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Background: Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer death among women of reproductive age despite being treatable if it is diagnosed early. Early diagnosis is possible through regular screening through the public health system. However, screening rates remain low in many low- and middle-income countries, including Kenya, where the screening rate currently stands at 16–18%. The low screening rates are attributed to, among other factors, low knowledge about cervical cancer and the available screening options among women of reproductive age. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of dialogue-based community health education by trained community health volunteers (CHVs) in improving cervical cancer knowledge among women of reproductive age (WRA) in rural Kisumu County. Methods: This was a longitudinal pre- and post-intervention study with a control group. The knowledge of women of reproductive age was assessed at baseline in both the intervention and control groups, followed by dialogue-based community health education in the intervention arm. A final end-line knowledge assessment was performed. The scores at baseline and at the end of the study were compared to assess changes in knowledge due to the intervention. The proportion of WRA with improved knowledge was also calculated, and statistical significance was considered at p ≤ 0.05. Results: There was no significant difference between the participants in the two arms, except for the level of education (p = 0.002). The knowledge of the WRA in the intervention arm improved significantly (p < 0.001) following the dialogue-based educational intervention by the trained CHVs. None of the demographic characteristics were associated with knowledge. Conclusion: Dialogue-based educational intervention significantly improved the knowledge of the WRA in the intervention arm, showing its potential to address the knowledge gap in the community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this historical examination, Amato Nocera, Kyle P. Steele, and John Hensley argue that the development of Black rural high schools in the decades leading up to the Brown v. Board of Education decision represented the dynamic between standardization, white supremacy, and Black self-definition that has shaped US education reform. Focusing on the interplay of state-level education administrators, local white officials, and Black community members, the authors' analysis of Black rural high schools draws on archival data from DuBois High School in rural Wake Forest, North Carolina, to broaden the literature on the history of the American high school and contribute to an understanding of the Black Freedom Movement by recognizing secondary schools as vital to institution building in the Jim Crow South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Composing lives that have a sense of coherence is part of the identity making of refugee families and shapes their attempts for social inclusion. Their struggles for narrative coherence are shaped by the bumping places and tensions that they experience as their lives bump against dominant narratives that structure the policies and practices of many institutions including schools. Using narrative inquiry, we inquired into the experiences of three Syrian refugee families as they bumped against institutional policies and practices. Drawing on two years spent alongside children and their parents we composed field and research texts that showed the importance to understand social inclusion in school settings through the experiences of individual children and families. It is important to focus on experience to redefine the significance of narrative coherence in relation to social inclusion and to create spaces for telling stories that can help transform school policies and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intersection of childhood and sexuality is a relatively less researched topic in India. This paper presents teachers' narratives and explores cultural beliefs concerning childhood sexuality. The investigation attempts to understand ways in which the cross-cutting modalities of religion, caste, gender, and sexuality of the teacher and the student shape students' sexual subjectivities. The "Domains of Power" as outlined by Patricia. H. Collins is used to analyse teacher interviews to understand how dominant sexualities are privileged and attain their power within schools. Further, a descriptive analysis is provided for how power relations inform interactions between students and teachers and how such interactions shape teachers' expectations of students' sexual knowledge, experiences, and expressions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural India is witnessing a surge in the number of low-cost, poor-friendly private schools that seemingly offer quality alternatives to government schools. Untangling stakeholders' viewpoints, this research explains how outcome and performance-focused learning, broadly known as neoliberal performativity in education, is enacted in these institutions. It was discovered that parents' and students' distinct livelihood risks and worries encourage performativity in the teaching-learning process. Performativity was recognized as an instrumental tactic for avoiding the temporal uncertainties and worries that come with low-income status. School administration practices performativity because it aligns well with the objective of administering schools at a low cost. Teachers, on the other hand, argued that such enactment deprives children of the essential and enriching learning experiences needed for long-term success. The study advances understanding in the field of low-cost rural education and its long-term effects on quality education. It also explicates how such schooling practices enact performativity through some local learning practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses a study on customer engagement in rural tourism, with a specific focus on Generation Z tourists. The study found that customer experience dimensions such as education, entertainment, aesthetics, authenticity, and hedonism have a positive impact on customer engagement. Furthermore, customer engagement was found to positively influence customer delight. The study suggests that rural tourism managers should offer educational activities, promote local arts and crafts, protect the environment, and create authentic and hedonic experiences through festivals to engage Generation Z tourists. [Extracted from the article]

This article is an effort to unveil how colonialism gets inscribed in research education initiatives during peace-building. To this end, we look behind the scenes of an education development project that sought to support a rural school in consolidating high-quality education during Colombia's recent peace process. We examine how, in our roles as principal investigator and research assistant, our enthusiasm inadvertently contributed to perpetuating the colonial rule of the state in an area traditionally controlled by revolutionary groups. To do so, we follow the project from its design and negotiation to the delivery of results. By depicting how enthusiasm may shape a researcher's reasoning, we aim to complicate our understanding of the research process and the enthusiasm that underpins peace efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computational thinking (CT), acknowledged as a crucial twenty-first century skill, has attracted considerable attention. However, cultivating CT in resource-limited rural schools is challenging, with limited research on its development in these settings. Unplugged programming, not constrained by the availability of computer hardware, may offer a promising approach to fostering CT skills within rural schools. This study conducted a six-week quasi-experimental project in a rural school in Guizhou, China. In this study, 43 students participated in unplugged activities in the experimental group, while 45 students in the control group did not engage in any form of programming activities. The findings are noteworthy: post-intervention, the experimental group showed notable improvements in CT skills and resilience, unlike the control group. Additionally, the study explored gender differences, revealing that students of all genders exhibited similar growth in CT skills and resilience through unplugged activities. Resilience was identified as a key factor in enhancing CT skills. Interviews further enriched the quantitative findings. This research provides valuable insights for educators to improve rural education and promote CT education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temporality is a relatively new conception in the field of education policy. Drawing upon historical sociology, this article aims to contribute to the field by deconstructing China’s policy discourse – education modernization. It traces the history of the discourse (1904–2012) to analyze how Chinese rurality is interwoven into the nation’s pursuit of modern country status. Two temporal threads are identified: the rural as a problem and the rural as a modernization plan. The article reveals how the threads forms a paradoxical position of the rural in China’s current modernization agenda: the problematized rural as a potential empowering force. The findings illuminate how the policy constructs a history narrative thereby constructing a unified destiny of the nation for the future, which entrusts education policy with moral significances. China’s case demonstrates how education policy inherits and utilizes historical and cultural assumptions as a governing technique, while being shaped and constrained by them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among south Asian countries, Bhutan has the second lowest poverty incidence; but, there is a large difference in poverty incidence between urban and rural areas. While urban areas registered a very small poverty incidence, 12.0% of rural population were still below the national poverty line in 2017. Poverty is by and large a rural phenominon in Bhutan. Against this background, this study examines whether Bhutan's rural economic growth was pro-poor from 2007–2017 by using the Bhutan Living Standard Surveys. It also conducts an IV probit analysis to explore the determinants of poverty. Even in rural areas, growth is necessary for the reduction of poverty. Besides relying on trickle-down effects from hydropower projects and tourism, promotion of agriculture-based small scale industries is essential for the acceleration of rural economic growth, where further development of basic industrial and transportation infrastructure and socioeconomic facilities is imperative. The country also needs to promote and strengthen basic education since education is found to have played an important role in reducing poverty. Many rural households are vulnerable to poverty. To prevent vulnerable households from falling into poverty, more effective social safety net programs may be necessary based on regional differences in factors affecting living conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using longitudinal survey data from the China Family Panel Studies, this study undertook a decomposition analysis to investigate the influences of differences in Internet access and return to Internet use on the income gap between rural and urban residents in China. Several major conclusions were drawn: First, there is a disparity in Internet access between rural and urban residents, with more Internet use among the latter. Second, while addressing the heterogeneity and other endogeneity problems simultaneously, the return to Internet use is higher for rural residents. Third, the disparity in Internet access widens the income gap, while differences in return to Internet use reduce income gap. Finally, the effects of Internet use on income gap differ by education and cohort, and the contribution values of return to Internet use on income gap are greater in the higher-educated group and younger generation than in their counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between school and family, as educational agents, is fundamental for the development of all dimensions of the human being. This relationship is favored by the use of new information and communications technologies, especially in rural areas where the family does not have the time to attend the educational center regularly and their participation in educational activities is limited by remoteness. The objective of the research carried out was aimed at proposing and scientifically validating a strategy to strengthen the school-family bond through digital social networks of pedagogical collaboration in Basic General Education in rural areas. The research process was based on the mixed approach, developing an explanatory study. The initial diagnosis allowed us to infer that there is limited family-school collaboration, as well as the need for new mechanisms that link educational institutions with the family in order to reinforce the work of institutional education. The strategy to strengthen the school-family bond through digital social networks was conceived as the set of actions carried out by the teacher through virtual environments, in order to facilitate the support and participation of the family in the formation of the students. The results obtained made it possible to summarize that the implementation of the strategy contributes significantly to strengthening the school-family bond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the formative and evaluative activities involving statistical graphs in the new textbooks for Chilean rural multigrade education. The methodology is qualitative, at a descriptive level and uses the content analysis technique. The sample is made up of the six primary education textbooks distributed by the Ministry of Education for rural multigrade schools. The results show the predominance of the bar chart, semiotic level 3, the task of calculating and the personal context in both types of activities, although with respect to the reading level, it is evident that level 4 predominates in the formative activities and level 2 in the evaluative ones. According to the results, it is recommended to incorporate graphs proposed by the curricular guidelines of the Ministry of Education, which are absent in textbooks as well as to include evaluative activities that require reflection on the nature of the data, context, representation and conclusions obtained from them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depression is increasingly affecting mothers in poor countries such as Uganda. Various interventions have been implemented to tackle this problem, but their sustainability is under-researched. Here we present follow-up data on maternal depression six years after a cluster-randomized controlled maternal education trial in rural Uganda. The intervention lasted six months and consisted of nutrition, hygiene, sanitation and child stimulation education, delivered to 511 mothers of 6 to 8 months' old children. Six years later we assessed maternal depressive symptoms using two psychometric tools; the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES D). For this follow-up study, data was available from 307/511 (60 %) mothers. Intention-to-treat analyses adjusting for clustering showed that the intervention mothers had non-significantly less depression symptoms (absolute score difference − 2; 95 % CI -5 to 0; p = 0.07) on BDI-II, and borderline significantly less depression symptoms (absolute score difference − 3; 95 % CI -5 to 0; p = 0.05) on CES-D compared to the controls. For categorized depression scores, the control mothers had significantly higher proportion of women classified in the worse depression categories for both BDI-II and CES D. We did not find any baseline characteristics associated with maternal depression. The BDI-II and CES-D tools are both self-reported and we cannot rule out the possibility of social desirability bias in reporting of depression symptoms. Six years after the maternal education trial, some benefits on maternal mental health were sustained. More studies are warranted on sustainability and scale-up of such interventions. • An earlier educational RCT in education in nutrition, hygiene and infant-stimulation reduced maternal depression • The education benefits on maternal depression are reduced at 6 years, but still sustained • Younger mothers reported more depressive symptoms than older ones [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research analyzes the work of multi-level elementary school teachers when teaching Spanish in order to identify the didactic repertoire they mobilize while teaching. As theoretical support, the authors make use of the notion of didactic repertoire from sociodiscursive interactionism and they explore it through a comparison of the dimensions of real work (what actually happens in the classroom) and its representation (the discourse on practice). Data were gathered in two phases. During the first one, the authors carried out interviews of 12 teachers from four different States of the Mexican Republic; for the second one, they analyzed the classroom dynamics of three of those female teachers. The results show the didactic issue that represent teaching in multi-level classes, since the teachers have to mobilize knowledge about contents and about how to teach them, to organize teaching, about the context and also the institutional requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

STEAM education system is largely being incorporated within different countries to develop creativity and problemsolving skills among the students. This study has also focused on sustaining regional equality and interdisciplinary integration of arts and sciences via creativity research in STEAM education systems. For this study, the qualitative data was collected from 12 science teachers working in different Chinese high schools. Thematic analysis was used for analyzing the collected interview transcripts. Four important themes were formulated which include (a) STEAM Education System, (b) Creativity in STEAM Education System, (c) STEAM Education System Issues and (d) Recommendations for STEAM Education System. The results obtained from this study showed that STEAM education system helps in encouraging student engagement, following interdisciplinary integration of arts and sciences. However, regional inequality in China prevents effective accessibility and quality of STEAM education in rural regions of the country, emphasizing the development and implementation of effective educational and regional policies. This study has also provided different practical and theoretical implications within the context of STEAM education systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural students graduate from high school at higher rates but go to college at lower rate than their urban and suburban peers. To take on the educational attainment challenge for rural students, we need to know more about postsecondary encouragement programs. This study examined a pilot postsecondary encouragement program in 11 rural high schools with two questions: How do high school counselors support students' plans for life after high school through a land‐grant outreach program? How is a university outreach program utilized in these schools? This qualitative case study used 17 individual interviews with school counselors and county extension agents. According to school counselors, the postsecondary encouragement program increased financial aid applications and student interest in college going. County extension agents were a trusted bridge between the program and the local high schools. Tracking student milestones helped school counselors serve all students, and program experts provided workshops for students and parents. Campus visits helped students visualize themselves as college students, yet financial concerns dominated the students' college choices. Practical Takeaways: Postsecondary encouragement through information from experts combined with local support can be a cost‐effective intervention to increase rural students' college going.Counselors tracking all students for college and career readiness milestones ensure all students are given the message that they are college material, a predictor of enrollment.Counselors and students lack clear information about costs and financial aid availability, but these are important to rural families' decisions.Local county extension agents can serve as the bridge between the rural student population and the 4‐year universities. Extension agents and school counselors gave credibility to outside experts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we examine engagement with 'the rural context' in Australian education research, focussing on the implications of the signifier 'rural'—in terms of its inclusion or absence. A review of Australian research literature in rural education indicates that the term 'rural' and its synonyms are more often used to denote assumptions of a generalised and predetermined 'context' for research than to think about its meaning. We present our findings here and discuss the implications of the signifier 'rural' in the Australian research literature to argue that while educational policy-makers must attempt to think differently about the 'problem of the rural', the field itself also needs to more fully develop the capacity to do this. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents' roles in their children's education are significant in terms of outcomes for the child. As research on parental involvement in children's education has often been conducted in high-income countries, there is a deep need for more research on parental involvement in contexts of disadvantage. Set in the context of socioeconomically disadvantaged communities in rural Pakistan, this study sought to explore parents' lived experiences of their involvement in their children's education and gain insight into the barriers they encountered in assisting their children's learning. A qualitative research design was employed. In total, 12 parents (6 mothers and 6 fathers) of school-age children in rural Pakistan were interviewed about their views on involvement with their children's education. Data were analysed thematically, using a narrative inquiry approach. Through in-depth analysis of the data, two distinct narratives of parental involvement were identified: (1) a narrative of hope and trust-building, indicating parents' confidence in state schools and their striving for a better future for their children, and (2) a narrative of dissatisfaction and inequality, reflecting frustration arising from factors including parents' socioeconomic situations, concerns about schools and the influence of local societal norms. It was evident that, despite hardship, the parents wanted their children to be educated and regarded education as a path to improving prospects. The findings broaden understanding of parents' involvement in their children's education within socioeconomically disadvantaged rural communities by revealing and highlighting the diverse, often context-related barriers the parents encountered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cora Wilson Stewart was a pioneer in education, particularly in rural Kentucky, during the early 20th century. She established the Moonlight Schools in Rowan County in 1911, which promoted adult literacy and education. Despite facing personal challenges, Stewart dedicated herself to public affairs and adult literacy. She later became the first woman to be elected as President of the Kentucky Education Association. Stewart's efforts led to the expansion of Moonlight Schools statewide and the establishment of the Moonlight School Institute. She also advocated for the education of underserved populations, including Black students. Stewart's work had a significant impact on adult education and literacy, and her legacy remains underappreciated today. [Extracted from the article]

On the eve of its economic reforms, China achieved a much higher secondary school enrollment rate than other countries with a similar per capita income at the time. This study investigates the source of this high enrollment rate by examining a massive expansion of rural schools during the Cultural Revolution that increased the number of secondary schools more than tenfold. We estimate the impact of the expansion by compiling a new county-level dataset from local gazetteers and exploiting the county-level variation in the speed of expansion for identification purposes. We provide strong evidence that the program significantly increased rural children’s years of schooling and suggestive evidence that teachers contributed more to this improvement than schools. By building a pool of middle-skilled labor years later, the expansion program boosted local agricultural yields and increased the productivity of the township and village enterprises that emerged after the reform. Finally, we find some evidence that this rapid expansion was associated with a deterioration in the quality of schooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the four dimensions of PCK, this paper investigates the professional development of rural PE teachers in Huaiji County by using the research methods of literature, questionnaire, interview and mathematical statistics. Based on PCK related theories, this paper analyzes the current situation of professional development of rural PE teachers in Huaiji County, explores the problems existing in the process of professional development, and provides an optimal path for the professional development of rural PE teachers, so as to improve the teaching ability and classroom quality of rural PE teachers, and promote the further development of rural PE education under the background of new curriculum reform. Through the research, it is found that the shortcomings of rural PE teachers are: lack of situational knowledge; lack of understanding of the course content; not flexible use of teaching representation; low ability to identify the differences of students' learning styles; lack of understanding of social environment, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows how one mathematics teacher, in a government secondary school in rural Rwanda, re-contextualises learner centred education (LCE) and English medium instruction (EMI) policies in classroom practice. Data are drawn from an ethnographic, critical case study and include lesson transcripts and teacher and student perspectives. The study indicates the importance of including non-verbal language in investigations of classroom interaction, and problematises the tendency to equate LCE with student talk in groups. In these lessons, whole-class interactions are managed by the teacher and student verbal participation is limited. Nevertheless, students co-construct and participate in activities and communicate mathematical meanings. The teacher observes and responds to students and enables students to access the English and mathematics they need for examinations. EMI limits student verbal participation and access to the textbook. The study indicates the importance of learning from and responding to classroom realties rather than pedagogical and linguistic ideologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecopedagogy is a viable pathway towards a pluriversal education system that attends to both global ecological concerns and various local expressions of interests, working towards socioenvironmental justice and a Freirean critical (eco)pedagogy. Ethnographic examples of environmental education in rural Costa Rica emerging from my case study of Samuel, the creative, music educator in La Palma, demonstrate a variety of pedagogical tactics used to generate ecological awareness and create sustainability-minded citizens. Through lively and engaging activities with young students, ecopedagogy serves as a potential pathway between pluriversal education and normative environmentalism. This ethnographic analysis of ecopedagogy in practice within Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula illuminates the tension between an imposition of values and the generation of pluriversal education through dynamic pedagogical influence, structured play, embodied practice, and decentring the human. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Efforts to prevent malnutrition in children under five are crucial for both short-term and long-term impact, especially in resource-constrained low- and middle-income countries, where ensuring minimal food diversity remains an urgent challenge. Our organization implemented initiatives to improve dietary diversity among children under five in rural areas of Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). Methods: We carried out educational and awareness programs directed at caregivers of children aged 6–59 months. These programs were delivered by healthcare professionals and trained community volunteers in specific areas of Xaybouathong District, Khammouane Province. To evaluate the impact of our interventions, we conducted surveys both at the beginning and end of the project. We designated the Individual Dietary Diversity Score IDDS as the objective variable, serving as an indicator of child dietary diversity. Using sociodemographic and economic indicators as explanatory variables, we assessed the impact of the intervention through multivariate analysis with a generalized linear model as well as a bivariate analysis. Results: The comparison between 210 children at baseline and 205 children at endline revealed a significant increase in IDDS among children aged 6–23 months (from 3.36 to 4.22) and children aged 24–59 months (from 3.29 to 3.83). Multivariate analysis indicated a significant association between the intervention effect (baseline vs. endline) and the village of residence. Furthermore, significant improvements were observed in each food group that constitute IDDS, including vegetables and fruits, eggs, and legumes and nuts. Conclusions: Even in resource-limited settings, such as rural areas of Lao PDR, it is possible to improve child dietary diversity through educational approaches that encourage the utilization of locally available foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beginning in 2016 and with funding from the National Science Foundation, the Rural and Diverse Student Scholars Program at George Mason University supported two cohorts of diverse undergraduate students from rural Virginia in their pursuit of a STEM degree. A holistic program design and individual components aimed to combine to support student success. In a qualitative study with journal prompts, focus groups and interviews, the program was assessed, and insights were gleaned regarding the participant population. Results reveal the importance of community and mentoring in supporting student persistence and success. Participants described being rural as part of their identity and many maintained significant relationships with home and family, even after matriculation. Conclusions from this study are consistent with scholarly precedent and have implications for colleges and universities serving similar populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of rural preschool education (RPE) is not only related to the healthy growth of rural preschool children, but also to social fairness and sustainable development. Therefore, the development of RPE not only involves the expansion of quantity, but also the improvement of its quality. At present, in China's RPE, the determination of value goals There are still many obstacles in terms of source supply, institutional mechanism construction, development mode selection, and external environment construction, which make the high-quality development of RPE lack good internal motivation and external support. In view of this situation, some researchers have begun to explore the high-quality and sustainable development of RPE differently. However, the high-quality development of RPE is a systematic reform project that needs to start from the present. From multiple perspectives such as reality and history, internal and external education, this paper examines the systematic and global nature of RPE reform and development. The development level evaluation of RPE is a MADM. In this paper, the generalized weighted Bonferroni mean (GWBM) decision operator and power average (PA) is designed to manage the MADM under single-valued neutrosophic sets (SVNSs). Then, the generalized single-valued neutrosophic number power WBM (GSVNNPWBM) decision operator is constructed and the MADM model are constructed based on GSVNNPWBM decision operator. Finally, a decision example for development level evaluation of RPE and some useful comparative studies were constructed to verify the GSVNNPWBM decision operator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study's aim was to examine the challenges faced by early childhood practitioners in the provision of Early Childhood care and education in rural schools in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria. The study adopted a mixed method research design. A sample of 20 respondents was selected from five (5) Early Childhood Education Centres in rural areas. Data was collected using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Qualitative data was analysed using themes by coding and grouping similar ideas and quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to generate frequencies, mean, and standard deviations. Frequencies, mean, and standard deviations were used to answer the research questions, while t-test statistic was used to test the null hypotheses that guided the study at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study among others revealed that there was inadequate fund for the running of early childhood education in rural areas. It was also found that lack of qualified early childhood practitioners, lack of instructional materials, dilapidated classrooms, inadequate space for quality play and lack of motivation of staff were among the notable challenges encountered while providing early childhood care and education in rural school. In view of the research findings, it was recommended that appropriate infrastructure, teaching/learning materials and relevant equipment for play be provided in ECE Centres. Further, the proprietors should establish more ECE centres closer to communities so that preschoolers can access the schools easily. The government should highly fund ECE centres for better operations of the program in rural schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reflects on the living and teaching work conditions of rural teachers during the time of the COVID19 pandemic in our country. Some results of a completed research project called "Rural education and education of youth and adults in the province of La Rioja" are included. A case study in the Chilecito Department" with a workplace in the Department of Education and Health Sciences, National University of Chilecito between 2019 and 2022. This research aimed to know the characteristics of educational practices in rural education and of young people and adults in the province of La Rioja, particularly in the Chilecito Department. We understand that in the configuration of these practices, the policies intended for these modalities of the educational system are woven in light of the institutional configurations and the trajectories of the subjects involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital technology can potentially improve the quality of education in rural communities by creating conducive conditions for collaboration among learners, providing interactive learning tools and offering opportunities for personalised learning experiences. The pre-service teachers are a critical human resource in improving the quality of education. Therefore, this study investigated the perceptions of preservice teachers' technical, pedagogical, attitudinal and ethical digital competence and their readiness to use digital technologies to enhance their teaching practices in Limpopo Province in South Africa. The theoretical framework that guided the study was the Pedagogical, Ethical, Attitudinal and Technical model (PEAT). This descriptive study used a quantitative approach by employing a cross-sectional survey design. A conveniently selected sample of 123 pre-service teachers participated in the study. The research instrument used to collect data was a Questionnaire of Pre-service Teachers' Digital Competence. The quantitative data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. The study's findings were that preservice teachers had positive attitudes towards digital technologies, perceived themselves as having high technical digital competence and perceived ICT use in school as contributing positively to learning. They had lower perceptions regarding their competences in using specific digital technologies in teaching and their knowledge of ethical issues. They had the lowest perceptions in the university's role in preparing them for integrating digital technologies into teaching. These findings underscore the necessity of teacher educators to explore new strategies to enhance student teachers' digital competences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a study of Daoist encounter with modernity. It reconstructs the history of Quanzhen Daoist monastic activism in late Qing educational and other modern reforms in Nanyang from the 1880s to the 1910s. Focusing on the life and career of the Quanzhen Daoist cleric Yao Aiyun (1845–1912), this study examines the intense Daoist activism carried out by prior Yao and the Monastery of Dark Mystery (Xuanmiao guan) in establishing three new schools from 1905 to 1908. Using evidence developed from new and previously underexplored primary sources, I show that prior Yao and his monastery paid for and operated three new schools to support the Qing state's push for modern education reforms in rural jurisdictions, and more importantly to meet the educational needs of the children in local communities in Nanyang. I further demonstrate that while the threat of temple expropriation by the late Qing state may have been a factor driving some Buddhist and Daoist temples to support to the state educational reforms, prior Yao and his monastery's efforts in establishing new schools must not be seen merely as self-serving or opportunistic instincts at times of crisis. Instead, I argue that they are best understood as a natural extension of the Quanzhen Daoist monastery's long and deep tradition of commitment and service to the local community in Nanyang. As I have shown elsewhere, these efforts trace their roots or origins to at least the early Qing re-construction of Nanyang in the mid-seventeenth century, and to the most recent valiant defense of the city against the Nian-Taiping rebels in the 1860s. I further argue that contrary to the Weberian thesis that religion would either wither under the impact of modernity or oppose the proliferation of science and knowledge, prior Yao's activism shows that Daoism rather willingly pioneered in efforts to establish new western-style schools for the sake of advancing modern education and science-based knowledge among the local population. In the process, prior Yao and his Quanzhen Daoist temple gained both official state recognition and popular respect, and grew stronger in both influence and power in local society in late Qing Nanyang. Indeed, the case of prior Yao also shows that Chinese traditional religions such as Daoism often found ingenious ways to not only adapt to and engage with forces of modernity, but they also evolved themselves and advanced their own interests by immersing themselves deeply in various new social and public institutions of the modernizing society in late Qing Nanyang. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This conceptual research study exploited secondary data to interrogate the effects of the poverty penalty on rural education in Southern Africa during the COVID- 19 pandemic. The study exploited Urie Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory as its bedrock for analysis. The study established that the intended measures that were meant to contain the deadly virus resulted in a plethora of poverty-related challenges. Besides the existing poor, the situation created the new poor, particularly in rural areas. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the poverty penalty, in which, despite their struggle, the poor were required to pay more for education, food, health, and other social services. This translated to dropout, malnutrition, poor health, increased gender inequality and eventually underachievement by the rural learner. The study recommends that in future, accurate information regarding the needy should be carefully gathered to provide safety nets to the new poor and the existing vulnerable groups. Moreover, stronger forethought in preparedness and social policies should be in place to cater for the vulnerable in the case of future emergencies in areas like education, food security, health, and gender services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the underdevelopment seen in many rural parts of Zimbabwe, civil servants and teachers face challenges in their workplace and daily lives. This has happened because of the current economic crisis in Zimbabwe. There are gaps in the research showing that the continuation of educators in the teaching sector, specifically in the periphery, is at risk as they encounter various setbacks. This research aims to probe the challenges teachers in Zaka District face and the survival techniques they use to improve their living conditions. The study area is the Zaka area, one of Zimbabwe's impoverished rural areas. A qualitative approach was used to achieve the study objectives. Teachers, school principals, and teachers' union members were among the 20 people interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The results were categorised and analysed using a thematic approach. The results show that rural teachers in Zimbabwe face challenges such as lack of money, limited teaching resources, low salaries, and poor living conditions. However, because of their agency, they can work around these obstacles. The authors of this study claim that more resources are needed to improve the working environment of rural teachers. In addition, the study sought to find more practical ways to improve the well-being of these teachers. This study also recognises that this is a complicated process that requires prioritizing major economic advances. The study was significant as it revealed the obstacles and opportunities that teachers in the Zaka District regularly face. The results of this study can help local authorities, governments, and policymakers develop initiatives to address the problems teachers face. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Although the importance of sexuality education has been recognized, Chinese rural students have limited access to sexual and reproductive information. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a standardized comprehensive sexuality education curriculum package featuring cartoon animation on sexuality‐related knowledge and skills, attitudes, and practices of primary school students. Methods: This quasi‐experimental study recruited 1725 students in grades 4–6 (aged 9–13) from eight primary schools sampled as school clusters in 2020 in China. Internet‐based questionnaires from three intervention schools' participants were collected after trained schoolteachers had conducted six 45‐min sexuality education sessions. We performed optimal full matching and treatment effects were estimated in the matched sample by outcome regression models that further adjusted the covariates. Results: Compared with the control group, intervention group students achieved significantly higher scores by 3.35 out of 38 and 2.02 out of 34 in knowledge‐ and skill‐based tests and attitudinal tests, respectively. For the five self‐reported practices on genital care, the experimental group showed significantly better performance than the control group in genital hygiene, by 6.92%, 22.45%, and 30.66% higher rates in the overall prevalence of three proper practices of genital hygiene, with effect sizes larger for boys than girls. Conclusions: Our sexuality education package effectively improved primary school students' sexuality‐related knowledge, skills, attitudes, and hygiene practices. Our study suggests that the standardized curriculum package could be a promising approach to improving the quality and accessibility of sexuality education in underdeveloped rural China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many rural areas suffer from severe depopulation, and the absence of a university is one reason for outmigration. Where research and education are valued, however, such rural areas can attract scholars and students visiting from universities and other external institutions. Scholarly outputs of research, such as research articles and project reports, particularly those from community-based research (CBR), can themselves become an asset for use by local communities. We consider that CBR can contribute to asset-based community development (ABCD) when a transdisciplinary community of practice (TDCOP) emerges and drives the processes of collaborative creation and use of the knowledge. A particularly critical mechanism, which is currently lacking, is to allow the local community to collect knowledge outputs and make them easily available to interested actors within and outside of the community. We assume that a core tool in this mechanism is an interactive database. It can be equipped with a user interface, allowing enjoyable and active searches, and possibly a mechanism by which users themselves can contribute to gradual development of the database. We formed a study group of researchers and practitioners to conduct a case study in the Noto region of Japan. We identified the existing assets in Noto, including the knowledge created through CBR, and then collected and shared our own experiences and practices, as well as lessons learned from other regions in Japan, to explore the principles of designing a database. A CBR database should not only be a static inventory of past research, but also capable of facilitating new cycles of knowledge co-creation. With a comprehensive and easily accessible inventory of knowledge in place, we conclude that there is high potential in enabling CBR itself to be an asset, which can help achieve ABCD in rural communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Planetary Health is an expanding scientific field around the world, and actions in different areas are essential to minimize the environmental damage that compromises the future of humanity. This project report aims to describe the development of Planetary Health actions in a rural school in the Brazilian Amazon, to understand and raise awareness of themes related to Planetary Health. To implement the educational activities, a booklet entitled "Planetary Health: Guide for Rural Education" was created. Subsequently, didactic sequences were applied to 37 ninth-grade students in the first semester of 2023. The activities were diversified, including: (1) investigative activities (pre-tests, interviews with family members, ecological footprint adapted to the Amazonian riverside context), (2) interpretative activities (image reading, identification and problem-solving for Planetary Health stories in the Amazon, educational cartoons, and graphs of the sectors with the highest pollution in Brazil and diseases associated with climate change), (3) audiovisual activities (educational videos), (4) playful activities (educational games), (5) practical and field activities (forest tracking, planting seedlings, sanitation trail, construction of a school garden, preparation of a healthy school snack, greenhouse effect simulation, and basic analysis of lake water with a probe). The results of the educational actions allowed students to undergo new experiences on Planetary Health themes, as well as understand the centrality of the Amazon for the planet and how the environmental impacts in this biome are compromising the future of humanity. The experiences during the educational actions showed that young riverside residents are concerned about the future of the Amazon, especially given the environmental destruction that is frequently evident, such as deforestation, fires, illegal mining, and land grabbing. Inserting these themes into riverside education makes it possible to look at the Amazon in a resilient, responsible way and to discuss scientific and local knowledge so that students can develop initiatives to face environmental challenges in their community. We conclude that Planetary Health education needs to be an effective part of the school curriculum, prioritizing reviewing the documents that guide education to prioritize transdisciplinary actions with children and young people, as they are the voices of the future and future leaders in emerging causes. Educational actions in Planetary Health in the Amazon region are an example that can inspire actions in other places with similar characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobilising urban early-career teachers to commonly perceived ‘under-resourced’ and ‘challenging’ rural schools has become an approach to address the rural teacher shortage and improve rural teacher quality. However, the demographic change often requires mobile rural-early career teachers (MR-ECTs) better prepare for a different educational environment. This qualitative case study explores the professional trajectories of four MR-ECTs in a rural primary school in Guangxi, China, regarding their process and outcome of adaptation during their first two years of teaching. Adopting semi-structured interviews, this study finds that the MR-ECTs were somehow under-prepared for the rural school and adopted a ‘deficit’ mindset in the first place to perceive their professional challenges in the rural school. Yet, they gradually became more resilient in overcoming the challenges and retaining in the rural school by harnessing and collecting available resources from their pre-service and in-service experiences to increase their place consciousness and rural readiness. This understanding will enable teachers, teacher educators, policymakers and school leaders to assist MR-ECTs’ ruralisation and contribution to rural schools in more informed ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation: Nepal adopted a federal constitution in 2015 that created autonomous local governments across the country. A prime aim was to encourage ordinary people's participation in local decision‐making processes. Purpose: To what extent do local governments in rural Nepal adopt informal approaches—approaches that reflect local social needs and desires—to participation in decision‐making? Methods and approach: As part of interpretive case studies, the author gathered qualitative evidence as a participant observer of local government in five rural municipalities in Rasuwa District, a remote area on the northern border. A framework was created to capture the concepts of participatory governance and sociology to guide data collection and analysis. Findings: In the five municipalities studied, decisions were successively made in forums at village, ward and municipal levels. In the village, participation was considerable: all persons, all voices could be heard. But as proposals were aggregated upwards to ward and municipal levels, citizens participated less, being replaced by elected representatives and civil servants. Nepal has showcased successful participatory processes by incorporating diverse local groups in a range of policy areas such as community forests, or in the operation of public services such as water or schools. The present research acknowledges their success in widening and deepening citizen participation; it also brings new knowledge to bear on deeply rooted culturally accepted informal participatory methods in rural local governments. Policy implications: Because each local government has its own circumstances in which to operationalize participatory governance, reforms should recognize the prevalence of informalities in rural municipalities and the dominance of formalities in urban municipalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Progression to higher education in England varies markedly by region, with lower rates of participation outside of London. While some previous studies have explored challenges in accessing higher education in rural and coastal areas, there is a lack of research which considers both individual-level and geographic effects in relation to regional variations in HE progression. In this study, using multivariate regression analysis, we examine whether regional differences in transition to higher education can be explained by the rural/coastal nature of the geographic area in which young people grow up, by area-level deprivation, or by the characteristics of young people living within these regions. The analysis uses the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, a representative cohort study. These data have been linked to information on the proximity to the coast. Consistent with other work, we find that individual differences and area-level deprivation predict HE aspirations and progression. The newly introduced coastal/rural indicator also predicts HE aspirations and progression, but this is mitigated by the inclusion of individual differences and area-level deprivation. However, we find that unexplained regional differences persist. In particular, the South West of England emerges as a regional cold spot for HE. Consequently, policy makers should consider the role that regional dynamics may have in influencing the choices and constraints faced by young people. The approach may also be applicable to understanding inequalities in progression to HE in other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-quality teaching staff is one of the key factors in the advancement of Chinese compulsory education. The purpose of this article is to pinpoint issues with teacher recruitment, retention, and training in rural areas, such as unbalanced employment mobility, unreasonable composition of staff, and impeded teacher professional development. Recommendations on improving rural school staffing are also made in the dimensions of government policies, in-service training, and social support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Livelihood diversification is a coping strategy that functions as a cushioning effect owing to dwindling income from agriculture. This study examined the significant differences in income between males and females before and after livelihood diversification. The multi-stage sampling procedure was employed to select the respondents. Data were collected through the administration of well-structured questionnaires and were analyzed using both descriptive and multiple regression analyses. The mean annual income of male and female household heads before livelihood diversification was N195,200 ± 4,135 and N220,203 ± 5,300, respectively, while annual income after livelihood diversification averaged N206,195 ± 6,540 and N275,105 ± 4,100 for male and female, respectively. Age (p < 0.01) and years of formal education (p < 0.05) both had positive influence, and farm size (p < 0.01) which was negative were the determinants of livelihood diversification among males. The determinants of livelihood diversification of females were age (p < 0.05) which was negative, while positive factors included household size (p < 0.05), and access to credit (p < 0.01). It was concluded that livelihood diversification increased the earnings of the rural dwellers, with females earning higher marginal incomes than their male counterparts. The study, therefore, recommended that government policy focus on assistance for female rural dwellers in credit accessibility should be strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Mexico, the post-revolution government promoted the creation of Normal and peasant schools to train teachers to work in the peripheral areas of the country, mainly rural and indigenous ones. In this context, the article exposes the foundation and operation process of a Normal school in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca, in the years 1929-1935. Based on the analysis of original documents, the criteria for the institution establishment, its objectives, and entrusted tasks, fundamentally of a social nature, are proposed. Its principal activities and operating difficulties are indicated, as well as information about the teaching staff and students. Although the text addresses the formative period of an institution in which many teachers were trained, the sources of information are fundamentally institutional. Despite being a project that was built regionally and tried to involve the communities of the region, economic difficulties caused it to be transferred to the federal government in a few years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as the United States was transformed from an agrarian nation to an industrial one, significant changes in the nation's economic, social, and political structures, and the challenges that ensued, led to a multitude of diverse reform movements and a surge of regulatory measures from the federal and state governments. State governments played a particularly significant role in education reform by establishing new standards and regulations and taking steps to implement them in the nation's schools. State education officials often met with resistance to reform from the residents of small rural school districts, who had enjoyed a long history of local control and resented the state's interference. Conflict became more complicated when the residents within a rural community differed among themselves about school reform. This historical study investigates and analyses two documented disputes between the New York State Education Department and two common school districts in the Town of Conklin, Broome County, which occurred during the early 1900s. The physical condition of the schoolhouses led to both conflicts, and rural school consolidation and community infighting were additional factors that marked the second dispute. Both cases highlight the forces of local democratic governance and the central authority of the state over local schools and its role in the process of school reform. The Conklin cases are discussed and analysed within the larger contexts of localism, state-local tensions during the Progressive Era, rural school consolidation, and the reform initiatives of the New York State Education Department during this historical period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relation between popular education and rural extension is evident in several texts that address the trajectory of rural extension in Brazil and Latin America. In some cases, it is pointed out that rural extension is influenced by the ideology of popular education, while in other cases popular education is considered a way of carrying out rural extension. Through a literature review, we have mapped contributions on the relation between popular education and rural extension, focusing on scientific articles published in peer-reviewed periodicals in Portuguese, retrieved from the following repositories: i) Capes Journals; (ii) Google Scholar; (iii) Web of Science; and (iv) Scopus. Initially, we identified 19 articles, which were evaluated with the goal of selecting those that really fulfill our purpose. At the end of this analysis, there were eight articles, which were analyzed, and the results are presented in our discussion. It was possible to conclude that agroecology is a very recurrent meeting point between rural extension and popular education, in which most part of the work is done with exchanges, sharing of information and the collective construction of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents the results of an investigation carried out in 2018 which objective was to analyze the differences in written productions between monolingual and bilingual children in different contexts. The universe of study includes 57 fourth graders from four schools in the northeast region of Uruguay. The techniques used included, on the one hand, standardized questionnaires for mothers and children to find out the linguistic varieties having been used by both, the sex of the child, the age of the mother and the household socioeconomic status. On the other hand, children's written productions were analyzed through the dimensions considered by UMRE (Educational Outcomes Measurement Unit) in 1998. The texts reflected linguistic varieties different from Spanish in the text. Besides, significant differences were found both between written productions made by both users and non-users of portuñol as well as regarding between border and non-border schools. Likewise, the dissimilarities as for between urban and rural schools were not substantial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within vocational education and training (VET), mathematics learning is often complicated by students' problematic prior mathematics education experiences and associated low confidence and limited prerequisite knowledge. Teachers have insights into students' mathematics learning needs and appropriate curriculum and assessment responses, but their views are often neglected within VET policy contexts. To better understand the challenges of mathematics education within VET programmes in Australia, we focused on three vocational qualifications within a rural VET institution in Victoria, chosen to vary the visibility of mathematics content, learning environment, and curriculum philosophy. Despite this diversity, teachers from each qualification made similar criticisms of the ways their institution implements mathematics curricula. They described how a behaviourist approach to competency-based education (CBE) constrains their capacity to respond to students' needs, with adverse effects on students' mathematics learning. We argue that the assessment and reporting regimes that currently govern education within Australian VET institutions contribute to negative experiences for already disadvantaged mathematics learners. We suggest that the disconnect that teachers described between students' needs and the approach to curriculum and assessment speaks to a larger inconsistency between the social inclusion aims of Australian VET and the way that CBE is implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"A Research Agenda for Global Rural Development" is a book edited by Terry Marsden, Claire Lamine, and Sergio Schneider that aims to outline the areas that should shape research into rural development in the coming years. The book covers a range of topics including rurality, governance, agriculture, food policy, and the financialization of agri-food systems. While the book provides an ambitious review of interdisciplinary subject areas, it requires prior knowledge and experience to fully understand the arguments presented. The book concludes with a research agenda on rural development, calling for research into corporate control, sustainable place-making, rural communities, and the relationships between humans and nature. Although the book claims to be global in scope, it heavily relies on research from the UK, France, and Brazil. Overall, the book offers an interesting contribution to rural studies and provides a broad description of the issues facing global development. [Extracted from the article]

While forceful exclusion from academic activities has provided institutions of higher learning in South Africa with an effective deterrent strategy for dealing with academic laziness and financial non-compliance of students, it has also reinforced attitudes of intolerance and prejudice for the excluded students. This is worse for students studying at rural-based Higher Institutions of Learning (HIL), where access to modern learning tools and infrastructure for studies is often very limited. In such institutions, exclusion from academic activities discourages efforts and easily becomes a stumbling block for students' academic success. This article sets out to deepen this argument in a rural South African context. It draws from the experiences of five purposively sampled students to systematically explore the link between academic exclusion and three interrelated variables, namely: feelings of hopelessness, social anxiety, and loss of interest in academic activities. Given such linkage, the study, inter alia, argues for the introduction of alternative and more humane policies that recognise the students' efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]