Student teachers relate their teaching experiences in small rural schools in Queensland (Australia), including recognizing the importance of the school to its community, the resources that rural schools use in providing a quality education, the role of the teacher in a rural setting, and the close relationship between rural teachers and their…

Discusses the impact on rural Australian schools of recent developments in distance education, including new communication technologies, changes in the concept of Distance Education Centres, the advent of open learning ("open" college courses delivered electronically by a consortium of universities), and interinstitutional networking.…

Distance education has potential to overcome barriers to rural women's participation but must consider women's attitudes toward technology and ways of knowing. Strategies are outlined for developing gender-friendly models of distance education. "Value-added" distance education requires rethinking traditional instructional settings and…

Formal and informal support systems are essential to empowering rural families to meet basic needs of health, education, and employment. Formal resources (institutions, agencies, professionals) are often lacking in rural areas and families rely on informal resources (extended family, church, social clubs). Characteristics of informal social…

Examines the role of open and distance learning in South Africa's plans for educational reconstruction and discusses the educational consequences of apartheid. Reviews the delivery of adult basic education and training programs using distance methods. Concludes that some areas are likely to remain inaccessible to all possible modes of delivery.…

The Western Brokering Project (WBP) is a cooperative effort to share resources and programming across educational institutions in the western United States. Administered by the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education and the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications, the WBP works with 6 community colleges and universities…

The Remoteness and Access to Learning Opportunities in the Pacific Region Study was carried out to investigate whether access to learning opportunities (ALO) is related to the remoteness and isolation of many schools in the Pacific region. The study also profiles the conditions of remote and isolated schools and the ALO for Pacific students. Seven…

This paper reports on a study that examined teacher recruitment and retention practices in the Northern Mariana Islands public school system. The study was conducted due to shortages of special education teachers and related services personnel. Based on a review of school district documents on recruitment and retention practices and interviews…

Yup'ik Head Start personnel in the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta in Alaska wanted to create a team approach for serving at-risk children with special needs. The area's umbrella agency for Head Start partnered with an innovative in-service team training project developed by the University of Idaho to deliver a culturally relevant, mobile in-service module…

Technological change, globalization, and localization have changed rural economies. They have increased labor productivity, reducing the importance of labor costs in location decisions; decreased the importance of distance; increased the importance of economies of scale; and increased the role of local conditions and choices in determining…

The successful integration of information technologies in the teaching of biology and other sciences is in part dependent on the transition from closed to open teaching and learning environments. This paper outlines the transition from a closed model of schooling in rural Newfoundland and Labrador to the beginnings of an open model. Seniors in a…

Diversity of geography, climate, and culture dictate the nature of the service delivery systems in Alaska, including the provision of prevention programming in substance abuse, alcoholism, health, and behavioral health. Described here are training programs, conferences and symposia, health fairs, and culturally derived interventions that meet the…

In regional, rural, and remote areas of Australia, geographic and professional isolation take their toll on professionals, particularly in the first 5 years of practice. The attraction and retention of human service professionals and paraprofessionals in regional Australia is a significant problem affecting the sustainability and social cohesion…

Despite a 4 percent U.S. unemployment rate, Native American tribes suffer unemployment rates of around 50 percent. Meanwhile, information technology managers increasingly hire more foreign workers under H-1B visas. Obstacles to Native American participation in the information technology job market are a lack of technology infrastructure at tribal…

Study examining quality of life in three small rural Arizona communities found that, although residents recognized the lack of amenities and lack of youth opportunities in small towns, they continued to value the small size and remote location of their communities. Describes religious, social, and geographic community divisions and conflicts and…