Old‐timer/newcomer attitudes regarding community involvement in rural education

Abstract

Abstract Some suggest differences between old‐timers and newcomers in rural districts have impeded attempts to increase citizen involvement in rural education. In this study, discriminant multivariate analyses revealed significant differences in the general attitudes of old‐timers and newcomers with respect to local education and community involvement in education. One factor which maximally discriminated between old‐timers and newcomers was found to replicate across districts. Findings suggest the old‐timer/newcomer distinction cannot be wholly explained in terms of conventional demographic indicators. So this distinction, in itself, can be a useful tool in studying the community dynamics of rural education and rural community development.