What are students' mental models of the environment? In what ways, if any, do students' mental models vary by grade level or community setting? These two questions guided the research reported in this article. The Environments Task was administered to students from 25 different teacher-classrooms. The student responses were first inductively…

Focus groups conducted with urban and rural middle school students showed that they had typical stereotypes about agriculture and farmers and found farm careers unattractive. Results suggested that agriculture be tied to youth interests and addressed before middle school. The project also elicited information about using focus groups with youth.…

Urban (n=51) and rural (n=43) high school seniors completed measures of career maturity and career decision-making self-efficacy (CDMSE). Career development attitude was the most significant predictor of CDMSE. Rural seniors scored significantly higher on career development knowledge. (SK)

The help seeking patterns of 139 secondary school youth between the ages of 14 and 22 in two peri-urban and one rural secondary school in the Eastern Cape, and one urban and one rural secondary school in KwaZulu-Natal were studied. Youth were interviewed in focus groups about their problems and whether or not they seek help for these problems.…

Sampled 49 students in a structured telephone interview to ascertain factors that are most instrumental to high school seniors when selecting postsecondary institutions. Found some differences between urban and rural students' influencing factors. (EV)

The historical origins of student activism in Greece and an analysis of present activism in nine institutions of postsecondary education are described. The empirical analysis was based on a sample of nearly 1,500 students and revealed that activism relates mainly to the regional origin of the student. (Author/MLW)

Investigated the attitudes and concerns of middle school students in four rural school districts to determine if their worries were the same as those of urban youth. Found similarities between the two groups, suggesting that rural areas are not as isolated from urban problems as they seem. Results suggest the need for relevant education programs.…

Using data from a cross-sectional sample of 4,376 South Carolina high school seniors in 1969 to determine the differences in the perception of conditions relating to teacher choice among white and black females and males, the study explored the relative perceived importance of the following items in choosing a career: the chance to make a lot of…

Questionnaire responses of 918 midwestern 8th, 10th, and 12th graders reveal that rural adolescents, especially males, were more likely to experience conflict between career aspirations and future residential preferences than their urban peers. Additionally, rural 10th graders expressing conflicting aspirations were more likely to have lower…

Students from 24 southern 1862 and 1890 land-grant universities were mailed questionnaires focusing on 5 topics of concern to persons in agricultural education administration, teaching, and counseling--family and personal backgrounds, high school and college experiences, work and employment experiences, personal goals (aspirations), and attitudes…

This paper examines the interests, perceptions, and participation of 16 African American girls in a program designed to improve girls' persistence in science, mathematics, and technology (SMT). The girls are among 33 African American and 73 total original participants in "Rural and Urban Images: Voices of Girls in Science, Mathematics, and…

Because stability in career choice for agricultural occupations is desirable, vocational guidance and orientations which make children and adolescents theoretically and practically familiar with agricultural production must be increased and improved. Data from East Germany indicate that the influence of parents and friends is of major importance…

Changes in the occupational and educational aspirations and expectations of fifth and sixth grade children over a 6-year period were studied. In 1969, a questionnaire was administered to 355 students from 4 rural mountain schools and 3 urban schools in low-income areas in 3 Kentucky counties. In 1975, 199 students from the same rural mountain…

Teachers, especially home economics teachers, would be better prepared to evaluate subject matter and to separate fact and personal opinion if they had a better understanding of diverse student backgrounds. To find out such background information, a study was conducted to analyze attitudes and values held by junior and senior students in home…

This report draws on the Youth in Transition surveys to present educational participation rates for various categories of Australian youth. The focus is on how educational experiences differ among the categories and on the way in which such differences may have changed over time. Chapter 2 describes the way in which educational participation of…