3: Studying Boys in Context

In Chapter 2, I maintained the importance of studying boys in multiple, natural settings so as to examine how the boys view and use reading as they navigate in and out of these settings. In this chapter, I hope to provide a rich description of the boys' school and surrounding community. Before I describe the boys' community, it is important to look at educational research done in rural settings.

Although I did not pick the Weston High School because it is situated in a rural setting, the setting does afford me the opportunity to examine how the rural community contributes to the reading experiences of boys. My study also has the potential to add to the body of educational research on rural settings, which is lacking when compared to studies done in urban and suburban settings (Gándara, Gutièrrez, & O'Hara, 2001). Hardré (2008) estimated that as little as 6% of the published research in K–12 school settings is situated in a rural setting. Even fewer studies look specifically at motivational factors in rural students' education (Hardré & Sullivan, 2008), another area of focus for my study. It is with this in mind that I provide the reader with a closer look at Weston High School and the surrounding community of Weston.