Articles are listed in descending order by year (most recent first), and then by first author's last name.
LeBeau, Brandon, Assouline, Susan G., Lupkowski-Shoplik, Ann, & Mahatmya, Duhita. (2020). The advanced placement program in rural schools: Equalizing opportunity. Roeper Review, 42(3), 192–205.
Although recognized as a highly effective subject-acceleration intervention, accessibility of Advanced Placement (AP) coursework is not equally available to all students. This lack of access may contribute to documented disparities in AP participation between rural schools and their urban and suburban counterparts. The current study explores the effect of an online AP program on AP participation and exam-passing rates, in a single Midwestern state with a sizable rural population. Study results show that increased availability of AP coursework in rural schools increased access to AP in small to middle sized schools; however, the increased availability did not translate into increased AP exam participation. Nevertheless, exam-passing rates for those who took the exam was higher for schools that participated in the online program. Recommendations for building pathways to academic acceleration and achievement for rural students are discussed.
Assouline, Susan G., Flanary, Kristin, & Foley-Nicpon, Megan. (2015). Challenges and solutions for serving rural gifted students (pp. 135–154). Prufrock Press.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003237938
Gifted students living in rural America represent a distinct population, and their educational needs deserve special consideration among educators. The roots of both general and gifted education are grounded in the rural history of this country, which predates its founding. An understanding of the historical challenges and strengths facing gifted rural students over the years has the potential to crystalize our philosophy and direct our actions for generations to come. Academic acceleration, which can be delivered in a variety of forms, is one proven educational strategy that has the potential to address the barriers impeding the academic development of rural gifted students. Extracurricular programming at the middle school level is a psychological bridge because such programming prepares students academically and socially-emotionally for accelerated coursework in high school. The third-party course provider employs licensed, content-certified online instructors to deliver all course content, assign and grade course activities and exams, and answer questions about course material.
Olthouse, J. M., Wallace, B., & Shaughnessy, M. F. (2015). Improving rural teachers’ attitudes towards acceleration. Gifted Education International, 31(2), 154–161.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0261429413507177
Gifted students see both educational benefits and barriers as a result of living in rural communities. Benefits include increased individual attention and community engagement; barriers include limited curricular options (Lawrence, 2009). Acceleration is an option that has positive academic outcomes but is underused, especially in rural areas. Even teachers with experience teaching gifted students can be hesitant to recommend acceleration. This position paper, supported with evidence from the literature and from personal experience with an online course involving rural teachers, explains the objections teachers have to acceleration and why there is a need to improve rural teachers’ attitudes towards acceleration.
Marcel, K. W. (2003). Online Advanced Placement classes: Experiences of rural and low-income high school students. Boulder, CO: Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED478377)
Marcel was commissioned by the Western Consortium for Accelerated Learning Opportunities to examine rural and low-income students’ experiences with online AP courses. The study was exploratory in nature. During the study 30 students, their mentors, and school administrators were interviewed at four high schools in two Western states about their experiences with online AP courses. Of the students interviewed, 25 of them qualified as low-income. The study found that simply offering AP courses online is not enough for rural and low-income students. In order for students to succeed, the courses must be offered in tandem with support for these students, and students must have access to computers outside of class. Online AP courses should be designed to promote active learning, student interaction, and group interaction. The roles of online AP instructors and in-school mentors need to be better defined, and students must have access to educators for help when no one in the school building has the expertise to answer their questions.
Howley, A. (2002). The progress of gifted students in a rural district that emphasized acceleration strategies. Roeper Review, 24(3), 158-160.
The author utilizes a case study approach to explore a rural school district’s experiences implementing gifted programming. After establishing the case for acceleration (a type of gifted programming), including studies that have demonstrated that accelerated gifted students achieve a grade ahead of non-accelerated gifted students, Howley details some of the challenges to implementing such programming. These challenges include concerns about students’ social-emotional health, worry about curriculum sequencing, assumptions that too many parents will request that their kids be accelerated, and worry about scheduling problems. Despite these concerns, the district examined in this article successfully implemented gifted programming over a period of eleven years. Principals at each school were given the freedom to individualize their programs. Even with differing approaches, the author attributes the success of the district’s programming to the schools' focusing on the needs of each child individually, having curriculum that was matched to the child’s abilities, monitoring student progress frequently, and performing program evaluation.
Benbow, C. P. (1992). Meeting the needs of the gifted in rural areas through acceleration. Gifted Child Today, 15(2), 15-19.
This article provides research-based suggestions for developing educational options based on acceleration to meet the needs of gifted students in rural areas. Accelerative options offered by both the home school and universities in Iowa are described.
Jones, E. D., & Southern, W. T. (1992). Programming, grouping, and acceleration in rural school districts: A survey of attitudes and practices. Gifted Child Quarterly, 36(2), 112-117.
Interviews with the coordinators of 37 gifted education programs (20 rural and 17 urban) indicated that rural school districts are less likely to use ability grouping or academic acceleration and are more likely to use sporadic extracurricular activities. An earlier survey of 171 teachers also found fewer program options in rural areas.
