Middle Appalachia--defined in this report as the Appalachian portions of Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia--is an impoverished area that has been economically dependent on the coal industry for generations. Its schools face unique challenges in ensuring the college and career readiness of students, given that…

The combination of difficult economic times and increased accountability has led policymakers to call for evidence that students taught by National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS)-certified teachers make greater achievement gains than those taught by non-NBPTS-certified teachers. Overall, studies show mixed results regarding the…

Principals of 62 elementary and secondary rural schools in a 20-county area of the upper Cumberland region of Tennessee were surveyed about the status of rural school facilities and their accommodation of various curricular and extracurricular offerings. Small class size was reported by 58 percent. The high incidence of Internet-operable schools…

Although class size reductions are often proposed as a way to improve student learning, research does not indicate that smaller classes will necessarily produce improved student achievement. Class size effects on student learning vary by grade, pupil characteristics, subject area, teaching method, and other learning interventions. References…

Examination of demographic, socioeconomic, and cultural factors in Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, the four states served by the Appalachia Educational Laboratory (AEL), shows low student population density, endemic poverty, low educational attainment, and a population reluctant to seek outside help. This report reviews the…

Reviews economic and social science theories on the role of the school in economic development. Presents a case study of an underdeveloped rural Tennessee county where school improvement efforts were unsuccessful because of the sociological, political, economic, and cultural setting in which the school system operates. (KS)