My honours thesis, Queensland's Bible in State Schools Referendum 1910: A Case Study of Democracy, is now available to download from the University of Sydney eScholarship Repository. In it I explore a fascinating era of Queensland's history where women, Labour politicians and the Protestant clergymen of the Bible in State Schools League were key participants in a public debate … [Read more...] about Queensland’s Bible in State Schools Referendum – 1910
Religious education in state schools
Book Review: Secularism or Democracy? by Veit Bader
This is a comprehensive book that explores issues of religion and state such as what role should religions have vis-a-vis the state, the role of secularism in government and society and how the state can deal fairly with the various religions. The author, Veit Bader, is an emeritus professor of sociology and philosophy at the University of Amsterdam. This is an academically … [Read more...] about Book Review: Secularism or Democracy? by Veit Bader
Know Your Database
If you are interested in reading more about digital humanities, check out my other blog at http://stumblingfuture.wordpress.com Over the last week I finally got a chance to try out the tools that Wragge (aka Tim Sherratt) has devised to mine digitised historic Australian newspapers accessed through Trove. This post is about the results of applying his tools. If you want to do … [Read more...] about Know Your Database
The Transformation of a Word
We all know that the meaning of words can change over time. Words such as gay and cool are used in ways not contemplated one hundred years ago. Historians need to be aware of this when reading old texts. In my research of the education debates in the Australasian colonies from the 1860s to 1914, I had to understand what the word 'secular' meant at the time. It is much more … [Read more...] about The Transformation of a Word
