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- NewsEdSurge10 Jul 2026
In Rural Districts, AI Resources for Educators Are Scarce
A recent study from Texas Tech University found that rural schools lack professional development resources for AI, limiting teachers' ability to effectively use the technology. Rural students also scored lower in ICT access and literacy compared to urban peers. Experts note that AI could benefit rural education by providing instructional support and expanding students' horizons, but gaps in expertise and resources persist.
Original abstract
<p>Professional development is crucial in ensuring teachers can put AI to work effectively. But a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/87568705251387039?__cf_chl_f_tk=CAZIy4i9YfjGxGZv7zfF4.IgSEpqSim3svGIjQdwFNE-1783002978-1.0.1.1-oZKjnpZ6Usv2XLN4p44VfwNtT9YFjnueGWjzNT3pBX8">recent study</a> from Texas Tech University found that PD around AI may not be readily available in rural schools. Another <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/6/2748#Results">study</a> compared elementary school students in rural areas to students in urban areas and found that rural students scored “statistically significantly lower” in Information and Communications Technology access and literacy, resilience, and online learning capabilities.</p><p>“The resources are limited. There is not much support out there for our rural educators,” says Nikkolina Prueitt, a co-author of the study. For rural schools to get the most out of AI, “we will need to build that knowledge base.”</p><h2>Closing the Gap</h2><p>AI has the potential to give rural teachers a pedagogical boost. It can provide instructional support, “like creating differentiated instruction, adapting lessons, drafting individualized education plans,” Prueitt says.</p><p>And AI can expand rural students’ understanding of the world, says Amanda Robinson, an elementary teacher at Pikeville Elementary, a Title I school in Eastern Kentucky. “AI opens the students’ horizons.”</p><p>In a rural community, AI can students to “experience new learning, outside of their communities,” said Dr. LeeAnn Lindsey, director of edtech and innovation at Northern Arizona University. But she sees rural schools struggle to embrace that potential, due in part to a lack of in-house expertise. “Our big urban and suburban school districts, they have technology integration coaches who have been diving into the AI work for the past three years,” she says. “Rural school districts often don’t.”</p><p>To help close the gap, Northern Arizona last fall le