Questionnaire data gathered from 142 high school students in a rural Montana town were used to identify the sources of influence in setting occupational and educational goals and to analyze the amounts of information transmitted from various categories of significant others. Results showed that for both occupation and education, peers and,…

This study reports on levels of achievement among rural black and white Southerners of relatively low socioeconomic status. The 262 persons who were the objects of the study were reared in Millfield, North Carolina. They were first studied by Baughman and Dahlstrom (1968) in the early 1960s when they were in the eighth grade. Ten years later, this…

The purpose of this study was to identify and explain factors which account for rural youths having lower attendance records and lower educational attainment than urban youths. The major objectives were: (1) to determine the factors affecting the school attendance and attainment of rural youths; (2) to determine the life aspirations of rural…

Comparing survey responses of U.S. rural youth (1,142 males and 1,148 females) with those of Norwegian rural youth (660 males and 650 females at the comprehensive school level and 237 males and 192 females at the secondary level), youth career orientations were analyzed in terms of career desiderata and sex differentials, social class origins, and…

Using data obtained from recent cross-national and longitudinal studies, the link between family influences and the traditional patterns of school achievement were assessed in terms of rural educational mobility and sex differentials within the context of the "sponsored" system of Norway's schools and the "contest" system…

Analysis of Iowa Youth and Families Project data found three distinct routes to 4-year college attendance: the traditional path of youth with professional/managerial parents; farm youth's use of parents' community ties; and the path of resourceful lower-status rural youth, whose attainment grew from early educational ambition and varied community…

This paper examines the incentive structures in rural communities that encourage or discourage the accumulation of human capital. This is done by identifying the factors that influence educational performance in four school districts in rural Appalachian Virginia and Kentucky. A review of human capital theory, models, and functions generated six…

The goal of this text is to help educators recognize and reduce ethnic, socioeconomic, gender, contextual, and communicative disparities and inequalities in school. It is designed for preservice educators and attempts to help them understand the influence of diversity factors on the educational careers of their students. Chapter 1 describes the…

Utilizing data collected from high school sophomores in 1972 and 1973, the study investigated the religious behavior and orientations of rural Black, White, and Mexican American youth in reference to religious affiliation, church participation, religious self-image (perceptions by peers), religious identification as an impediment to social…

Rural youth are a diverse group not only geographically, but socioeconomically, ethnically, and culturally as well. Historically, the rural student has not achieved as well as his urban counterpart in high school or in post secondary education. There is evidence that this is beginning to change and that rural students are doing as well or better…

Previous research studies were reviewed, and hypotheses relating to educational aspiration and occupational choice were developed. Information on educational aspirations and expectations was then obtained from a random sample of students enrolled in 1964-65 in 30 rural Washington high schools. Farm versus non-farm student differences were examined…

Class awareness among rural children was investigated in three dimensions: cognitive, behavioral, and evaluative. Data were obtained from 378 white students in grades K-8 in 9 rural elementary schools in the Upper Cumberland region of middle Tennessee. Children's social class background (SES) was determined by their father's occupational strata…

Three socioeconomic classes of rural students ages 6 to 18 were interviewed about their conceptions of the rich and poor and economic inequality. The 114 students in the sample were divided as follows: (1) middle class, 23; (2) working class, 61; and (3) lower class, 30. Responses of the students are analyzed according to Leahy's categories of…

Minority children in rural settings have limited access to educational and economic resources. School psychologists, with commitments to several rural schools, may have difficulty getting to know minority children and to understand their diverse needs. School psychologists specifically trained to work in rural settings consider their major…

A study designed to determine aptitudes, skills, and sociological and personal factors characterizing rural youth analyzed educational and personal differences of 2,929 students in eight rural Illinois counties during 1963-64. From data obtained through academic tests and personal questionnaires, it was concluded that although three-fourths of…