Massachusetts is the least rural state in the US, and its existing rural communities are shrinking. This paper examines the historical processes of urbanization, specifically through industrialization that have come to dominate and erase rural communities in the state. The capitalist mindset behind industrialization has spread to education where…

Several New England states have been rethinking the system whereby small towns make the key decisions about school budgets and staffing under the banner of local control. Maine already has mandated a reduction in the number of local school districts from 290 to 80, allowing localities to vote on the larger districts. This consolidation, unpopular…

Describes a design of a combined middle/high school that preserved the industrial mills and farming history of two rural Massachusetts towns. Describes each school's separate entries and "identity" spaces and the design innovations that have successfully grouped grades 6 through 8 with grades 9 through 12. (GR)

Relying on standardized tests to measure performance and determine accountability obscures the fact that only reciprocal rights and responsibilities can create authentic accountability. A student has the right to expect a teacher will begin on time with a well-prepared lesson, the necessary materials, and the skill to conduct a class. A teacher,…

This report deals with school district collaboration and organization that can take place now and which could influence in a positive and constructive way school district change in Massachusetts. The Governor's Commission established associations with selected study sites across the State in 1973-74, and these study sites assisted them in…

This volume attempts to document ways in which several communities have dealt with the problems of declining school enrollments. Each case study outlines some type of public participation in the task of adjusting to population changes and fiscal pressures. The first chapter supplies an introductory overview of issues related to declining…