Australian Pre-School Conference by Betty Brown On 20 May, twenty-six delegates, eleven of whom were Maori mothers, from play centres throughout New Zealand, left Mangere Airport to attend the eleventh conference of the Australian Pre-School Association in Canberra. To many of us it was our first trip out of New Zealand, and all of us were filled with excitement and anticipation and perhaps a little trepidation as we wondered what lay ahead of us. To a certain extent our fears were justified, for never had we met so many doctors, professors and highly qualified women as were among the Australian pre-school personnel. However, all were charming and expressed interest in our play centres. New Zealand's contribution aroused much interest. Our emphasis on parent education and participation, which is so different from the professionalism of Australian pre-schools, was a concept which many could not accept. Only two of the key speakers referred to the importance of education as a continuing process or the need for close liaison between school and parents. The prevailing opinion was that the parents' role is a passive one, not the active, complementary, supporting role that we envisage. The theme of the Conference was ‘Children and their Families’. The most rewarding talk of the Conference was given by Dr Ase Grude Skaard of Norway, president of O.M.E.P. (Organisation Mondiale pour I'Education Prescolaire), a world organisation for early childhood education. Dr Skaard said that children in a rapidly changing world were faced with situations which were quite different from those of preceding generations. To cope with these differences she stressed the importance of being aware of the changes within society. Another speaker who struck a responsive chord in the hearts of New Zealand play centre mothers was Mr Paul J. McKeown, Headmaster of Canberra Grammar School. Introduced as a man with revolutionary ideas in Australian education, he said that increased contact between parents and teachers could reduce the stress between parents and children. Stress between parents and children he described as a major cause of juvenile delinquency. If a child was to develop soundly it was essential that parents had an understanding of children's behaviour and that teachers knew what went on in the home. He referred to the Glasgow scheme which had reduced delinquency in the poorer part of that city by about 50%. The basis of the scheme was close co-operation between teacher, school welfare officer and parents. With counselling, parents came to a better understanding of their children, and teachers an understanding of the children's problems. He was the only speaker to emphasize the preventative role of preschool and active parent involvement.

Needs of Aboriginal Children On Friday morning. Miss Betty Watts, Senier Lecturer in Education, Queensland University, spoke on the need for pre-schooling for aboriginal children. As we listened to her, a clearer picture of the problems that faced the Aborigine emerged. He is not accepted on equal terms with the Australian. He has not been encouraged to do things for himself, but has existed in a society that has made the rules for him. Because of this, he has lost his sense of self and exists as a ‘fringe dweller’—not only living on the outskirts of the community but tolerated only on the fringe of society. One way of approaching this problem is through pre-schooling. Aboriginal children could then start on better terms, at least at school entry. During the question period at the end of