set 1999: no. 2

Study of student teachers' knowledge and attitudes towards Australian indigenous people which gives an indication of the sorts of stereotypes and misconceptions about indigenous people which teachers are likely to need to address in their classrooms.

Today's educational leaders are faced with the task of solving complex problems. The author suggests that if principals understand how they have learnt educational management, what they have learnt, and how to analyse their school community to identify their own learning needs, they will be better able to rethink ways of approaching their challenges.

Teachers can find themselves isolated in the busy life of schools. This climate is not conducive to effective appraisal and professional growth. Here are some specific strategies that school leaders can utilise to work towards achieving their schools' and teachers' professional development goals, through the enhancement of teacher interactions and conversations.

This article reports on research from two surveys: one which investigated the prevalence of students with emotional/behavioural disorders; the other investigated students' views on schoolwork, behaviour, and violence.

Faced with the tom-tom beat of competitive marketing, there is a strong interest in what makes for a "good" school rather than a "hyped up" school. This study looks at how two value-added schools have made a difference to student achievement even under the most difficult circumstances.

Longitudinal study which asked: Does multiage grouping make a difference to the students in terms of their learning environment or their social adjustment?

There is a common perception in Australian schools that social studies is one of the learning areas least liked by students. This research looked at the attitudes of students at primary schools, and offers suggestions on how to improve its image.

Mathematics is more than numbers and measurement. It is a way of thinking which allows concepts to be built up; problems to be explored and solved; conjectures to be made and examined; and complex ideas about the world to be communicated. Developing a problem-solving focus to deal with mathematics requires more than a range of problem-solving strategies.

Most children have trouble understanding decimals - they confuse them with whole numbers or with fractions. Here are some concrete suggestions for how children can use their everyday knowledge to overcome the difficulty of realising decimals are a result of division.

There is growing pressure for all teachers to become teachers of values. Here are some ways in which mathematics teachers can incorporate values education into their existing mathematics programme without needing to make any major changes to either the content or teaching approaches.