Rural Schools Measure Up To CIty Schools

Readers of the annual published list of high school entrance scores might be surprised to find the likes of Peak Hill Central School in Central New South Wales sitting alongside the elite James Ruse Agricultural College and Sydney Grammar.

But a new investigation into exam results in regional areas has uncovered a surprising pattern: there seems to be a cluster of high-performing schools within distance of large regional centres – places like Wagga, Orange and Dubbo, which tend to have a choice of pubic, private and Catholic schools. It seems to suggest that many of these more remote rural schools retain the students who might otherwise be lured into bigger and brighter centres and schools.

In cities, kids tend to be segregated by class (expensive private schools) and ability (selective public schools). Moving ‘bright’ kids into streamed classes and schools is supposed to create a competitive environment where teenagers are pushed to excel

But in smaller towns, strugglers learn side-by-side with the achievers. As report author Chris Bonnor puts it, “It doesn’t mean that the more remote towns have better teachers or better facilities – they just enrol all or most of their local kids.”

Another factor in their success seems to be the effort that some regional principals take in building a community with local feeder schools and other high schools in the region. Eden Marine and Bega High on the NSW South Coast, have formed a mutually supportive relationship which “extends to professional dialogue and sharing the burden of difficult kid.”

Basically, in small towns, schools play a much bigger role in both serving the public and creating the public. Maybe that seachange isn’t such a bad idea after all.

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