This paper examines and questions popular ideas about education and its relationship to the economic well-being of individuals, communities, regions, and the nation. It suggests that the criteria used to develop economic and educational strategies have produced mixed results at best, especially in rural areas. Since family income is related to…

Although intrusive factors--such as the economy--have limited recent strides toward improving rural education, there are components of excellence within the realm of local determination that are appropriate to conditions, circumstances, and aspirations surrounding the schooling process in rural areas. The educational reform movement in most states…

Effective administration of rural school districts is a challenge. Rural administrators must develop, execute, and supervise the total school program. Because administrators must do whatever is necessary to operate the program and support staff frequently are not available, administrative roles and responsibilities are many and varied. Most…

This paper presents "conjectures" about how rural students from isolated or economically declining communities may come to understand and negotiate their academic classroom experiences. In contrast to the metropolitan culture of America, such students continue to define successful living in ways that do not assume obtaining college…

The success of the Minimbah Aboriginal Preschool in New South Wales (Australia) is evidenced by happy staff and children, low staff turnover, and the later success of Minimbah's children in mainstream schools. Also, parents were frequently present as helpers and were apparently confident in entering the premises, talking with staff members, and…

Compares Federal court-ordered school desegregation plans in urban and rural Tennessee school districts. Indicates that approaches differed with varying district characteristics. Suggests that community responses to plans were influenced by such factors as racial composition; customs; leaders' attitudes; environmental and economic conditions; and…

Opportunities abound for educational service agencies (ESAs) to assist rural schools districts with implementing the No Child Left Behind Act. Strategies that ESAs could pursue are presented for critical issues in the areas of school-community relationships, school roles in rural development, funding, standard setting, school size, facility…

Since tribal colleges acquired land-grant status in 1994, conversation with established land-grant institutions has focused on how tribal colleges can adapt to the dominant paradigm. In contrast, mainstream universities should adopt culturally aware considerations of holism, sacredness, cultural identity, and cultural viability. This will promote…

The requirement imposed upon Utah parents in 1986 authorizing student fees in secondary schools for those who do not qualify for free lunch denies many students an equal education. Using school fees to supplement public funding of education has a greater negative impact on rural families. Advocates adequate state funding of schools. Contains 15…

Understanding the education agendas being promoted by state and federal politicians is critical in comprehending the factors affecting rural education. Equally important is developing an effective rural school improvement strategy that is viewed favorably by policymakers. Five areas represent the focal points of state and federal education…

While existing research on school and school district size is not as conclusive as policymakers might wish, it does point toward several new policy directions. Some relevant findings and recommendations are: (1) a larger school or district enrollment does not guarantee desirable results; (2) recommended school sizes have been declining over time,…

Ontario public school systems are responsible for ensuring that Ministry of Education documents, such as subject guidelines, are implemented in their schools. This paper describes an implementation plan developed and used in Simcoe County by a large rural school board with modest program support staff. Four distinct phases characterize this…

This document describes the industrial decline in a small Midwestern town and its effect on education and the local economy. While some people refused to see a problem, others saw that the decline would continue until the town school closed and community services dwindled. The paper calls for new solutions to rural education and economic problems,…

Exploring the revival of interest in smaller schools, the fastback examines the legacy of the small school, the minimum school size, the advantages and disadvantages of smaller schools, the needs of smaller schools, and some important indicators and trends of what is actually likely to happen in small schools. In discussing the advantages and…

Information available on rural education remains startlingly inadequate--partly because of the great diversity of rural areas, because agencies responsible for data collection disagree on the definition of small/rural schools, and because large metropolitan schools have received far more than their share of attention, research, and financial…