Rural schools often get a bad rap for not accommodating high-achieving students, and in many cases the negativity is warranted.
The cruel reality is that small schools, particularly in Idaho, lack the funding to go above and beyond the minimum classroom requirements. Fewer teachers means less special attention for the students who are capable of work above their grade levels. As a result, those students are held back from reaching their true potential.
Lyndsie Kiebert
Argonaut
But, like most situations in life, attitude is everything. If a student chooses to be apathetic about going to school in rural Idaho, their experience will be undoubtedly negative.
This is not to undermine any truly awful experiences people have had in the public school system. To be ostracized for simply being smarter than classmates is not fair in any way. But small-town Idaho is not always the black hole of ignorance some tend to make it seem. Rural Idaho can actually be an amazing place to call home – at least it has been for me.
I went to a small-town school comprised of junior high and high school students, less than 100 of us made up the entire student body when I graduated in 2014. Of my 20 classmates, half a dozen of us attended Kindergarten together.
While it is easy to say that during all 13 years of my education I felt like I was part of a family, it is not entirely true. I was an easy target for the mean kids – frizzy hair, big nose and a love of books – and I went through the awkward stages just as everyone does. I felt alone at times, but those experiences have never defined my Idaho public education experience because I didn”t let them.
When I was labeled as a nerd, I embraced it. I did not see myself as a victim of prejudice against intelligence, because I never saw myself as better than the people who saw me that way. I was cut from the same cloth as my peers – I just had higher academic priorities than most.
I pursued higher-level courses with the help of my teachers. Upon graduating I had several dual credit courses under my belt, allowing me a jumpstart on my college degree. While I understand that this opportunity may not be available to every student in Idaho, it is important to note that many rural schools are constantly working toward opening these doors for high-achieving students.
I was beyond prepared for college thanks to these opportunities, as well as my teachers” dedication to push me to succeed. I left my town ready to take on university life, but also excited to return and serve the community that raised me.
It is easy to dismiss rural Idaho schools as lesser when much of the rhetoric surrounding the topic is negative. I am saddened to hear stories of gifted students beaten into submission by a system that caters to their struggling peers.
An ability-based classroom system sounds excellent in theory, but in the meantime, much of this issue can be solved by how students choose to approach their own education – to strive to better their own learning experience, rather than to choose complacency.
Lyndsie Kiebert can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @lyndsie_kiebert