The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was designed to measure knowledge, skills, and attitudes of young Americans at various ages in 10 learning areas, and to measure educational attainment over time. Community categories used in NAEP research were High and Low Metro, Urban Fringe, Main Big City, Medium City, Small Places…

An historical problem in the education of minorities has been that those responsible for minority education have isolated the educational process from the culture of the minority being served. This factor and others (cultural bias, lack of opportunity, and background) have contributed to lower levels of educational attainment of rural minorities…

Emphasizing the fact that rural youth in the U.S. are heterogeneous in their values, backgrounds, cultural heritages, and aspirations, this paper cites literature and studies which indicate that within the last 10 years rural youth have become more alike than different from their urban counterparts in values, attitudes, life goals, and mobility…

This report focuses on the education and work experiences of rural youth during the emerging adult years (age 20 to 24), as they make the transition from adolescence to adulthood. It documents how rural emerging adults combine work and school and experience idleness, closely examines their educational attainment, and compares their experiences…