Purpose is a concept receiving increasing attention in the developmental sciences. Making sense of your place in the world and finding meaning--a process fundamental to purpose--support positive development in adolescence and beyond. Using traditional ethnographic strategies, this article examines the development of purpose among a small group of…

This article explores a hitherto neglected issue: the significance of nature in the learning lives of marginalised young people. Drawing on both post-human and sociocultural perspectives, it develops a theoretical analysis of this important subject. It uses research with 114 young people in jobs without training in rural South-west England to…

This article reports on a qualitative evaluation of the Science in Schools program; a suite of science based activities delivered by staff of a regional university campus and designed to provide professional development for science teachers working in non-metropolitan schools in a socioeconomically disadvantaged region of Australia. The research…

Purpose: Methamphetamine (MA) addiction is a significant problem in rural areas of the United States. Yet, little theoretically driven formative research has been conducted on the interactions of factors influencing initiation. The study was guided by Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model. Methods: Eighty-three MA users participated in an…

There have been as yet few qualitative analyses of either the lives of rural youth or their schooling in North America. While urban or suburban sociologies of education have focused heavily on the social mobility of youth, rural sociologies of education have focused on the geographic mobility of youth, typically out of rural areas. Indeed there…

This article is based on interviews carried out in rural communities in Canada and Wales with health care workers, educators, administrators and policymakers. The focus of the interviews was on assessing the perceived needs and available services for rural youth, either within their schools or within the immediate community. Various problems and…

Finds that, among 36 of 42 Nebraska juvenile court judges, rural judges were more likely than urban judges to take an activist role in obtaining services for youth, to have an informal relationship with local service providers, and to welcome non-judicial solutions for problem youth. Contains 29 references. (SV)

An exploratory analysis of the meanings families attach to schooling, this article is based upon interviews conducted with three white, middle-class families--one from rural West Virginia, another from a small West Virginia city, and a third from rural Pennsylvania. I hoped that this preliminary effort would help me think about how families view…

Presents a study in which 12 multicultural literature selections were used in a unit on families in order to facilitate the cultural awareness of second-grade students who live in a predominately African American, rural community. Discusses the themes that emerged. Includes an appendix with a copy of the interview, literature selections, and unit…

The 3 main objectives of this study, the fourth and final phase of an investigation to determine the information and services obtained and desired by rural parents during 4 stages of child rearing, were to determine: (1) the sources from which parents of adolescents received information and services regarding child care and development; (2) the…

CLASSROOM AGGRESSION, DEFINED IN THIS STUDY AS MARKEDLY UNACCEPTABLE AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR OCCURRING HABITUALLY OR FREQUENTLY IN SCHOOL, IS EXAMINED IN RELATION TO SEX, GRADE, AND URBAN-RURAL STATUS. THE WRITERS STATE THAT NEUROTIC, PSYCHOPATHIC, AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR PATTERNS HAVE THE FOLLOWING FOUR FOCAL CAUSATIVE AREAS--(1) SCHOOL, (2) HOME AND…