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Full-Text Articles in Education
Action Civics In Rural Communities, Karon N. Lecompte Ph.D., Kevin Magill, Brooke Blevins, Kenley Ritter, Tori Smith, Nate Scholten, Michelle Bauml
Action Civics In Rural Communities, Karon N. Lecompte Ph.D., Kevin Magill, Brooke Blevins, Kenley Ritter, Tori Smith, Nate Scholten, Michelle Bauml
The Rural Educator
We used an action civics curriculum and conducted a qualitative analysis of two fifth-grade classrooms in a rural setting called Green Independent School District (pseudonym). We organized the curriculum into a week-long study whereby we conducted interviews, collected student work, and analyzed teacher and student data. We focused on Baiocchi et al.'s (2014) concept of the civic imagination to analyze rural students' beliefs about themselves as citizens as they engaged in an action civics inquiry model of learning. Three primary findings emerged from our data; an emphasis on solidarity by citizens in the community, student use of problem-solving through civic …
Factors That Affect School Counselor Retention In Rural Settings-An Exploratory Study, Rawn Boulden, Chris Schimmel
Factors That Affect School Counselor Retention In Rural Settings-An Exploratory Study, Rawn Boulden, Chris Schimmel
The Rural Educator
Teacher attrition is a well-known issue impacting K-12 schools in the United States. Sizeable research exists highlighting noteworthy factors that promote retention and attrition. However, scant research exists describing these factors within the context of school counselors working in rural settings. Considering this gap, we employed an inductive phenomenological approach to learn more about key attrition and retention factors, utilizing a sample of five rural school counselors employed in rural locales throughout the United States. Two overarching categories were identified: (a) school-based factors and (b) school community factors. Limitations and implications for rural school districts and counselor preparation programs are …
Understanding The Priorities And Practices Of Rural Science Teachers: Implications For Designing Professional Learning, Kerri Wingert, Jennifer Jacobs, William Lindsay, Abraham S. Lo, Cari F. Herrmann-Abell, William R. Penuel
Understanding The Priorities And Practices Of Rural Science Teachers: Implications For Designing Professional Learning, Kerri Wingert, Jennifer Jacobs, William Lindsay, Abraham S. Lo, Cari F. Herrmann-Abell, William R. Penuel
The Rural Educator
In order to design professional learning that supports rural science teachers to effectively implement standards-based “five-dimensional” (5D) instructional and assessment practices, a critical first step is to elicit their perspectives, prior experiences, concerns, and interests. Based on survey data from 87 rural science teachers in Colorado, along with focus group sessions with 18 of those teachers, this article investigates teachers’ perspectives on what makes rural science teaching unique, the degree to which they use 5D science instruction, their curricular and assessment resources, and their professional learning experiences and preferences. Overall, rural science teachers in Colorado reported using rich practices for …
The 2020-2021 Whippoorwill Award: Redefining And Reconsidering What Counts As Rural Ya Literature, Kate E. Kedley, Devon Brenner, Chea L. Parton, Karen Eppley, Nick Kleese, Jennifer Sanders, Stephanie Short
The 2020-2021 Whippoorwill Award: Redefining And Reconsidering What Counts As Rural Ya Literature, Kate E. Kedley, Devon Brenner, Chea L. Parton, Karen Eppley, Nick Kleese, Jennifer Sanders, Stephanie Short
The Rural Educator
No abstract provided.
Why Teachers Remain Teaching In Rural Districts: Listening To The Voices From The Field, Nancy L. Leech, Carolyn A. Haug, Eleanor Rodriguez, Molly Gold
Why Teachers Remain Teaching In Rural Districts: Listening To The Voices From The Field, Nancy L. Leech, Carolyn A. Haug, Eleanor Rodriguez, Molly Gold
The Rural Educator
Retaining teachers is a problem in all districts but is especially difficult in rural areas. This survey research asked teachers in a western state to respond to open ended questions regarding their choice for teaching in a rural or urban area. Results indicate teachers work in a rural locale because they grew up in the area, already lived there as an adult, and/or had a spouse/partner with a job in the area. Both rural and non-rural teachers cited the importance of a positive school environment with supportive administrators and good working conditions. Teachers stated inadequate working conditions at school affected …
The Impact Of Racial Trauma: A Crucial Conversation In Rural Education, Tameka O. Grimes, Shannon K. Roosma
The Impact Of Racial Trauma: A Crucial Conversation In Rural Education, Tameka O. Grimes, Shannon K. Roosma
The Rural Educator
Coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting global health crisis, George Floyd's murder was broadcast on social media and popular news (The Marshall Project, 2021). While COVID-19 reports demonstrated the ways Communities of Color and rural communities were disproportionately disadvantaged in the U.S. healthcare system (Artiga et al., 2020; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021; Dandachi et al., 2021; Fortuna et al., 2020), marches and rallies for Black Lives Matter became emblematic of social discord and civic demand for social justice to upend a racist law enforcement and judicial system (Rickford, 2016). These recent examples of systemic racism …
Uncovering Rural Educators' Secret Agency, Jennifer Karnopp
Uncovering Rural Educators' Secret Agency, Jennifer Karnopp
The Rural Educator
School change efforts often rely on formal organizational structures to support educator knowledge of new instructional practices. Rural districts face challenges accessing the resources necessary for robust structures, but informal relationships among educators are often strong. Using structuration theory as a lens, this paper examines the knowledge-building behaviors of educators in one rural school district regarding new instructional practices related to a recent initiative. A thematic analysis of interviews with a purposive sample of district educators reveals that, in the absence of robust formal supports, educator agency was critical for establishing informal knowledge-building structures that supported knowledge-sharing within district schools. …
Revisiting The Revolving Door Of Rural Superintendent Turnover, Barry Kamrath
Revisiting The Revolving Door Of Rural Superintendent Turnover, Barry Kamrath
The Rural Educator
This qualitative multiple case study is a follow-up to a study completed in 2007 that examined characteristics of rural school districts experiencing a high rate of superintendent turnover. The original study design incorporated extensive interviews with participants across four rural school districts; triangulating interview results with information found in school board minutes and published media articles. The four case districts had employed a total of 19 superintendents in the ten-year period leading up to the original study. However, since then, three of the districts have experienced a drastic change in their turnover trend. This study revisits the four rural districts …
Literacy In Place: Creating Community By Reading And Writing Rural Stories, Chea L. Parton
Literacy In Place: Creating Community By Reading And Writing Rural Stories, Chea L. Parton
The Rural Educator
No abstract provided.
Promising Practices In African American Rural Education College Transitions And Postsecondary Experiences, Loni Crumb, Crystal R. Chambers
Promising Practices In African American Rural Education College Transitions And Postsecondary Experiences, Loni Crumb, Crystal R. Chambers
The Rural Educator
No abstract provided.
Race, Repair, And Youth Participatory Action Research In One Rural School, Carol Thompson, Felicia Crockett
Race, Repair, And Youth Participatory Action Research In One Rural School, Carol Thompson, Felicia Crockett
The Rural Educator
This qualitative study examines the progress of a rural New Jersey school in addressing longstanding racial conflict after implementing a Youth Participatory Action Research project two years prior. Here we take up the thread as students continued to develop activities meant to increase awareness of ongoing issues, and as adults used professional development time to model best practices in managing racialized interactions. Eight teachers and staff not originally involved and nine students who had been directly involved were interviewed and a student focus group conducted. All participants agreed that progress had been made though issues around curriculum and discipline remained. …