Topic 1 : Discussion issues on the disparities in achievement of students (rural- urban, cultural influences etc).

1. SME 3023 TRENDS AND ISSUES
Topic 1 :
Discussion issues on the disparities in
achievement of students (rural- urban,
cultural influences etc).
Group Members:-
1) Paul Vosko Anak Ranged (D20121059016)
2) Nor Azila Binti Razak (D20112052105)
3) Dg Norhayati Binti Mahamad (D20112052103)

2. WHAT IS URBAN?
 An urban area is characterized
by higher population density
and vast human features in
comparison to the areas
surrounding it. Urban areas
may be cities, towns or
conurbations, but the term is
not commonly extended to
rural settlements such as
villages and hamlets.

3. EXAMPLE OF URBAN
SK Puncak Alam, Selangor
SMK Bandar Puchong

4. WHAT IS RURAL
 The nature of the term 'rural' varies from place to place. It often refers
to areas in the country concerned which are less densely populated.
There are different types of rural areas, depending on how accessible
they are from urban areas.

5. EXAMPLE OF RURAL
Sk Darau, Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah
Sk Serian, Sarawak

6. RURAL-URBAN DIFFERENCES IN STUDENT
ACHIEVEMENT?
1. A comparison of the performance on standardized achievement tests
of students from small, usually rural, schools with those form larger,
often urban, institutions has not produced definitive results.
2. In research completed in the state of New York, Monk and Haller
(1986) found that students from smaller (often rural) schools achieved
as well as students from larger schools.
3. Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR)
4. Moreover, in one New Mexico study, which looked at factors affecting
performance of selected high school students, those attending schools
in rural areas performed as well as those in urban locales (Ward and
Murray, 1985).
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7. PUPIL-TEACHER RATIO (PTR)
Figure 3: 1997 Pupil Teacher Ratios by location and school ownership
Source: Education Statistics Report, Government of Botswana, 1997
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8. EFFECTS DO PARENTS AND COMMUNITY HAVE ON THE
ATTAINMENT OF RURAL STUDENTS?
 One of the negative aspects found in most
accounts is that rural communities possess a much
more limited view of existing occupational roles for
rural youth, who then understandably restrict
themselves when going on the job market and on to
higher education (Downey, 1980).
 Smaller communities do tend to generate more
community support for the school, with the school
becoming a center for community activity.

9. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT IN RURAL SCHOOLS
 Student achievement is greatly affected by the area in which a student
lives. Reasons for the variations in achievement are geographic
location, resources, availability of technology, and quality of teachers.
 The small size of rural schools helps to assuage and combat poverty.
 In rural areas where both the schools and students have access to high
quality instruction, safe atmosphere, and communal support,
achievement tends to be better than in states where the students do not
have access to these crucial resources (Lee & McIntire, 2000).
Currently, a national rural versus non-rural mathematics achievement
gap does not exist (www.nea.org).

10. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT IN RURAL
SCHOOLS
 The majority of students that attend urban schools are from minority
families who live below the poverty line. Most often they are from
single-parent families where the parent is usually holding more then
one job to support the family and so little attention is given to the child.
 Many urban students are less concerned with learning and achieving a
positive self-image then they are about obtaining food or safety. This
has a large and lasting affect on their student achievement.
 In spite of the overwhelming lack of student achievement in urban
schools, there are still a significant amount of students that despite the
circumstances overcome the obstacles and manage to succeed.

11. Ethnicity
Characteristics of Students
Family Socioeconomic
Status
Family Structure

12. Ethnicity
With respect to the effect of ethnicity, we follow Lim and
Saleh (2002),
 non-Malay natives and immigrants will have significantly
higher scores in educational performance than Malay
Natives.
 For eg, immigrants whose native language is not
English; the research demonstrates that quality bilingual
programs can close academic achievement gaps
between language minority and majority children
Research in U.S. (Rosenthal et al. 1983; Fernandez and
Nielsen 1986; Portes and Schauffler 1994; Schmid 2001)
emphasized differences in medium and instruction and
language ability as a primary determinant of the gaps in
educational performance

13. Family Structure
With respect to the effect of family composition and
structure, we follow McLanahan and Sandefur (1994)’s
 Students from single-parent and stepparent families
have significantly lower scores in educational
performance than those from two-parent families
 For eg, Students who have a disruptive and
unstable home life can have it much more difficult
on the school front when it comes to higher
achievement.

14. Family Socioeconomic
Status (SES)
With respect to the effect of parent’s education, we follow
Sewell and Shah(1968) and Muller (1995)’s
 Parental education is positively related to educational
performance achievement Teachman 1987; Ho and
Willms 1996,
 Certain types of parent involvement, such as parental
discussions with the children about school-related
topics, such as the importance of getting an
education, benefit students because these students
show higher rates of homework completion and
academic achievement in the middle and high school
years