Legacy of the Rural Systemic Initiatives: Innovation, Leadership, Teacher Development, and Lessons Learned
Author: Harmon, Hobart L.
Date: 2012-01-13
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Rural Schools,Poverty,Science Education,Mathematics Education,Educational Improvement,Improvement Programs,Educational Change,Program Effectiveness,Elementary Secondary Education,Public Education,American Indian Education,Navajo (Nation),Teacher Leadership,Faculty Development,Teacher Attitudes,Mathematics Achievement,Science Achievement,Barriers,Instructional Leadership,Teacher Recruitment,Teacher Persistence,Educational Policy,Intervention

This monograph offers an in-depth look at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Rural Systemic Initiative (RSI) efforts, an investment of more than $140 million to reform mathematics and science programs in rural K-12 public education and tribal education. The authors seek to promote a foundation of contextual understanding for improving public education in rural schools where more than 10 million students are educated. The authors contend that despite the value of RSIs unparalleled accomplishments and lessons learned, policy makers, researchers, and educational reformists often fail to recognize and acknowledge this progressive work. This monograph brings together key results of three separate research efforts of the authors to reveal the legacy of the National Science Foundation's Rural Systemic Initiative. In 2007, the authors synthesized reports of selected RSIs to provide examples of the innovative leadership, intervention models, and lessons learned. In 2008, the authors held a forum in the House of Representatives Rayburn Building in Washington, DC, where former RSI leaders, practitioners, and federal agency representatives provided examples of how school districts and selected federal agencies could leverage results of the RSIs for improving mathematics and science education. In 2009 the authors conducted focus group and telephone conference call sessions with teachers who participated in selected RSIs that served five ethnically concentrated populations of students in rural America: African American, American Indian, Alaska Native, Appalachian white poor, and Hispanic American. Monograph chapters provide examples of the success experienced by RSIs and their innovative approaches in addressing their unique and special circumstances. Selected chapters provide highlights in the areas of innovation, leadership, teacher development, and lessons learned. A final chapter of concluding thoughts and future directions addresses instructional leadership capacity, teacher recruitment and retention, and policy actions. This chapter reinforces the authors' belief that what has been learned from the NSF RSIs must be shared and considered by policymakers, educational reformers, and organizational leaders to meet the future challenges in rural education. RSI projects funded by the NSF are included in appendix one. A second appendix describes Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) resources developed from NSF research and development projects. (Contains 12 figures and 22 tables.) [For the companion documents, &quot;A Legacy of Leadership and Lessons Learned: Results from the Rural Systemic Initiatives for Improving Mathematics and Science Education&quot; and &quot;Proceedings of the Forum on Leveraging a Legacy of Leadership in Rural Mathematics and Science Education&quot; see ED531892 and ED531889.]