This article explores the transience and mobility of teachers working in an isolated community: a secondary school in regional Australia. Drawing on parent, student, and teacher interviews, we ask: how should we understand these teacher commitments to schooling and how does this influence parents' and students' commitments and understandings of…

Australian occupational Travelers such as circus and fairground people often enter territories normally occupied by permanent residents. This article examines the ways in which these Travelers act as "space invaders," disrupting the boundaries between urban and rural, and as pedagogical innovators, when they develop pioneering approaches to their…

The importance and urgency of rural education to each state was assessed using seven and nine indicators, respectively. The Mid-South Delta, central Appalachia, coastal Southeast, the north Plains, and northern New England emerged as priority rural education regions. The most important urgency indicators were teacher salaries, computer use, school…

Effects of student poverty and location on school accountability scores were examined using hierarchical linear modeling and data from 1,115 Kentucky schools in 171 districts. Positive effects of nonmetro location were found, but they did not erase the strong negative effect of poverty. Projections indicate that equitable excellence will not be…

Case study of a poor, rural Pennsylvania school district's experience with the Reading First initiative illustrates how the No Child Left Behind Act confines districts to a few federally prescribed, "scientifically proven" curricula that ignore local conditions. Sanctioned schools are negatively labeled but receive inadequate funding, setting the…

The No Child Left Behind Act reflects a decision by Congress that federal money not be squandered searching for local solutions, but that scientifically based research be utilized to ensure that every student meets academic standards. The school improvement process requires that local stakeholders cooperatively plan an improvement process, and…

Rural education scholars may be biased advocates of small schools or they may accept the values of the scientific community. An analysis of a rural Pennsylvania district's failure to receive Reading First funding did not provide enough information to determine why the proposal was rejected. The article's arguments about "privatization" lacked…

Since the authors' previous article was submitted, the Reading First proposal in question was funded without revisions. This may have happened because a new governor and political party had replaced those in charge of the Reading First program. Three implications arise: persist when values collide; who controls state government matters; and…

Research on rural mathematics education should adopt a conservative approach to method that accepts the existence of a knowable reality; a liberal approach to content that views rural issues broadly and sidesteps deficit models of rurality; and a radical perspective on application that recognizes that the use of research findings in the policy…

A conference of 47 science, mathematics, and technology educators and rural education experts from across the country prepared a research agenda regarding science and mathematics achievement in poor, rural schools. Researchable questions were grouped into categories of community support, instructional resources, leadership and school reform,…

A study identified community characteristics associated with the presence of a school. Data from the U.S. census and the state department of education for 297 rural New York villages indicated that social and economic welfare is higher in communities with schools. Schools are especially critical to the well-being of the smallest villages.…

The No Child Left Behind Act requires all teachers to be highly qualified by 2005-06. Accomplishing this will require statewide collaboration among higher education, school districts, certification boards, and departments of education. Data from recent studies of teacher recruitment, retention, and professional development in Wyoming illustrate…

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 study examining technology support in rural schools surveyed 129 school technology coordinators in four upper plains states. Heavy pedagogical and technical demands were placed on rural technology coordinators. Rural technology coordinators should have teaching experience and advanced degree work in network administration, computer hardware…

An evaluation of an Ohio professional development program for beginning rural principals interviewed and observed 23 principals and mentors in 3 study groups. Participants valued mentoring and networking activities, noting they mitigated professional isolation. Participants preferred "unofficial" activities focused on practical problems to the…