This paper describes the emerging debate on efficiency and program quality in rural schools, explores the strengths and weaknesses of rural district consolidation, and suggests policy options for redesigning rural education. An examination of economic trends, demographics, and philosophical changes regarding rural education's purpose puts…

Two areas--understanding what rural education is and what its real needs are--are critical in preparing educators, specifically language arts educators, for a rural setting. Although the problems facing these teachers are many, minimal preparation and training at the college level deal with the rural setting. Mainly due to funding, modern…

Attention to small schools in Manitoba reflects concern for rural development, recognition of cultural pluralism, awareness of benefits of small town living, and a growing scepticism about benefits of consolidation which have led to an appreciation of traditional small school educational practices. The challenge for small school educators is to…

Individualized, self-paced instruction and an open-entry-open-exit calendar have several advantages which help to overcome the restraints that may modify equal educational opportunity at small, rural colleges. These restraints include limited resources of students, distance from campus, effects of agriculturally-related occupations on student…

Educational frameworks to accommodate rural America are designed around the concept of smallness and incorporate basic skill development through programed instruction, individual projects, use of volunteers, cross-age tutoring, and computer study. Other areas of focus include community involvement, practical skills, familiarization with the…

Suggests school boards separate from day-to-day administrative operations, concentrate on futuristic five-year plans, and work with a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) in subgroups to study all areas of responsibility in order to respond to rising median population age and emerging high-tech society. Would provide optimum accountability and…

Describes Chinese government measures taken to popularize education (1949-1977), including literacy campaigns, new types of popular rural schools, the "Youth to the Countryside" program, and aims and practices of the Cultural Revolution. (MH)

Mathematics education is different in rural schools than in non-rural schools. An explanation for this can be found in an open social systems model of schools, in which schools are comprised of interdependent subsystems that function together to transform inputs into outcomes. These are open systems in that external forces in the environment…

During 2001, rural people from across South Carolina met to discuss how their schools are faring in the new environment of increased accountability and testing. This report identifies six foundations that are essential for building stronger rural schools. Eliminating poverty and improving the health and overall well-being of rural residents could…

Deferring maintenance in small rural schools creates poor conditions that can affect the health and safety of everyone who uses the facility, damage the morale of students and teachers, impair their ability to teach and learn, and threaten the facility itself. Numerous recommendations for policy changes that affect maintenance are presented. A…

Draws on evidence concerning rural population, families, schools, churches, and communities to conclude that the conceptualization of rural as "different from urban" has no contemporary empirical support and that differences among rural areas are greater than rural-urban differences. Offers suggestions for refocusing social work practice on the…

A memory of her first day at school in rural Arkansas defined the author's philosophy of education as lifelong search for identity, as an individual and a member of the community and world. Her teaching style reflects her parents' beliefs in their role as prime educators and in the role of education in developing a strong sense of self. (TD)

If boards of education in rural areas are going to strengthen education, they need to achieve empowering leadership through written policies that create a clarity of vision, empower subordinates, and emphasize renewal. Empowering leadership allows linkages among stakeholders of education and encourages creative efforts toward improving the…

Describes a project that was developed to determine the potential of computer-based instruction for meeting the needs of elementary students in small, rural school settings. Highlights include computer-managed instruction; the importance of local context, including administration, parents, and staff; and the impact on student achievement, school…

In this article, the author identifies two current--and competing--discourses concerning teaching and public education in general. One is the "official" discourse, embodied in "No Child Left Behind" language, with a focus on accountability, standards, credentials, and testing, accompanied by punitive measures for failing to…