Rural Utah districts had a higher proportion of economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities, while non-rural districts had a higher proportion of English learners, from 2012 to 2017¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associational r1 · q2
Currency · newest study 2018 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Each year, rural districts had a higher proportion of economically disadvantaged students than non-rural districts (e.g., a 17.1 percentage point difference in 2017) and a slightly higher proportion of students with disabilities. → Rice 2018 q2 i? Each year, non-rural districts had a slightly higher proportion of English learners than rural districts (a difference of 1.2 percentage points in 2017). → Rice 2018

Evidence¶

Rice 2018¶

Rice, J., Huang, M., & Derby, K. (2018). Characteristics of rural and non-rural districts in Utah from 2012 to 2017. San Francisco, CA: REL West @ WestEd. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/west

q2 · i? · associational · r1

Descriptive analysis of Utah State Board of Education data for 18 rural and 23 non-rural districts, 2012-2017, with percentages weighted by district enrollment. The report states rural districts had "a higher proportion of economically disadvantaged students compared to non-rural districts" and a higher disability proportion.

"Each year, r ural districts had a higher proportion of economically disadvantaged students compared to non-rural districts (e.g., 17.1 percentage point difference in 2017) and a slightly higher proportion of students with one or more disabilities compared to non-rural districts (e.g., 2.2 percentage points by 2017)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• From 2012 to 2017, average inflation-adjusted per-pupil revenue and expenditure were greater in rural Utah districts than in non-rural districts — related
• From 2012 to 2017, non-rural Utah districts had higher proficiency in English language arts and science and more graduates scoring 18+ on the ACT, while rural districts had higher four-year graduation rates — related
• A smaller percentage of classes in rural Utah districts were taught by highly qualified teachers than in non-rural districts, and rural teacher transfer-out rates were lower, from 2012 to 2017 — related
• Rural Utah districts had smaller average class sizes and student-to-teacher ratios, but far fewer unique advanced courses per secondary school, than non-rural districts from 2012 to 2017 — related
• In 2017, the cost-of-living-adjusted starting teacher salary was higher in rural Utah districts, but the average scheduled teacher salary was lower in rural than non-rural districts — related