Municipalities with Small Schools with Composite Classes

The paper is a research report to a questionnaire survey performed at small schools with composite classes in the Czech Republic in the spring of  2008. It presents the analysis of  selected characteristics of  rural municipalities which are the founders of  these schools. Basic demographic and geographic characteristics of  these municipalities are outlined and their projection into the characteristics of  the schools themselves is discussed. Issues of  citizen facilities and civic potential of  municipalities founding small schools with composite classes are discussed in detail. The data show that the level of  citizen facilities in these municipalities is good while the civic potential is not too great. Small schools with composite classes help to increase this potential by offering leisure-time activities beyond their educational work and may thus be regarded as an important socio-cultural institution operating in rural areas in the Czech Republic.

keywords: small schools with composite classes, social, demographic and geographic characteristics of  munici-palities with small schools, citizen facilities and civic potential of municipalities with small schools, civic potential of small rural schools