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This undated booklet by Apex Clubs of South Australia and Northern Territory is subtitled An Appeal for Conservation of Flora and Fauna in Australia – primary schools.
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A leaflet published for the dedication ceremony for the University of Queensland in 1909.
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The Australian Flora by John Shirley, a leaflet on behalf of the Education Department. Other works by John Shirley are listed in the State Library’s catalogue with dates of about 1890s -1917.
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F. Manson Bailey‘s Descriptive Catalogue of Queensland’s Grasses, 1899. Yes, his taxonomy has been superseded by botanists in subsequent decades, but his observations on the ability of the pastoral country to take rapid advantage of rain has complete contemporary salience.
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Principles of Botany for Queensland Farmers, C.T. White Government Botanist, 1938, published by the Department of Agriculture and Stock. (79 MB).
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This remarkable book was produced by the British Association for the Advancement of Science in preparation for its “Australian Meeting 1914”. Not least of its remarkable features is a reference to The Royal Society of Queensland – on page 596, in the fifth volume – including a record of the number of members and the number of books in its library!
QSN has arranged scanning of the book and has uploaded it in five files because of their size. all have been rendered “searchable” though the search function is imperfect.
Federal Handbook A, pages i-209 – History, Aboriginals, Geology, Climate, Vegetation – 61 MB.
Federal Handbook B, pages 210-390 – Geology, Astronomy, Geodesy – 47 MB.
Federal Handbook C, pages 391-462 – Pastoral, Agricultural, Mining – 19 MB.
Federal Handbook D, pages 463-508 – Commercial – 16 MB.
Federal Handbook E, pages 509-598 – Education, Political, Miscellaneous – 32 MB.
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This booklet (34.1 MB), compiled by the Syllabus Notes Committee of the South Coast Inspectoral District of the Education Department, Brisbane, Queensland and published in 1932, was compiled as a curriculum resource for teachers of the era.
Its Introduction commences:
“Nature Study should be a very popular subject, and by its aid it is intended that children should be trained to see intelligently, to compare and contrast, to record observations, to express themselves precisely and to develop within themselves a love for all that is beautiful.
But the subject has its difficulties, and not least of these is the want of confidence felt by the teachers. These cannot be experts in all branches and it is not easy for them to get from the text-books available just the information needed. Most of the works published deal with the various branches in a world-wide or continent-wide fashion, and the difficulty of selecting from the multiplicity of objects offered just those which may be treated observationally is so great that many become disheartened, cease to be Nature-students, and finally give up the task, or treat it in a half-hearted and disinterested way.
The teachers of the South Coast Inspectoral District, eager to carry out their duties in an efficient manner, have decided to combine for the purpose of pooling the facts available, concerning the birds, plants, and industry insects of their District. To supply the necessary information for this volume each school sent in a list of the birds found in its neighbourhood, and from these the hundred commonest birds was selected, special drawings are made, and descriptions were written up in simple language. It is felt that now every teacher will have sufficient data to enable him or her to deal effectively with this part of Nature Study.”
The curriculum may be very different these days but these sentiments have a modern resonance.
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The Great Barrier Reef of Australia, 1926.
This gem turned up at a garage sale and seems worth preserving as a snapshot of official thinking at the time.