High school principals can change the status quo of the current iniquitous disparities in the education system between South Carolina's rural high schools and their more populated and affluent suburban schools. Using a non-standard structure and the resources in their control, these school leaders can find solutions so schools can offer rural…

The purpose of this qualitative, embedded single case study was to identify successful implementation and instructional strategies for one-to-one technologies, beyond the iPad, for teachers at a large, rural, midlands, South Carolina high school. The specific focus of this study was the perception of teachers integrating emerging one-to-one…

Alternatively certified teachers constitute a growing portion of public school educators in the U.S. This is a trend that is expected to continue, due to the declining enrollment in traditional teacher preparation programs across recent years. As such, this report examines the profiles of alternatively certified teachers working in South Carolina…

This technical appendix provides additional information about the sample, data, and estimation strategy used for a series of American Educator Panels (AEP) Data Notes published by the RAND Corporation in 2019. The Data Note series is intended to provide brief but incisive analyses of teacher and school leader survey results that may be of…

Many reports on rural education give little attention to digital learning. At most, they tend to note either infrastructure needs or the potential of remote course access, with little focus on instruction, outcomes, or exemplars. This report intends to begin correcting that imbalance by connecting the dots between rural regions, rural education,…

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of interactive whiteboard technology on ninth grade English End of Course scores in two high schools in the Upstate of South Carolina in the school year 2011-2012. This study also sought to determine what impact interactive whiteboard technology had on the factors of gender, socio-economic…

In the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in the northwest corner of South Carolina, high schools' attempts to curb student dropouts may not match what many people picture when they hear talk of the nation's "dropout factories." Yet one-fifth of the 2,000 high schools nationwide categorized that way by researchers at Johns Hopkins…

Every step in a student's life is important for future success. Schools are building stronger frameworks of curricula, instruction and assessments to prepare students to move from one learning environment to another with maximum results as they journey toward adulthood. This issue of "High Schools That Work" contains examples of…

Kershaw County School District in South Carolina may not be the first place that comes to mind when thinking about hotbeds of ed-tech innovation. Its student population is diverse and for the most part not wealthy: Camden High School is urban with 1,055 students, 45 percent of whom qualify for reduced lunch; Lugoff-Elgin High School is a large…

This study identified the feelings and beliefs that rural educators possess about the options of school choice, via vouchers, as currently discussed by federal and state governments. The sample of this study consisted of 250 educators, representing 10 different schools, who completed a school choice survey developed by the researcher. A comparison…

In 1987-88, advanced placement courses were offered by only 39 of South Carolina's 58 small rural high schools, compared to 100 percent of all other high schools. Distance learning systems, such as the Star Schools Project, provide a feasible option to expand the curriculum in small rural high schools. (SV)

Summarizes a dissertation that compares the transition outcomes of special needs students in Georgetown, South Carolina, with findings from the National Longitudinal Transition Study. Both studies found that special needs students were generally unemployed and underemployed and experienced socialization problems after high school, with greater…

This newsletter focuses on the importance of reading and writing skills in all educational and career pathways. It includes a variety of strategies for integrating reading and writing skills across the curriculum--in academic, career/technical and fine arts courses--in ways that improve student achievement in reading and writing and in the content…

Forty-eight rural high school students were randomly assigned to groups that solved math problems with paper and pencil or with calculators. Both groups displayed similar attitudes toward math. Results of a word problem test revealed that, after one week, calculator use contributed significantly to mathematical word problem achievement. (LP)

Proposed welfare reform could be detrimental to the education and employment opportunities of poor rural women and children. Describes the educational experiences of women who have attended the Low Country Human Development Center (LCHDC) (South Carolina). For the past 20 years, the LCHDC has provided pregnant teenagers with a high school…