Presentation 1. Understanding the Landscape: RuralCrit Review of Research

• In Event: Advancing the Field of Rural Education Research: Research Agendas for Scholars, Practitioners, Policy Makers, and Funders

Abstract

Objectives
The intersectionality of race, place, and education has long been central to the work of educational leaders. However, due to systemic inequities within education, politics, and research, little work has been conducted to date that examines racial equity in rural educational contexts. To address this critical disjuncture in educational scholarship, we conducted a critical, systematic review of research and policy on racial in/equity and rural education. Our review was guided by the following research questions:
1. Which locales and populations are currently addressed in rural equity research, and what locales and populations are absent from rural equity research?
2. How are scholars framing or conceptualizing rural equity in their research?
3. Which methodological approaches are used for rural equity research, and what is missing?
4. What are the empirical implications from rural, racial equity scholarship for future research, practice, and policy?
Framework
We use spatial inequity (Soja, 2010) to understand inequities stemming from the political and economic marginalization of rural communities (Williams & Grooms, 2015). The use of spatial inequity enables our team to connect equity with the social, political, geographic, and economic dimensions of place that is central to rural equity scholarship. Second, we use the frame of intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989), which regards the inability for individuals to receive a remedy for layered oppressive systems and marginalization (Corbett & Tinkham, 2014). Using this two-tiered approach, we advance a framework for understanding rural in/equity at macro and micro-levels, while engendering a flexible theoretical approach to include diverse, intersectional perspectives.
Methods
The study combines a systematic literature review with critical analysis. We applied the miner-prospector continuum for the methodological approach to identify research (Breslin & Gatrell, 2020). First, we searched in “known” journals for rural scholarship and then explored new sources for relevant research (Breslin & Gatrell, 2020). We then bounded our search (Hallinger, 2013) with search terms, types of publications, date range, and locale of research. From this search, we identified 214 peer-reviewed articles that directly address race and rural education. We conducted content analysis to examine each text, using the research questions as the guiding frame (Biddle & Azano, 2016), and content analysis to identify recurring, intersecting relationships of themes (Biddle & Azano, 2016). Using conceptual and content-ordered data matrices (Miles et al., 2018), we will synthesize data into thematic findings.
Initial Findings and Contributions
Using critical content analysis, we constructed a typology of rural equity research. This typology documents how research utilizes framings of equity along a continuum, from deficit-based to asset-based, that have clear implications for worsening, maintaining, or transforming structural and systemic inequities for rural communities of color. We will use the typology to complete the comprehensive, critical analysis of extant research, identifying the scope, gaps, assets, and challenges evident in rural educational research. We assert that this work establishes foundational knowledge to ensure sustainable, equity-based research, policy, and practice for new and established rural education scholars.
 

Authors

• Daniella Hall Sutherland, University of Vermont
  Presenting Author

• Jennifer Laura Seelig, NORC at the University of Chicago
  Presenting Author