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Acknowledgements
Completing this dissertation has occurred over a number of years, and during this time I have
received encouragement and support from a number of people. They are mentioned here.
Librarians have been exceptionally helpful in providing me with assistance to source and
obtain resources, and especially in the early phases of my research, provided guidance on
where to locate specific texts. This includes librarians from The John Oxley Collection at the
State Library of Queensland, The National Library of Australia, Rosemary Mammino from
the history collection at the Education Queensland Library at Coorparoo, and the University
of Newcastle Library staff, in particular the Interlibrary Loans section. The interest shown in
my research and helpfulness demonstrated made the data collection phase a far less daunting
experience than it otherwise could have been.
I am sincerely grateful to the people who lent me curriculum materials or historical resources
from their private collections, often for extended periods of time. I realise that a lot of trust
was placed in me treating these resources with the care and attention they required—thank
you in particular to Julie Ballantyne, Janelle Griffiths and Garry Sharp. The donation of a
large number of textbooks by Mr and Mrs Joy Nelson, originally used by their son Stuart
Nelson as a young school boy is, in particular, appreciated. During various stages of my
research, the generosity they displayed to me was a significant motivator to continue. I hope
this dissertation does some justice to their generosity.
Principia Methodologica, a group consisting primarily of higher degree students, convened
by Associate Professor James Ladwig at the University of Newcastle provided a rich
academic learning environment for me during my research. It is through this group that I was
able to discuss my research with people (other than my Supervisors), in a supportive and
academically challenging environment. Thank you to Associate Professor Ladwig for
providing a forum that enabled me to articulate and refine my research ideas.
In particular, I would like to thank my Supervisors for their academic guidance over the four
and a half years of this project. I am deeply thankful to my Principal Supervisor, Associate
Professor Jon Austin for his supervision and insightful advice and direction, particularly in
the area of research methodology. He also played an important role in assisting me to apply
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