Contexts of Educational Aspirations and School Grades of Rural Students

Youth development researchers have focused on persistent challenges facing youth in diverse urban settings; thus, we know less about youth in rural communities. Using multilevel modeling, we explored contextual factors associated with school grades and educational aspirations. We find that, on average relative to students from urban schools, students from rural schools had slightly lower school grades and substantially lower college aspirations. Latino and American Indian students from urban and rural school districts had lower school grades and educational aspirations than non-Latino and non-American Indian students. Last, developmental social and emotional skills, such as commitment to learning and positive identity, were associated with higher school grades and educational aspirations, suggesting that social and emotional learning is relevant to both urban and rural students.