Mapping the fields

Project Timeline: 2018-2023

This research engages the proposition that research related to education in rural, regional and remote communities is ambiguously situated and constructed. In responding to this proposition, the project examines how ‘education’ is engaged in rural sociology, how rural sociology is engaged in rural education research, and how bridges can be developed between these fields. The aim of this research is to broaden the engagements with ‘education’ and the sociological theory used in research related to education in the interests of education for rural-regional sustainability.

While rural education is somewhat ambiguously placed it draws primarily from the traditions of sociology and geography, with broader engagements with the non-education fields of rural sociology and rural geography (Roberts & Cuervo, 2015). Notably sociology, and the sociology of education, does not engage significantly with the rural – hence the development of sub-fields of rural education and rural sociology. Where ‘education’ is engaged in rural sociology, it tends to be from a traditional human capital frame (Roberts & Downes, 2016). Consequently, scholarship is necessary in order to bridge these divides and enhance the quality and breadth of scholarship in all related fields. Building from the definitional dilemmas of defining the rural (Woods, 2011) and the opportunities this provides for new research relationships across and between fields, this research explores a range of international research that is working to connect these fields.

Research Approach:

This project involves a literature analysis of key education and rural studies journals over the past twenty-five years. A content analysis and citation analysis will be undertaken followed by a survey and interviews with scholars in each of the key fields of study.

Intended Outcomes:

This project is about leading rural education research in a new direction, drawing upon new theories and methodologies from the broader fields of rural sociology and rural geography. Consequently, the work will help develop the capacity to better understand the dynamics through which rural communities are marginalised and educational achievement measured.

Publications

• Roberts, P. & Downes, N. (2016). Conflicting messages: Sustainability and Education for Rural-Regional Sustainability. Rural Society. 25(1)15-36.
• Downes, N. & Roberts, P. (2015). Valuing rural meanings: The work of parent supervisors challenging dominant educational discourses. Australian and International Journal of Rural Education, 25(3),80-93.
• McPherson, A., Roberts, P., Downes, N. (2017). Rural-regional sustainability in the Murray Darling Basin: School / community difference and the politics of water in rural Australia. Australian and International Journal of Rural Education, 27(2),93-107.

Related Projects

• ARC DECRA: Engaging rural knowledges for sustainable futures: spatial justice and rural schooling
• ARC Discovery Project: Building rural knowledges: connecting classrooms, communities and learners with curriculum
• Ruraling Educational Research
• Valuing the rural: putting the rural first
• Education in rural China