This article highlights various paradoxes and false dichotomies in rural education research. Using Paulo Freire's theories of oppression and critical awareness, the article delineates a theoretical framework designed to explore a reframing of rural education. We propose that this reframing would serve as rural praxis for school leaders and…

The purpose of this article is to highlight a critical approach for practice, youth participatory action research, that can be used to invite rural youth to collaborate with school administrators, educators, and community leaders to identify and examine challenges, while building upon the strengths of a school and community to address challenges.…

Formal and informal partnerships between rural schools and their communities can provide a wide range of supports for all students, but particularly those from low-income families. In this analysis of six small rural school districts in Virginia we show how the broad participation of community groups and individuals supports academic achievement…

The purpose of this study was to explore the postsecondary educational and occupational expectations of work-bound rural youth. Three groups of work-bound youth were identified (work-bound, work-bound with future educational plans, and work-bound but unsure/undecided about postsecondary education), and each group was compared to college-bound…

Discusses the importance of recognizing and understanding the consequences of stress, distress, and burnout among rural middle school students. Provides guidelines for diminishing the effects of distress and burnout among students and for conducting teacher inservice programs on distress and ways to manage personal and professional stress. (LP)

A high level of work-related and recreational noise has led to a high prevalence of noise-induced hearing loss in rural students. Teachers can help prevent this problem by integrating hearing conservation education with existing curricula. Educators could be trained about hearing conservation by professional audiologists. (LP)

This research study examines the major obstacles low-income rural youth face in preparing to attend college and how to overcome these obstacles through the participation in an Upward Bound program. The data for this study are from a single-site of the regular ("Classic") Upward Bound program at a public university in a rural New England…

Describes an ethnographic dissertation that portrays how patterns of culture and history in a rural community in Maine negatively influence many rural students' academic aspirations. Consolidated schools exacerbate the effect by separating students from their parents and communities and alienating them in school. (TD)

Reviews research showing declining interest in teaching profession. Survey reveals 45.8 percent of rural South Carolina high school students were to some extent interested in teaching. Examines related factors, including students' ability levels, grade and area-type preferences, amount of teacher influences, and perceptions of teacher salaries.…

A questionnaire administered to 288 seventh- through tenth-grade students in 3 rural Oregon school districts revealed students' knowledge concerning the transmission and prevention of AIDS, student attitudes toward AIDS patients, and source of student knowledge; showed improvement over a previous survey of middle school students; and confirms the…

A survey in a rural Texas school district revealed that as many as 85% of the students in grades 6-12 drink alcohol. Students believed their drinking routines to be normal, whereas teachers and parents felt that prevalent alcohol use and abuse had definite negative effects. (LP)

A survey of 215 graduates from small rural high schools in north-central Missouri examined the perceived effectiveness of academic, vocational, and general education programs in the development of work skills. Vocational graduates perceived their education programs to be more effective overall, and in technology and occupational preparation, than…

Learning activities that promote student pride in rural living include examining the misconceptions and prejudices associated with rural living, exploring the variables of a rural lifestyle, student research of their town's history, and reading books that positively portray rural living. Includes a bibliography of 69 adolescent books with rural…