This paper provides a glimpse of the current picture of education in rural Scotland. Scotland has many small schools, and not all of these are in geographically isolated areas. Although Scotland's population has decreased in the past 20 years, the decline has been mostly in urban areas. Remote areas are becoming more cosmopolitan as highly educated people relocate to rural areas, either for life style reasons or to work in the North Sea oil industry. Educational policy has moved away from closure of small schools and now provides additional funding for small schools in many parts of the country. In areas where larger consolidated schools have been built, local communities have shared in the decision-making process. Throughout the 1980s, there has been an upsurge in attempts to develop parent-school and community-school partnerships. Community schools range from those that simply make school facilities available to the community, to those that are actively involved in community development. National discussion papers were produced in the 1980s that aimed to improve practices in schools and provide an appropriate and effective education for all. Many features being promoted as the ideal have long been components of education in small schools. Inservice education and staff development have been a problem in rural schools, but both the government and colleges of education are attempting to meet the educational needs of rural teachers by providing extra paid time for staff development and by developing distance education techniques. (SV)