This study compared the perceptions of a national sample of urban, suburban, and rural administrators (N=891, a 72% response) about minority dropout indicators to what current research literature identifies as highly-ranked causal variables related to minority dropout rates. The literature review identified the following causes of dropping out,…

Portfolio assessment, a technique traditionally used with elementary and secondary students, involves the presentation of a collection of individual work documenting the learner's efforts, progress, and achievement. Recently, it has been suggested that portfolio assessment be broadened in its application to include teacher hiring and evaluation.…

This paper provides basic information on searching the Internet and describes sites of interest in the area of rural special education. The first section traces the evolution of the Internet through various phases--ARPANET, NSFNET, CERNET, and the beginnings of the World Wide Web--and describes various protocols (methods and tools) developed to…

This report discusses the community-based resources that may be available to regular and special education teachers serving visually impaired students in rural areas. It notes the national shortage of teachers qualified to teach children with visual impairments and suggests that rural teachers will have to devote some effort to seeking out…

Summarizes literature regarding the accomplishments and challenges of rural education and rural special education in terms of rural schools and teachers, rural families, and rural communities. Suggests that rural children with disabilities will be well served in the future through additional resources, more professionally trained and qualified…

As rural schools prepare for the inclusion of students with disabilities in general classrooms, teachers must be equipped to modify curriculum and adapt classroom environments. This paper reports the results of an analysis of a series of instructional seminars for their applicability to curriculum and classroom environment adaptation. The series…

Rural teachers are often undertrained in the identification and education of gifted students. This paper describes the principles and development of an online introductory course in gifted education that could meet the need for rural teacher training. Using the philosophy that learners construct their own knowing, the system for developing an…