Reassessing urban-rural education disparities: evidence from England

Rural-urban disparities in education in developed countries have received limited attention in recent years, and whether rural schools face additional disadvantages is controversial. This study examines the differences between urban and rural education in England using data from the 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) for eighth-grade students, involving a sample of 3,365 pupils across 136 schools. Findings indicate the existence of hidden inequalities, particularly evident in the educational resources and sustainability of teaching teams of rural schools in England. Moreover, the study challenges previous assertions suggesting the disappearance of educational attainment gaps between urban and rural areas, revealing a negative association between attending rural schools and academic achievement in England, notably in mathematics. Despite modest explanatory power, this correlation remains after controlling for contextual variables. Therefore, this study calls for renewed attention to rural education at research, policy, and practice levels.