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This report describes the On-Line ERIC Project conducted jointly by the National Library of Australia and by IBM Australia Ltd. between March and May 1976. The Project involved a telecommunications network with video terminals and printers linking the National Library, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Central Library, and Macquarie University Library to an IBM computer in Canberra. Citations from two and a half years of the ERIC data base were available through the Storage and Information Retrieval System (STAIRS) software package for on-line searching for three hours per day for three days each week for three months. Users from various backgrounds responded favorably to the system's interactive searching capability as revealed in the survey results. Retrieval costs in manual, batch, and on-line processing mode were compared. An instructional package of how to use STAIRS is included in the appendix. (Author/SC)

This two-phase study of the use of networks and information retrieval systems by schools in Australia was designed to inquire as to the extent that schools are using all available networks; how appropriate and effective these sources of information are for schools; how costly such services might be; and what developments can be reasonably expected in the near future that will impact on schools. Data were gathered via a documentary analysis of promotional material and other relevant material pertaining to the networks and information systems; discussions with individuals involved with the school usage of such services, e.g., teachers, principals, librarians, and, where possible, students; and discussions with representatives of service providers. Following an executive summary and a brief introduction, the report includes: (1) a description of the project methodology; (2) a report of the findings of both phases of the project; (3) a brief discussion of the representativeness of the sample used and comments on specific networks; (4) conclusions reached concerning funding, expense, availability, suitability, representativeness, rationales for and against use of networking and information systems in schools, and teacher training; and (5) recommendations on the role of school libraries, standardization, further research needs, extension of current ASCIS services, bulletin board systems, and commercial sponsorships. Also included are a glossary of terms and 30 references, and a list of the sources of information for the study is appended. (EW)

This paper seeks to provide a rationale for evaluating Technical and Further Education (TAFE) programs by using a management system approach that is based on corporate planning. The first section reviews the sources of increased demands for accountability in TAFE (societal, economic, government, and legislative sources) and examines various management systems that could be used to meet increased demands for accountability (program budgeting, program evaluation, management information systems, management procedures, and corporate planning). The first section concludes with an examination of the Swedish model for self-evaluation. The second part of the report describes the following aspects of the attempt in New South Wales, Australia, to increase accountability by using a corporate planning-based approach in which evaluation is a major component in providing accountability and maintaining quality of educational provision. The following topics are covered: the diversity and scope of TAFE in New South Wales, corporate planning as a management tool, strategic planning (departmental, college/school, and servicing unit strategic plans), staff participation in strategic planning, action or operational planning, evaluation and monitoring, performance indicators and their interpretation, evaluation procedures for program monitoring, comprehensive audits and program evaluation activities, establishment of a directorate of audit and review, program performance evaluation plans, planning and evaluation support to managers, and future directions. (MN)

Discusses problems associated with manually created or maintained hyperdocument links and the need for automatic methods, describes a system for the automatic detection and management of various links, and presents a case study of a World Wide Web hyperbase for the Australian parliament. (Author/LRW)

Tests claims regarding "get"-passives in English via interrogation of a set of written and spoken corpora. The data suggest that "get"-passives are often associated with two types of pragmatic implicature. Finally, the corpus provides evidence of three types of variation with 'get'-passives: regional, stylistic, and diachronic. (13 references) (Author/CK)

Describes and quantifies aspects of the comparative clauses conjoined with correlatives "than" and "as." The data are compared to show patterns of distribution, their spread across different genres, and the similarity or otherwise of their use in Britain and Australia. Findings show that the scalar comparative clause does not work as the yardstick for comparison. (14 references) (Author/CK)

Provides an overview and introduction to some of the most useful databases for art education and research. Notes that much art education research uses dissertations and theses. Discusses the content and use of several U.S., Australian, and British databases. (MJP)

Describes the release of the British Education Index on CD-ROM, summarizing the deliberations leading to the conjunction of the Australian, British, and Canadian education index databases on the International ERIC CD-ROM. Considers the impact of CD-ROM availability on traditional print media and how it may affect the future development of the index. (Author/AEF)

An experimental program at the University of Woollongong (Australia) identified a quality management framework, developed indicators of institutional performance, created a database for user-defined information needs, and provided access to information at all institutional levels. The project explored use of performance indicators and demonstrated an information structure through which all staff can contribute to institutional decision making and operation. (Author/MSE)

Reports on CD-ROM product that combines reference and archival material in a low-cost integrated multimedia format. Maintains that, while this project focuses on the Battle of Gallipoli in World War I, the purpose, techniques, and processes can be transferred to other historical topics. (CFR)

Review of technological advances and emerging information services that are having an effect on Australian schools highlights cataloging, circulation, and information services (Australian Schools Catalogue Information Service, South Australian Education Resources Information System, regional automated library networks); audiovisual services; bibliographic services; and other related projects. Thirty-five references are provided. (EJS)

This document outlines the Bibliographic Information on Southeast Asia data bases (BISA), a project that has been established to provide greater access to and utilization of Australian library resources on Southeast Asia. The nine sections of the report cover BISA's objectives; the project's justification, which considers Australian holdings, Australian bibliographic control, and the area coverage; the potential users of BISA; the material available for the data base--aspects of retrospective conversion and ongoing data base development; the technical aspects of BISA; the bibliographic aspects of BISA; proposals for retrospective conversion, which include estimates on staff needed and a proposed budget; and a conclusion. (JD)

This report of the 1978 activities of the Australian Society of Educational Technology includes reports, articles, a state of the art review, and a technical report. Section I lists the memberships of the national executive and state chapter council, and presents a national report and reports from four state chapters. Three articles are presented in Section II: Floyd and Lynna Ausburn examine perception skills and memory for visual images; D.J. Magin discusses educational technology in terms of the concept of the missing curriculum; Ian D. Thomas sets educational media in perspective as only one consideration among many in the education process. In Section III, a state of the art review by Donald P. Ely presents the evolution of educational technology leading to the establishment of an identity for the field and indicates possible future directions. Included is a brief discussion of some of the historical roots, contributing fields, current practices, and future issues. A technical report by Nancy D. Lane in Section IV examines microforms as tools for learning, reviewing their educational applications, outlining the major types of micrographics equipment available and their costs, and describing sample equipment configurations. (CMV)

This report describes User Education Resources (USER), an Australian database containing both print and audiovisual materials related to library instruction. Intended to make a wide range of ideas readily available to librarians interested in educating library patrons, USER collects catalog guides, classification guides, evaluation forms, floor plans, government publication guides, general library guides, tape-slide programs, videotapes, and tests. The report details the history of USER, its system configuration, indexing language, file organization, reference structure, and materials bank. (FM)

A study by the Northern Territories Department of Community Development systematically and specifically identified information needs and categories of clients through a set of intellectual concepts in the fields of sport, recreation, and leisure. A survey of Australia's serials holdings was conducted to assess the country's existing information resources to meet these needs, and 21 Australian and foreign databases were evaluated to determine the relevancy of materials on eight selected topics of importance to Australia. One or more academics were associated with each topic to prepare bibliographies for comparison with the search results of these surveys and evaluations. The results led to a proposal for a national information service called INFO RELEASE (Information Network for Recreation, Leisure and Sport) to take advantage of recent developments in information technology. The guidelines for the development of a proposed database, a thesaurus for effective retrieval, and the functions, costs, and administrative structure for INFO RELEASE are discussed in detail. Appendices include information on the leisure studies information bank, questions about an Archive and Museum of Games, and an explanation of Bradford-Zipf distribution. Twenty-two references and a glossary of terms are provided. (RAA)

A relational database management system, Query-by-Example, was installed on an IBM 4331 system and tested in 10 schools in the Angle Park School district over a 1-year period to determine whether this system would provide the schools with the means for effectively processing the information essential for running the individual schools and providing support for curriculum activities. Enhanced by local software for input and output tailoring, the general purpose software package acted as an umbrella under which all applications were run. Each school was required to decide what information would be stored, what processing would be performed, and the nature of the reports to be produced; the computing center provided the necessary tools and all of the other data processing functions required in an administrative system. School information was stored in tables with the capability of linking or relating data from one table with data in other tables. The concept appeared to offer a very promising blend of schools' control of their own data processing and the professional computer functions being carried out by a central data processing facility. This report includes descriptions of the experiences of the individual schools and appendices containing sample formats for user tables, a query list, and sample report printouts. (LMM)