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across the three distinct eras focused on in this dissertation is explained in depth within the
Education context section of each of the data analysis chapters.
4.2.2 Queensland School Readers.
A departure from only conducting an analysis of History textbooks and syllabuses comes
with the inclusion of the Queensland School Readers series. Even though these Readers are
not specifically constructed for the History syllabus or History curriculum in general, because
they were published by the Department of Public Instruction (later renamed to Department of
Education) and were used by all State schools in Queensland, they are relevant to this study.
Readers were not published solely for the English syllabus, although this was part of the
reason for content selection—including topics such as vocabulary, spelling, literature, art
appreciation—they were also published to instill specific moral values in school students,
often learnt through imaginative stories. As stated in the preface of the 1913 Queensland
readers: Book IV a primary purpose of the Readers was:
(1) To instil into the minds of pupils such a love for literature as will last beyond
school-days and be to them a source of permanent profit and delight. To this end, the
lessons have been chosen from a very wide field. Fiction, travel, history, science, art,
biography—all have been laid under tribute; and the result is a collection of extracts
that may well illustrate all this is best in written English. Special attention has been
devoted, in all the books, to Australian subjects, and to the poetical pieces. Many of
the latter can easily be learned by heart, and will prove a “joy for ever” to the diligent
scholar. (Department of Public Instruction, 1913a, p. iii, emphasis in original)
The Readers are generally regarded as keepers of the cultural canon, as an introduction for
school students to the grand narratives of literature in the English language; and as a result,
do not change rapidly or significantly across time. Not explicitly responding to events and
topics in the wider community, instead Readers remained (largely) removed from this, with
some noted exceptions, for example the addition of WWI topics in the post-war series. The
situating of the Readers external to events of the day, explain why there is no significant
change between the Readers from one decade to the next. For example, between 1946 and
1967 there was approximately five series of Readers published, yet during this time, there
were no significant changes in content. The Readers as an effective pedagogical tool is
explained by renowned Australian author, David Malouf in an Australian Broadcasting
Corporation (ABC) radio program, Lingua Franca:
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