Special Issue: Rural Entrepreneurship Education

Abstract

This Special Issue focuses on entrepreneurship education in rural areas and small towns, illuminating the dynamics of entrepreneurship education in these often-neglected contexts. The articles in the Special Issue examine the development and outcomes of entrepreneurship programs and initiatives in different parts of the world and aiming at different kinds of rural students. By doing so, they also raise questions about the effectiveness of applying one-size-fits-all approaches to entrepreneurship education regardless of the context, calling for a more nuanced approach to developing entrepreneurial mindsets, competencies and skills. The findings also identify new opportunities to improve pedagogical methods for entrepreneurship education in rural contexts. Among these, future entrepreneurship education should focus more strongly on the role played by place and community, the interplay between formal and informal pedagogical approaches, and the diverse support needs of rural students of different ages and backgrounds.