Abstract
Rural school districts are unique when compared to their urban and suburban counterparts. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has touched those who educate students with special needs in rural schools in distinctive ways. In order to capitalize on the benefits of No Child Left Behind, rural education professions would greatly benefit with the implementation of practices within a Response to Intervention framework. The purpose of this study was to conduct a critical analysis of existing articles on the subjects of rural special education, No Child Left Behind and Response to Intervention. Themes
that emerge from the analysis include the characteristics of rural special education, the obstacles and opportunities presented by No Child Left Behind, and the effectiveness of Response to Intervention.