This is the second article in the series by Mr. Spalding. After reading it, most teachers will feel the need to scrutinize carefully the books currently in use in their classrooms.

In the next issue, Mr. Spalding will write about the transmission and reinforcement of prejudice.

Most of the discussion on the topic of Aboriginal education until recently has largely focused on primary education, and not without ample justification. This is without doubt the crucial stage in education. But, as the primary section becomes increasingly more successful with its Aboriginal pupils, so it becomes increasingly imperative for secondary education to respond adequately to this new challenge. The exact nature of this challenge is the concern of many teachers involved.

In the following article, Miss Simpson outlines an inquiry study about Aboriginal Australians that she developed and followed with her sixth grade pupils.

Readers of the Journal who teach classes composed of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children may well decide to try out Miss Simpson’s approach.

Those readers who teach in schools with a predominantly Aboriginal enrolment might like to reverse the emphasis and mount an inquiry study about non-Aboriginal Australians.

Mr. Fleming reports on two approaches – one with a group of young children and one with a group of older non-readers.

Mr. Widders was born and raised in a total Aboriginal family-society. Leaving Armidale High School at 15, he spent several years in various jobs before becoming a student at Armidale Teachers College. This paper was presented to the Fourteenth Annual Conference of The Australian College of Education, at the University of Sydney in May, 1973 and is reproduced here with kind permission of the author and The Australian College of Education.