Essay Sample on Rural Education in America

Many changes are taking place in education in rural America, and recent data collected by the national center for education statistics and the census bureau gives appropriate information for managing such educational dynamics. Rural America is strained because of the availability of only a few highly trained teachers (Sher, 2019). From the data provided on the school environment, which identifies the percentage of public-school teachers who reported being in agreement with various statements such as teaching conditions. It can be noted that the teachers in rural areas are hugely affected by statements related to teaching because issues such as being satisfied with their salaries and student misbehavior are seen to affect their teaching directly. The pupil to teacher ratio in rural schools is fair when compared to other ratios that exist in city and suburban environments.

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Discipline problems that were reported in these public schools included bullying, which was the most commonly reported discipline problem, while others like acts of disrespect for teachers and verbal abuse, as well as widespread disorder, were not so much reported in terms of frequency. In regard to access to computer technology, these rural schools lack broadband access, and even if it becomes available such access is always unaffordable for the students (Schafft, 2016). The percentage of public schools that provide handheld devices to administrators, students, and teachers is very low in rural schools because of the fact funding goes to overhead costs such as transportation. Moreover, rural districts are fortunate enough if they have even one person in charge of their technology; this is because of the unappealing remote lifestyle, which makes expert teachers opt to make money elsewhere.

In terms of federal funding for rural education and schools in low-income areas, strong evidence exists to suggest that schools and, more specifically, rural high schools receive less funding when compared to high schools in the suburban or urban areas. From the data provided on the number of funds allocated annually to the state education agencies under the rural and low-income schools program, it can be noted that even without comparison to schools in other areas, the funds are not adequate to counter the unique challenges and setbacks facing Education in rural America. The total expenditure per public elementary and secondary student far exceeds the funds allocated, and this is the reason why some schools are forced to have substandard programs due to the strain in funding. The federal education funding should be made fairer and more efficient for the students in Rural America. Also, rural schools and districts should receive and compete in more fair ways for federal education funds, and this can only happen when the focus is shifted from suburban and urban schools.

Teacher salaries are also another important aspect of rural education in America because when looking at the average salaries for the full-time teachers in public and private elementary and secondary schools, a big difference is noted, and this is the reason for the brain drain. Teachers always choose places where they are able to earn more, and this takes them to suburban and urban private schools, which have more resources and funding, unlike rural schools. Finance plays a massive role in school programs and more specific programs of schools in rural America that have many inadequacies limiting them. One in five students in America attends a public school, and a significant number of students attend schools in rural America hence the need to ensure that all schools receive equal and fair treatment in the r capacity to provide quality education to students.

References

Schafft, K. A. (2016). Rural education as rural development: Understanding the rural school-community well-being linkage in a 21st-century policy context. Peabody Journal of Education, 91(2), 137-154.

Sher, J. P. (2019). Education in rural America: A reassessment of conventional wisdom. Routledge.