In this descriptive and comparative study, we present results highlighting the complexity and scope of the challenges facing rural districts as they navigate the changing demographics of the students and families they serve. Rapid increases in the number and concentration of racially, culturally, and linguistically diverse students in rural areas…

A model of staff development is presented which applies inservice education methods to the special conditions of rural Alaska. An individualized, field-based training program is cooperatively planned with those receiving the training. Ultimately, each trainee constructs an implementation plan. A follow-up assesses whether the program objectives…

The Alaska Consortium for Transition Services (ACTS) is a federally funded project to develop and implement secondary transition planning for rural Alaska students with severe disabilities. Secondary transition is the process of change occurring as students prepare to move from high school to adult life. As rural Alaska's severely disabled…

A review of the innovative and comprehensive educational programs in Alaska, funded under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, is featured in this document. A brief sketch of the State of Alaska provides a basis of understanding of the rural education problems encountered in this large state. Each program instituted is discussed…

To address the shortage of qualified early interventionists for young rural children with disabilities, the University of Alaska Fairbanks developed a Master's program that used distance education at remote practicum sites during fall and spring and on-campus instruction during the summer. The program has fostered university-rural community…

Surveys, interviews, and observations were carried out at six remote Alaska village schools to explore perceptions and experiences of teachers and aides related to inclusionary practices for students with disabilities. Findings focus on personal stories affecting participants' perceptions, barriers and supports for inclusionary practices, and the…

Alaska has been forced by geography and weather to look at numerous innovative solutions to improving communication between families and schools. The Internet is showing more impact than any other technique that has been tried. This has been especially helpful to parents of children with disabilities, due to a severe shortage of special education…

Part of the North Slope Borough District, the two schools in the Inupiaq village of Wainwright, Alaska, began to take advantage of communications technology for teaching, administration, and staff training purposes in 1983. At that time, three teachers took a course offered by the University of Alaska via computer and audio-conference on the…

The geographic, enviornmental, and demographic conditions in Alaska create extreme difficulties for rural small school teachers who must cope with students with abilities ranging from gifted to retarded. Mainstreaming is taken for granted in Alaska where program development to aid rural teachers in providing special education services to their…