This series of newspaper articles evaluates North Carolina's schools and establishes a relationship between the state's rural poverty and low student achievement levels. Test scores in 1988 are consistently low in all but four of the poorest rural counties. Small schools are disappearing from rural areas. Large schools can offer students more courses and activities, but they tend to alienate students and to generate higher dropout rates. Rural schools tend to draw from larger areas, and no longer serve as a social center for the community. Rural teachers observe lowered student motivation. Schools have tried a variety of strategies to motivate students to read and boost their self-esteem, but the task is difficult. Teachers say when standards are raised, students generally fold rather than buckle down. Relatively few rural high school students go on to college. North Carolina's Basic Education Program increases the investment in rural schools, but fails to improve the situation. Teen pregnancies, suicide, and other social problems usually associated with urban areas are appearing more often in rural systems. Rural teachers often work harder for less pay. One school is experimenting with new strategies, including: structural reorganization; teacher-developed curricula, grade-level alterations, schedule changes, computer-assisted courses, and interdisciplinary approaches. (TES)