Remote Schools Research Articles

Railroads and Reform: How Trains Strengthened the Nation State

AbstractThis paper examines the relationship between the coming of the railroads, the expansion of primary education, and the introduction of national school curricula. Using fine-grained data on local education outcomes in Sweden in the nineteenth century, the paper tests the idea that the development of the railroad network enabled national school inspectors to monitor remote schools more effectively. In localities to which school inspectors could travel by rail, a larger share of children attended permanent public schools and took classes in nation-building subjects such as geography and history. By contrast, the parochial interests of local and religious authorities continued to dominate in remote areas school inspectors could not reach by train. The paper argues for a causal interpretation of these findings, which are robust for the share of children in permanent schools and suggestive for the content of the curriculum. The paper therefore concludes that the railroad, the defining innovation of the First Industrial Revolution, mattered directly for the state's ability to implement public policies.

Wychowanie katolickie w sytuacji pandemii koronawirusa (2020 r.) na przykładzie szkół i uczelni wyższych w Polsce

The Catholic Church carries out the mission of educating, among others, by schools and uni- versities. The coronavirus outbreak in 2020 disrupted the normal functioning of many institutions. The study presents Polish law guidelines concerning school and university education, especially in the context of the transition to online teaching due to sanitary restrictions. Subsequently, the study presents selected legal decisions and indications of the Catholic Church in Poland in an epidemic situation. Through the undertaken activities, the Church has shown its adaptive capacity as regards the pandemic. Internet communication tools were used in remote school and academic teaching.

The Role of Mobile Libraries in Developing a Culture of Reading

South Africa is faced with tremendous library service development and delivery challenges in the face of a rapidly increasing and geographically dispersed population. Learners often come from a background where books and reading are not part of their lives and literacy levels need to be significantly raised. A mobile library service provided to remote schools by one provincial department of education is a successful initiative to improve library service as well as literacy levels and a reading culture. An overview of the role of the mobile library service and other related programs is the focus of this paper.

Honoring Young Children’s Sense-Making: Lessons from Our Young Children on the Importance of Play in (Remote) School

Honoring Young Children’s Sense-Making: Lessons from Our Young Children on the Importance of Play in (Remote) School

Information and Communication Technology in Schools: Its Contribution to Equitable Speech-Language Therapy Services in an Underserved Small Island Developing State.

Purpose Access to speech-language therapy services for children with communication difficulties is limited in vulnerable countries within the Majority world, such as Small Island Developing States. The use of information and communication technology (ICT) has been identified as a possible solution to provide equitable access to services in Minority world countries. This study explored ICT-related conditions in remote schools of the Maldives, a Small Island Developing State, in order to identify potential service delivery approaches. Method A mixed methods approach was used, involving (a) an online survey of 107 teachers, (b) observational data from four schools, (c) interviews with 31 teachers and the four principals of participating schools, and (d) 13 relevant online documents. Content analysis was used to analyze and integrate data from all sources. Results Teachers' access to ICT devices and fixed broadband Internet varied across schools. The government had limited funds to provide adequate fixed broadband Internet for them. However, favorable prospects were also discovered, including high access to 4G mobile broadband Internet in islands, high levels of confidence among teachers to use ICT, a variety of ICT uses currently employed by teachers, and the presence of financial aid for students with special education needs. Conclusions The findings of the study support the potential for using mobile broadband Internet, available ICT devices, and teachers as agents of service delivery in remote schools to enhance speech-language therapy service delivery in the Maldives. The creation of relevant digital educational content for teachers could further support children with communication difficulties in the country. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14143910.

The implementation of the Australian Curriculum in rural and remote schools in Australia

The implementation of the Australian Curriculum in rural and remote schools in Australia

Effect of Digital Pedagogy in Ierventions in Rural Areas

The present study provides a description of the model of interactive digital pedagogy for remote areas and its impact on pedagogical satisfaction and academic achievement of students. This pedagogical intervention was designed to enrich and supplement the teaching-learning experience in remote and underprivileged schools through the use of technology. An interactive online teaching-learning system was set-up using a digital pedagogy. 150 school students and 80 prospective teachers from three higher secondary schools of Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu participated in the study. Pedagogical satisfaction and academic achievement of the school students who studied in this set-up were examined. The results revealed that active learning, technological competence and learner autonomy were enhanced in an online environment when compared to an offline environment.

Are School Reopening Decisions Related to Funding? Evidence from Over 12,000 Districts During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In theory, public school districts with more funding might be more likely to reopen in person if resources are a primary driver of their reopening decisions during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, it is also possible that these decisions are influenced by other factors including political partisanship, incentive structures, and special interests. Using data on over 12,000 school districts in the United States, we quantify the relationship between public school revenues and expenditures per student and their reopening decisions in Fall 2020. Our preferred statistical specifications, which compare school districts in the same county, suggest that there is no relationship between funding and the decision to make classes fully remote. If anything, we find a positive relationship when we compare districts in the same state, suggesting that the schools that went fully remote were financially better off than their in-person counterparts in the same state. These results are consistent across various analytic techniques and specifications controlling for district size and a rich set of county-level demographics including political partisanship, Covid-19 risk, household income, educational attainment, and the race and age distributions. We also find that increases in the share of remote school districts in a state are associated with increases in the growth of counselors and social workers, relative to 2019, even after controlling for the overall employment decline in the state. In sum, our results not only find no evidence that additional stimulus funding for K-12 public schools is necessary or sufficient for them to reopen in person, but also that there are unintended consequences of opening remotely on child mental health.

Preparation of future teachers for the introduction of digital innovation in a Rural School: problems and prospects

The purpose of the article: to substantiate the urgency of the problem of providing rural schools with qualified teachers; to characterize digital innovations and their use in rural education in the conditions of COVID-19; to analyze the difficulties and prospects for preparing teachers for the use of digital technologies in distance learning in rural remote schools. The following research methods were used: analytical, empirical, and mathematical statistics. Theoretical analysis of the state of the problem in pedagogical science, in particular, the introduction of digital innovations in the educational process is outlined as a necessary condition for sustainable development of rural education. The results of an empirical study conducted among future teachers on their readiness to work in the future in rural areas are presented. A gap was revealed between young teachers’ professional expectations and real school practice in remote rural schools. Emphasis was placed on the necessity to ensure cooperation between schools, parents, the public, and local businesses to improve the quality of rural education.

Massive Remote School Trips: A Case Study

Massive Remote School Trips: A Case Study

Unrecognised language teaching: Teaching Australian Curriculum content in remote Aboriginal community schools

The case study in this article offers a descriptive account of challenges involved in teaching Australian Curriculum content in the common teaching context in remote communities where an Indigenous language is spoken as the everyday form of communication and students learn English in what is essentially a foreign language setting. An on-theground description of the work of a Primary school teaching team servesto illustrate the language teaching aspect of delivering Australian Curriculum content in areas such as History, Geography and Science. This aspect of the teaching team’s work is underestimated in the curriculum itself and in the guidance provided to teachers, yet is essential for student learning in this context. While the team draws on students’ L1 and early L2 English proficiency abilities to teach curriculum content, this work is not expedited from outside their classroom. An analysis of current curriculum offerings and the teaching team’s approaches finds that they receive little direction for the extensive language planning required. The findings suggest an urgent need for tailor-made curriculum and teacher guidance which better recognise this dual language context. This article canvases different curriculum settings that would alleviate this situation considerably, not only for this teaching team but for others in similar remote schools.

On the Productivity of New Zealand State and State-Integrated Schools: Is Bigger Better?

Demographic and economic shifts around the world have put the question of school size and efficiency at the centre of public administration. The decline in enrolment numbers over the past three decades has seen many small, rural and remote schools closed or consolidated. Despite the importance of the scale effects on policy decisions, the literature on this issue is thin, with most of the studies focusing solely on school data from the United States (US). This study uses New Zealand school data at the territorial level and uses a fixed-effect stochastic frontier production model to decompose the sources of total factor productivity. Empirical results show that productivity among New Zealand public schools decreased at an average rate of 5 per cent between 2004–2017, mainly due to a 5 per cent decline in scale effects. The results of this study underscore the fact that New Zealand state schools operate at diseconomies of scale and therefore, increasing school size through mergers and closures of small and rural schools would not necessarily result in increased productivity. For this reason, policymakers need to carefully examine the region-specific factors that contribute to the heterogeneity in scale effects that affect school performance before actively adopting overseas experience, which, on the downside, may lead to cost increases and worsen student outcomes in small and rural communities.

Yes, DI did it: the impact of Direct Instruction on literacy outcomes for Very Remote Indigenous schools

Abstract In the journal article Did DI do it? The impact of a programme designed to improve literacy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in remote schools, Guenther and Osborne (2020) compare schoolwide NAPLAN reading scale scores for 25 Very Remote Indigenous schools implementing Direct Instruction through the Flexible Literacy for Remote Primary Schools Program (‘Flexible Literacy’ or ‘the program’) with those for 118 Very Remote Indigenous schools not involved with the program, to assert the program has not improved literacy outcomes. Good to Great Schools Australia (GGSA) undertook an analysis of the same school data for Reading, Writing, Spelling and Grammar and Punctuation scores. Our findings contradict theirs. In all areas, schools participating in the program show significant growth compared with all Australian and all Very Remote Indigenous schools. In Reading, schools involved in the program from 2015 to 2017 averaged 124% growth, while the average growth for comparable ages was 19 and 34% for Australian and Very Remote Indigenous schools, respectively. In Grammar and Punctuation schools involved in the program in the same period grew 180%, whilst growth for Australian schools was 15%, and for Very Remote Indigenous schools, 28%. These contrasting results illustrate the importance of evaluating growth to assess the impact of educational programs, rather than achievement alone, particularly in the case of Very Remote Indigenous schools where achievement levels are far below Australian grade levels. Guenther and Osborne's comparison of achievement across schools rather than measuring growth within schools obscures real gains and is misleading.

An Exploration of Preservice Teacher Readiness for Teaching in Rural and Remote Schools

Preparing teachers for rural and remote (RR) schools in Australia appears to be an ongoing issue with many schools continuing to experience staff shortages. This research aimed to understand preservice teachers' (n=23) perceptions of their readiness for teaching in RR schools within four theoretical constructs, namely: self, classroom, school, and community. Following a RR professional experience, preservice teachers completed a literature-based Likert scale survey with written response questions to investigate their readiness for teaching in RR communities within the four constructs. Results showed that more than 80% of participants indicated self-readiness for teaching; yet, work recognition (70%), discussing career goals (65%), and having wellbeing supported (61%) had lower percentages. Classroom readiness was indicated by 83% or more of the preservice teachers for seven of the eight items; however, less than half claimed they had trust in the leadership for school readiness. Community readiness had percentages lower than 80% across the eight associated items. The results suggested preservice teachers can be supported during professional experience to promote teaching in RR contexts as a way to overcome teacher shortages.

Provisions for Gifted and Talented Students in Queensland Rural and Remote High Schools

This study investigated the provisions and other support measures available to gifted students in rural and remote Queensland high schools through a systematic website and document analysis. The aims of the study were to identify those provisions and measures being implemented for identified gifted students in rural and remote Queensland high schools, to identify the provisions and supportive measures that are being implemented most often, and the attitudes in rural and remote Queensland high schools toward provisions and supportive measures for gifted education. One of the recommendations of the study is the need for further in-depth research on provisions and supportive measures for gifted students living in rural and remote areas of Queensland.

Exploring EFL Teachers’ Classroom Management: The Case of Indonesian Remote Secondary Schools

Geared by the scant number of studies on EFL teachers’ classroom management in remote secondary schools in Indonesia, this study seeks to investigate teachers’ involvement in classroom management complexities and to what extent they deal with such predicaments. Data were collected through interviews with the teachers within three months and analyzed narratively. The findings suggest that they encountered multi-facet complexities such as (a) lacking learning facilities in terms of electricity supply, (b) students’ demotivation and inability to use English, and (c) teachers' dilemmas in applying the new curriculum. To deal with such quandaries, the teachers made use of (a) a teacher-centered approach, (b) group learning, (c) students’ row seating positions, and (d) non-integrated language skills learning. The implications of this study are discussed at the end of the paper.

Optimal Sizing and Assessment of an Islanded Photovoltaic‐Battery‐Diesel Generator Microgrid Applicable to a Remote School of Bangladesh

AbstractElectricity has become a part and parcel of modern life. The world is constantly developing, and the electricity demand is inevitably increasing with it. It is a big challenge for the power generation organizations to cope up with this increasing demand. For a developing country like Bangladesh, this challenge is even bigger. Bangladesh has many remote areas which are deprived of grid connectivity. In this article, system design and performance evaluation are conducted on a solar battery‐based hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) with diesel backup for a school in a remote area located in the northern part of the country, where conventional power grid connectivity is not available. From field survey, a load demand of 10.468 kWh/day for a normal working day and a peak demand of 3.3 kW are considered in this work for the proposed site. For simulation purpose hybrid optimization model for electric renewable, very well‐known software is used. The solar radiation data required for the work are collected from NASA Surface meteorology and Solar Energy database. Analyzing the load requirements and metrological data a solar‐battery diesel generator‐based HRES is proposed for the school. From the analysis and simulation, the Net Present Cost (NPC) for the proposed system is found USD 6191 with a Cost of Energy (COE) of $0.125/kWh. Further, a comparative study is done and the proposed system can reduce the COE and Green House Gas (GHG) emission of about 29.85% and 69% respectively than the conventional power plants. Finally, a techno‐economic analysis is conducted with sensitivity analysis, time series analysis, and multiyear analysis to prove the rigidity of the proposed system.

Did DI do it? Response to a rejoinder

Abstract Guenther and Osborne's (2020) article ‘Did DI do it?’ raises concerns about the outcomes of a programme designed to improve literacy for First Nations students in remote schools. A critique of the article challenges the methods and findings. In this response, the authors respond to the criticism.

The use of conventional communication technology as an effective principal leadership strategy in strengthening the role of multi-stakeholder’s forum for school quality improvement

This study aims to describe the use of conventional communication technology as an effective leadership strategy carried out by principals at One Roof School in remote areas in accordance with the problems encountered and the local wisdom that developed in the area. The study was conducted qualitatively with a multi-site approach. Data was obtained through principals, teachers, supervisors, community leaders, education offices. All information was tested for credibility and validity in triangulation through various Forum Group Discussion. The results obtained include: 1) there are two dominant problems in remote schools, namely historical, cultural, and demographic; 2) the success of the principal is influenced by the expertise of the principal in utilizing conventional communication technology in the form of direct face-to-face communication; 3) the use of face-to-face conventional communication technology as a leadership strategy applied by principals can increase the role of multistakeholders in achieving school quality.

A response to ‘Yes, DI did it’

Abstract The authors of the article ‘Did DI do it? The impact of a programme designed to improve literacy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in remote schools’ respond to a critique of their analysis of work.