Questionnaire responses from 702 agricultural producers who actively use the North Carolina Agricultural Extension Service (NCAES) and whose farming activities produce at least $10,000 annually revealed perceptions of the current and future capacity of the NCAES to deliver state-of-the-art technological information and the relationships between…

This study examined the incentives and obstacles to instructional improvement perceived by 27 rural elementary teachers who participated in a cooperative school district/university language arts staff development project. Participants were almost all female, and averaged 42 years of age and 12 years of teaching experience. Most had lived in the…

This paper describes the North Dakota Teacher Center network, designed to meet the needs of teachers in rural schools. Each of ten locally governed teacher centers houses a library of teaching materials in a school or college setting. Each center coordinates credit and non-credit workshops, classes, and seminars of interest to area educators. Each…

The distance education and instructional technology projects that have been undertaken in Alaska over the last decade are detailed in this paper. The basic services offered by the "Learn Alaska Network" are described in relation to three user groups: K-12 education; postsecondary education; and general public education and information.…

The creation of the Virginia Tech Teleport Facility and the installation of a nine-meter (diameter) C-Band satellite uplink antenna provided the initial impetus for the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service (VCES) to explore the use of satellite technology for information and program delivery. The $600,000 uplink became operational in September…

As part of an American History survey course at East Tennessee State University, students conducted research on ordinary objects from homes, barns, and workshops in the Tri-Cities area of Tennessee, learned techniques for displaying and interpreting artifacts, and designed and constructed exhibits illustrating aspects of homelife and work in the…

A survey questionnaire asked adult (aged 18 or older) respondents to list, in order of importance, the five most important characteristics of their best and worst teachers in school; to answer the question: "What didn't school teach you?"; and to grade schools locally and nationally on a scale from A through F (A through D and F for Fail). A…

A cooperative program of teacher education involving a university, public schools, and the community is built on formal agreements for joint responsibility in teacher training and depends upon clear communication among all participants. In this paper, the structure, areas of responsibility, and lines of communication are described for five…

Today, after nearly 100 years of pressure toward consolidation, communities which have resisted consolidation for the last generation are finally getting some support. Some of this support comes from simple facts and figures. There is strong evidence that centralized schools are expensive, remote from the communities they are supposed to serve,…

Described is the Kendall County Special Education Cooperative Early Childhood Program which reflects an innovative team approach to servicing young handicapped children (aged 3 to 5 years) and their families in a rural area. The following program components are outlined: program philosophy and background; child find procedures; development of an…

Four papers presented at the 1981 World Assembly of the International Council of Education for Teaching dealt with methods of achieving improved education results through application of research findings. In his paper, "Strategies for Getting Practitioners to Utilize the Findings of Research, Evaluation, and Development," Gilbert De…

People United for Rural Education (PURE), organized in Iowa in 1977, now has about 3,000 members in 23 states and 3 foreign countries. PURE's purpose is to ensure the survival of rural schools and to promote rural life as a viable and credible way of life. One of the organization's most difficult tasks is to counteract urban attitudes towards…

The rural community college must be vocational in orientation and provide its students with social, economic, and political facts related to their lives and employment now and in the future. It must offer equal opportunity to consider and select training for either rural or urban occupations. In order to offer this diversity, a college must have a…

In 1999, Fairmont State College (West Virginia) received a Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant for a 5-year program designed to encourage college aspirations and preparation among disadvantaged rural youth. During the first 2 years, parents and students in nine counties were surveyed to determine their…

Bridging courses are courses that prepare adult and other nontraditional students for undergraduate study. Focus groups examined the strengths, limitations, and impacts of bridging courses offered at a rural university campus in South Australia. A survey based on their responses was returned by 12 current students in bridging courses and 2 who had…