There is no basis for the belief that making a school or district bigger is likely to make it better. Educational improvement and economic efficiency are the real challenges. (Author/MLF)

This document examines rural education in the member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Within these nations the range of conditions and communities that are called rural is enormous. Nevertheless, the allocation of human and financial resources to rural education has increased despite generally adverse economic…

There is no strong empirical base to support the assumptions and assertions of school and district consolidation advocates. This article reviews and analyzes this body of evidence and discusses why consolidation has been so popular even in the absence of solid and reliable supporting evidence. (Author/MLF)

At the request of the North Carolina School Boards Association, a nationally recognized expert on school and school district consolidation evaluated the 1986 North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) plan for school district consolidation from the perspective of economic, educational, and social/political considerations, including the…

The Nebraska educational system is experiencing internal turmoil even though its students are highly ranked nationally on standardized tests and show a higher ratio of graduating high school than those in most other states. This report was commissioned by Nebraska education officials who were concerned that their state was not taking a large…

Rural education trends and issues confronting state legislatures are examined in this handbook of narrative as well as statistical tables. Designed to provide state legislators with information they need to better understand rural implications of statewide education reforms, the handbook presents a range of legislative alternatives in key areas.…