Rapid urban development in small rural communities is occurring at an unprecedented pace in regional Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite this growth, rural schools are positioned at the margins of the planning process and the implications of this urbanisation trend remains unknown. This research challenges the notion of the rural-urban divide by…

This paper, by a Bangladeshi and a New Zealander, brings together narrative inquiry studies of the leadership initiatives in two quite different rural schools, in Bangladesh and New Zealand respectively. The schools are in communities that might be considered as significantly underprivileged, and generationally alienated from education, within…

This research examined the leadership practices of rural primary school principals in the Otago province of New Zealand. Principals of large rural schools (with a role of 150 and above) and small rural schools (with a role of 60 or below) served as participants in an investigation to learn what about their practice creates and maintains effective…

New ways of participating in rural communities and in community development have evolved as the structure of rural communities has changed. In some communities, the impetus to redefine and reenergize is strong while, in others, ways to move forward have yet to be identified (Pomeroy 1997). Rural schools serve a vital role in recreating communities…

In the 11 years since the devolution to local control of New Zealand schools, the role of the Board of Trustees chairperson has emerged as critical to the success of the school-community partnership, especially in small rural communities. A qualitative study examined the issues facing the Board chair, as a lay, elected school leader working in…

Reviews a New Zealand report titled, "Report of the Economic and Educational Viability of Small Schools Review." Discusses the four aspects of small schools considered in the report: (1) educational viability; (2) economic viability; (3) relationships of small schools with their communities; and (4) conflict between availability and…

This proceedings of the 17th annual conference of the Society for the Provision of Education in Rural Australia (SPERA) contains 28 keynote addresses and conference papers. Major conference themes were vocational education and training (VET) in rural schools, small schools, flexible rural delivery systems, and the community as a resource and…

Small rural schools have always had an important place in the educational life of New Zealand, but they have faced a number of challenges in the past decade. These challenges include difficulty in attracting and retaining high quality teachers, changing expectations of parents, decreasing rural population, and the impact of national educational…

An educational researcher describes and reflects on a qualitative research project she conducted, focusing on her positioning, neutrality, and objectivity throughout the research process and during subsequent data analysis. The research took place in a K-12 school in a remote rural New Zealand community inhabited by Maori, 1970s…

Concerned with the role of education in the development of rural areas, this report summarizes some of the major findings of the Australian Education and Local Development (ELD) projects combined with information collected from New Zealand rural areas during 1983. The five major studies contributing to the report are: (1) a case study of the…

In 1977, the Penrose "Whanau House" evolved from a need for new school buildings and an examination of professional needs in secondary education. A group of 25 administrators and personnel affirmed that New Zealand secondary schools should be neighbourhood and comprehensive. Social and community interaction should be stressed, and there…

This paper discusses the impact that recent educational reforms by the New Zealand government had on Maori individuals involved in community decision-making processes, focusing on one predominantly Maori rural community. Three strands of recent educational change in New Zealand are the move to self-managing institutions; ongoing debate over…