Analysis of 1988 and 1990 data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study revealed that parental involvement had a small but significant effect on the change in student achievement from 8th to 10th grade. Rural schools did not differ from urban or suburban schools in extent of parent involvement, change in achievement, or influence of parent…

A study examined whether the characteristics of rural communities would limit success of a statewide mentoring program in Nebraska. Surveys of 1,490 students, parents, mentors, and teachers in 10 rural and 23 nonrural schools indicated similar positive changes in student behavior in rural and nonrural schools. Provision of mentors and staff by…

A shortened and revised Student Aspirations Survey was administered to 1,160 students in rural middle schools and high schools. Evidence of construct validity was considerable for student responses to the aspirations scales and very limited for student responses to the school climate scales. Suggestions for improvement of score interpretation are…

Research reveals that high school students in small schools participate more in extracurricular activities than their peers in large schools; that a high degree of student participation provides opportunities for enhancing leadership, responsibility, and motivation; that students in small schools feel needed; and that the benefits of…

Examination of the impact of gender and academic-risk behavior on the career maturity and competence of 110 rural youth revealed that females were more involved and independent in their career development and that high-risk students were less able to solve career-related problems. Addresses implications for rural career education and vocational…

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…

Explores the issue of school choice as it pertains to town tuitioning in Maine. Includes the historical development of town tuitioning and current patterns by region and school type. Argues that town tuitioning provides substantial numbers of rural high school students and their parents with opportunities to choose high schools. (KS)

Assesses the effects of human capital and social capital (social interaction that facilitates productive activity) on the probability of a student dropping out of high school using the High School and Beyond data set. The effects of human and social capital in combination significantly reduced the odds of dropout. (KS)

Data from a national sample of 456 science teachers in 93 secondary schools indicate that, relative to nonrural teachers, rural teachers were less experienced, less likely to have majored in a science, and less likely to have a graduate degree. Some differences were related to state certification policies. (SV)

A science teacher at an Alaska correspondence school discusses the educational uses of electronic mail (enhancing the relationship between teacher and distant student, encouraging early computer literacy and reflective communication skills, and promoting interschool collaboration) and describes a telecommunications-based science project involving…

Achievement in reading, math, science, and social studies was examined among rural, suburban, and urban school students using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988. Controlling for socioeconomic status and using nationally representative samples of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders, rural student achievement equalled or exceeded…

A study of 45,206 high school seniors investigated their participation and performance in mathematics subjects taken to complete the secondary education qualification in Victoria, Australia. Gender differences varied with the particular assessment administered. There was a significant regional effect where rural students, particularly males,…