Quality of Schooling in Rural Areas*

The report of the President's Commission on on simple correlations between measures of per Rural Poverty stressed the need for improvement in teacher expenditure and composite pupil achievement rural schools [4] .Numerous studies have pointed to test scores. Test scores on the Iowa Test of this need for improvement and have identified ways Educational Development in North Dakota's school in which rural schools are inferior to urban schools. districts were found to be significantly correlated The current stress on rural development and with such expenditure measures as instructional costs, improved infrastructure in rural areas further operating cost less transportation, and total cost less supports the importance of this topic. But what is a transportation when these measures were expressed good measure of quality when schooling is being on a per teacher basis. considered? Research results from a study of Missouri schools Controversy over the Coleman report illustrates raise some questions about the validity of the lack of agreement among educators as to the expenditures per teacher as a proxy for measuring proper measures or standards [1]. Although quality. In this study, scores on the Ohio State economists have typically used achievement tests as University Psychological Tests were used as indicators measures of output, Gentis has raised questions of the quality of schooling provided. Practically all of concerning the relevance of relying solely on the state's districts which had high schools in measures of cognitive development [2]. He argues 1964-1965 participated in the testing program and that the effect of schooling on affective were included in this study. characteristics, or those which affect the individual's Expenditure per student, as well as a number of personality structure, are likewise important. other variables, proved to be as highly correlated with Critics of the Coleman report emphasized the the achievement test scores as expenditures per need for further work on the nature of the teacher. (Table 1). Other significant variables educational production function and the relative included assessed valuation per student, median effectiveness of various inputs in the educational education of county residents, pupil density, school process [1]. Recent work in this area suggests the size, teacher salary, college hours per teacher, and need for further consideration of both outputs and classification of school. inputs in the production process. In addition to those questions raised with respect to the nature of the output, others such as the kinds of inputs involved, RURAL-URBAN DIFFERENCES the degree of utilization of inputs, and the technology within which utilization of inputs takes place need to be considered. The results also indicate differences between rural and urban schools. While the simple correlations MEASURES OF QUALITY for test scores and expenditure variables were highly A study reported in 1969 by Stinson and significant for urban schools, such was not the case Krahmer suggested expenditure per teacher as a good for rural schools. Achievement test scores in rural measure of quality [5]. Their conclusions were based schools were more highly associated with median