaces resistant to water infiltration and significant redistributed deposits of aeolian materials. Interpretation of regolith-landform mapping against geophysical datasets and drill hole data show considerable lateral and vertical variation of regolith units. This variation of regolith distribution with depth does not reduce the effectiveness of using regolithlandform mapping as a valued management tool. The subdued relief coupled with the complex interplay between recharge zones, discharge zones and surficial drainage networks over the B-Q Transect still requires a detailed knowledge of surface regolithlandform characteristics whilst reinforcing the need for a multidisciplinary approach to gain a 3D perspective. Catchment analysis has been performed on drainage systems within the Bland Creek Catchment and has helped explain the strong effect different catchments have had on sediment supply to the Bland Basin. Catchment analysis results have been used in basic calculations of salt loads in the Bland Creek Catchment. An estimated 18,780 Tonnes/yr of salt enter the Bland Creek catchment and as stream flow out of the Bland Creek Catchment is intermittent, salt stores are increasing in the upper margins of the soil profile and groundwater reserves. Reconstruction of the palaeotopography of the B-Q Transect has been made possible using a mutli-disciplinary approach incorporating information from regolith-landform mapping, drill hole information, gamma-ray spectrometry and GILMORE Project datasets. The production of large-scale regolith-landform mapping, the development of a shallow fluid flow model and reconstruction of palaeotopography builds on and contributes to knowledge of the Bland Creek Catchment allowing for detailed farmscale and paddock-scale land management decisions.

The Structure-of-Intellect - Learning Abilities Test (SOI-LA) (Meeker, 1975) has an enthusiastic following in the USA, but is little-known in Australia. It is based on the Structure-of-Intellect model of J P Guilford, and through a series of up to 26 subtests, purports to identify 14 general learning abilities. Forms are designed to cater for students from Kindergarten to adult. In NSW, classroom teachers can have support for students with learning difficulties through the Support Teacher program; this support often falls far short of need, as there is a paucity of time and material resources. There is a need for a tool which can identify areas of both strength and weakness efficiently and suggest effective strategies to cater for the identified weaknesses; the Meeker paradigm is purported to address this need with a diagnostic approach which identifies learning disabilities which underlie and serve to maintain school-based learning difficulties, and prescribes materials and approaches for remediation. This study explores the first part of the Meeker paradigm, the diagnostic approach of the Structure-of-Intellect - Learning Abilities Test. This exploration is undertaken in the context of four rural Support Teachers and their student with learning difficulties from Grades 2-6. Rather than consider questions of the Test's validity, this study was designed to explore the Test's utility in the Support Teacher context, by giving the Support Teachers a working knowledge of the concepts of SOI-LA, and to compare the application of their knowledge with the information about their students' learning disabilities from the Test results. Problems are evident with the Support Teachers' knowledge and understanding of their students' disabilities; whist they felt comfortable about the approach which the Test takes, they felt they did not know their students well enough to make informed judgements about their disabilities. It was apparent from the study that the Support Teachers' understanding of the concepts of the Test was comparatively superficial, despite their impression that they did understand well. Several difficulties with the instrument itself are highlighted by this study; the assumptions underlying the derivation of the general ability scores are questioned, and the suitability of Test Forms for a learning disabled population of this age is open to criticism. The Structure-of-Intellect - Learning Abilities Test may have utility as an instrument for gaining information about a student's disability on an individual basis, and may be best in the hands of the School Counsellor.

This is an exploratory study that tries to isolate those factors that specifically relate to the poor attendance levels of Aboriginal primary age children. The study took place in the North-West Region of the NSW Department of Education. It was conducted by a member of the Home/School Liaison Team which had been set up to address the problem of non-attendance in NSW schools. After considering both overseas and Australian studies relating to non-attendance at school individual, family and school-based factors were looked at. One school was targeted as a case study and students from other schools in the North-West Region were randomly chosen to participate to attempt to broaden the results. The student and a care provider were interviewed individually and each student's teacher completed a questionnaire and student profile sheet. Where possible, interviewing was performed by an Aboriginal person to allow the interviewee to feel more comfortable. To get further details of school-based factors, all Public Schools in the North-West Region with Aboriginal enrolments were sent questionnaires to be filled in by a staff member in a promotions position and classroom teachers within that school. The major finding of the study was the significance of the previous attendance history of the student, thus indicating the necessity for early intervention if prevention of poor attendance patterns is to occur. The targeting of the beginning years of schooling and the introduction of parent education programs about the importance of these early years are recommended. Other areas found in this study to be related significantly to poor attendance were a competitive class climate, the socio-economic background of parents, parent employment history, parent educational background, single parent families, overcrowding and peer group influences. The study confirmed what many researchers had found: that school absenteeism is a problem with many contributory factors and each student needs to be looked at individually. Each case needs to be dealt with on its own merits.

In November, 1986, Mrs Lorna Ireland; Principal of Junee Primary School in the Riverina Region of New South Wales; approached a Senior Lecturer in Mathematics Education at Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education in Wagga Wagga; seeking his involvement in a project aimed to assist teachers at the school with their mathematics teaching. In addition to the planned involvement in 1987 of this mathematics educator, the school was also to be a pilot school for the trialling of a strand of the New South Wales Education Department's Draft Mathematics Curriculum and a participating school in the numeracy component of the federal government's Basic Learning in Primary Schools program. This study documents the mathematics education activities which involved Junee Primary School teachers in 1987. It focuses on the RMIHE involvement in the school but considers this in the context of broader mathematics curriculum activity. The process of change is described within a theoretical framework derived from a review of relevant literature. The research methodology employed is fundamentally ethnographic and relies on the collection of qualitative data to derive descriptions of people and events. The data analysis relates to curriculum change, the role of the change agent and the role of mathematics educators in school mathematics programs. A discussion of outcomes highlights the strengths of an approach to curriculum change which had its genesis in the school rather than in some external agency. The generation of problems and issues and the resolution of these are features of the analysis which tracks the progress towards professional development autonomy of one group of teachers.

This study aimed to uncover information about an area on which little published material is available, that is, the area of art education in New South Wales prior to 1940. Because of the lack of published material, much of the information used in this study had to be sought in annual reports on education made to the New South Wales Parliament over the years concerned, and in the educational journals of the period. Some very useful original documents and letters were found in the Mitchell Library and in the New South Wales Archives. It was established that drawing first became part of the curriculum in a few public schools in Sydney in 1854, and that by 1869, drawing was taught in all the primary schools of New South Wales. The drawing system which was introduced was based on the very structured and utilitarian programme of the Department of Science and Art in South Kensington. The first Drawing Master in New South Wales was Joseph Fowles, who had arrived in Sydney from England in 1838. Joseph Fowles was in charge of drawing in the public schools of New South Wales from his appointment in 1854 until his death in 1878. The other two important figures in art education over the period covered by this study were Frederick W. Woodhouse, who was Superintendent of Drawing from his arrival from England in 1889 until his resignation in 1903, and John E. Branch, who was in charge from 1903 until his death in 1933. This study found evidence that the Department of Science and Art in South Kensington played an essential part in establishing the programme of art education in New South Wales from the 1850s until well into the twentieth century. With regard to the contribution made by the three individuals mentioned in the title, the study found that while they played an important role in overseeing the teaching of drawing in the schools, they were not influential in the sense of being able to impose any individual philosophy of art education on the system.