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Interviews with, and classroom observations of, 17 teachers were used to investigate co-teaching approaches that provide support to students with disabilities in inclusive secondary classrooms. Data collected in Queensland (Australia) and Pennsylvania (United States) public schools allowed comparisons of teacher roles and responsibilities under 2 systems of education. The data were analyzed for themes and validated by reference to the participants. Co-teaching partnerships in both countries were characterized by a domination by content subject teachers and assignment of special educators to "monitoring" or "helping" duties within the class. Teachers stressed the importance of schoolwide commitment to inclusive principles as a key factor in the success of co-teaching. Most respondents saw professional and personal compatibility between co-teaching partners as critical for success. Barriers to the introduction of co-teaching in secondary schools were reported to be entrenched attitudes rejecting inclusion and administrators' unwillingness to commit the required time and resources. Teachers believed that well-implemented co-teaching results in academic and social gains for all students and should be regarded as an effective support option for inclusive secondary classrooms.

The role and training of Queensland guidance officers appears to be set toward the practice end of the scientist-practitioner continuum. Yet data are presented which demonstrate that the expectations placed on many guidance officers are relatively sophisticated and specialised. Particularly in the areas of personal crisis counselling, family support and community-school development, today's guidance officers working in Queensland schools are required to demonstrate considerable specialisation. The profession seems to be facing a choice, attempt to develop into a group of true educational specialists with all the required training, supervision and in-service education or move to become a group of expert general practitioners. Some implications of these two options for the profession are explored.

The guidance role in Queensland is undergoing change so it is important to update our knowledge of how the changes have affected the guidance role. An 18-item questionnaire was used to obtain details of characteristics and daily work of 155 guidance officers. The results show demographic information, guidance officer:student ratios, professional membership, qualifications and daily work. These results are discussed and implications for guidance officers' work and training explored.

Several letters to the editor are presented in which several people share their experiences in the past Prairie Gold Rush (PGR) conventions, including Jim Weiler from Parker City, Indiana, the Moore Family from Kalamazoo, Michigan and Roger Schmidt from Winfield, Kansas.

Reports that Don Rice formed Creative Consultants Group to represent a group of artists in Central Iowa who create personalized paintings and other art forms for local business. Purchase by John Deere Credit of 19 pieces of art from Creative; Creation of art work specifically designed for a company's space.