What's new?

In this term's mailout you will find:

• Topic List 2003 Term 2 update
• Infocus order form

Term 2 update

The Term 2 update includes approximately 40 new items. Topics covered by these new resources include:

• Muslims in Australia (Items 2098 - 2099)
• Youth, crime and ethnicity (Items 2100 - 2105, 2108)
• Gang rape (Items 2102, 2104 - 2105)
• Before and after September 11 (Items 2106 - 2108)
• Cultural identity (Items 2091 - 2100)
• Multiculturalism and the Australian diet (Items 2091 - 2094)
• Youth suicide (Items 2088 - 2090)
• Adolescent pregnancy (Items2084 - 2086)
• Elizabeth I, Queen of England (Items 2121 - 2122)
• Ancient Rome (Items 2120)
• Popular Culture - Heroes and Heroines (Items 2115 - 2119)
• Comics & Superheroes (Items 2116 - 2118)
• Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings (Item 2115)
• Cold War (Items 2109 - 2111)
• Citizen Kane [Flim] (Items 2114)
• Life is Beautiful [Film] (Items 2112 - 2113)
• Hot Topics 39 Intellectual disability & Criminal Law (Item 3024)
• Hot Topics 40 Discrimination (Item 3025)

Infocus on the Web

There's more than one way to search the Infocus website for resources. Searching by keyword and/or HSC subject are the obvious choices. Because these are effective methods, you may not yet have discovered the wonders of the Browse button!

Browsing may be a better option for students using the website. They can select the subject they are studying to get a list of related items. Then by scanning the topics linked to these items, students can refine their search. Alternatively, try browsing by topic. Just click on a letter of the alphabet to see a list of topics. For example, to see what is available on Gwen Harwood click on the letter H and scroll down to Harwood, Gwen. Click again to find two items.

Don't forget the Display All button at the bottom of the screen either! Click once to see descriptions of all the items related to your topic.

Best sellers

Do you ever wonder what other Infocus members buy, or which Infocus resources are the most popular? The Infocus team keeps a close look at what members buy, because it helps us in selecting new resources to add to the list. We'll try to let you know from time to time what members are buying, as it may help you identify relevant resources you've missed.

Since the beginning of 2003, resources on two Australian films, Rabbit-Proof Fence and Radiance have been very popular. So too have resources on John F. Kennedy, historiography and German history (1933 - 1949), suggesting Modern History and History Extension students and teachers are finding much useful material through Infocus. Resources on change (the English Area of Study) and popular culture seem to be perennially popular.

Images of Change

Have you ever had a student request an image of change and not known where to turn? Don't despair! In the February 2003 issue of metaphor, Dorothy Simmons sheds some light on images of change in her article, "Stage 6 English Area of Study: Changing Self: Away". With permission we have reprinted a paragraph from her article, which examines how the paintings The Conciliation by Dutterau and The National Picture by Parr can be used to explore the subject of change.

Change for the individual self may happen quite quickly, in the time it takes to tell a story; for the many selves which make up a society, it is a slower process. 'The Conciliation' by Dutterau and 'The National Picture' by Parr are separated by 145 years and the Aboriginal sense of self depicted in the two works is quite different. The lone white man in the former picture confirms the change his people have imposed on the 'natives' by a hand-shake; the beads and spears of the tribespeople around him suggest the mixture of bribery and force by which the change was achieved. The unchanging legacy this has left for the Aboriginals is represented by the portrait of Truganini in Parr's picture. The whiteman's control is no longer so assured; the handshaker's other hand rests on a shoulder, as if for support. The spear's, the legacy of violence, are in the background, the world is no longer so clearly divided into black and white. The tools of technology, measuring sticks, tape recorders, watches, represent how much society has changed; that they are in the hands of 'aboriginal' characters suggests a more cooperative way in the future, and a more focussed, assertive sense of Aboriginal self. Together, the two pictures make us think about who we are as Australians, and how that sense of self has changed.

Changing, the Board of Studies Stimulus Booklet for Areas of Study HSC 2001 and 2002, contains reproductions of The Conciliation and The National Picture. The booklet can be downloaded from the Board's website (http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au), where you'll find it with the HSC English syllabus and other support materials.

Infocus items relating to images of change include:

Item 2049 Benjamin Duterrau: "The Conciliation"
Artist of The National Picture, Geoff Parr, explores the historical significance of Benjamin Duterrau's painting The Conciliation (1840).

Item 2048 Tasmanian art and historical interpretation
The article explores whether art can be a truthful source of historical information and uses The Conciliation to discuss how one can begin to construct meaning from history paintings.

Item 2047 To quit barbarous for civilized life: Benjamin Duterrau, The Conciliation, 1840
Tim Bonyhady discusses The Conciliation and explores the interlocked history of Duterrau, Robinson and the Tasmanian Aboriginals.

What's on at the State Library

A wide range of events, tours and courses are held regularly at the State Library. The What's On section of our website has details: see www.sl.nsw.gov.au/whatson/events. Events coming this winter include a talk by photographer William Yang, a panel discussion with leading award-winning photo essayists, and a lecture on author of Seven Little Australians, Ethel Turner. "A Way with Words", a full day seminar in July, will focus on the power of language with keynote speaker Don Watson.

Infocus contact details

Infocus: linking people and information
State Library of New South Wales
Macquarie St, Sydney 2000
Tel: 02 9273 1519 Fax: 02 9273 1248
E-mail: infocus@sl.nsw.gov.au