The article examines the role of school buildings in the structure of rural settlements, as well as the variability of its functional richness, depending on the needs of the local population. Given the historical analysis of the development of a typology of rural school throughout the XX century with the aim to identify the main trends of its development. The analysis of space-planning, functional and urban design of two Russian and two foreign modern rural schools, which are, apart from performing educational functions, also functioning  as the community center.

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