In European educational research studies on the rural school are somewhat limited. Nevertheless in those communities in which they are situated they arguably play a role disproportionate to their size and have a significance which transcends their institutional boundary. In this paper the contributing authors seek to ethnographically engage with the culture of rural schooling by focusing on the key role of the head teacher in small schools in Austria and England. The comparison between the situation in England and Austria enables the researchers to identify similarities and differences of the situation of small rural schools, the discourses around small school and current policy changes.

Research suggests head teachers of small schools are often “teaching heads” who identify themselves first and foremost as teachers. Nevertheless, they have to deal with a multiplicity of roles and pressures located not simply within but also outside the school; concerns which may be exacerbated with the demarcation of additional responsibilities of management and governance For example, recent policy changes in Austria and England have resulted in sole head teachers being responsible for the running of more than one small rural school.

In relation to small rural schools and headship the paper asks: What is the current policy context in Austria and England? How do head teachers respond to this policy environment? How do head teachers perceive their role? What challenges do they see themselves as professionally facing and what opportunities? In what ways do they interrelate with the communities they serve? Through an ethnographic engagement with these questions the paper attempts to uncover, illuminate and provide insights into the everyday professional lives of rural headship.

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