ABSTRACT
Primary schools have made a major contribution to the well-being of society. This is especially the case in Australia, where thousands of small and remote schools have provided an education for much of the nation, including leaders in every field of endeavour. Searing heat and devastating drought interspersed with untimely floods have characterised these settings to the degree that they furnish the national stereotype. Yet many primary schools are located in urban areas as complex and challenging as those that may be found in cities such as Los Angeles, London and New York. If primary schools have made such contributions under these exacting conditions, then their principals are surely among the heroes in the building of the nation.
