Education in Appalachia - Research Paper Example

?Running Head: Appalachia Education in Appalachia Introduction Mitigating the issue of povertyin Appalachia is difficult, yet increasing proof indicates that for Appalachia to lessen the disparity in poverty in relation to the country, numbers of graduates in high school and college should improve. This paper will focus on the current status of education in Appalachia. The discussion will put emphasis on the effect of the family and community on Appalachian education. Possible solutions will also be discussed. The author chose this topic because of the fact that greater educational achievement implies a workforce more able to productively maximize advanced technologies that stimulate economic progress. Appalachia’s economic traditions were formed by coal: the ordinary laborer is employed to an occupation s/he believed would be for a lifetime and is prepared and educated on the job (Fisher, 1993). Unfortunately, these occupations do no longer exist. Hence, the Appalachian people are being mandated to acquire their education prior to entering the workforce. People are being obliged to complete some form of education if they plan to get a job in the future (Powell, 2008). But economic progress is also being hampered by the dominant condition of education in the rural communities of Appalachia. Course Outcomes Outcome One: Demographic and Socioeconomic Status As the disparity in rates of poverty between the country and Appalachia was closing over the recent decades, the Appalachian people were coping with other parts of the country in relation to numbers of high school graduates (Ziliak, 2007). According to Ziliak (2007, 1), completion rates in high school grew by 50% between 1979 and 1999 (see Appendix A) in Appalachian Kentucky, and current studies show that these developments resulted in the remarkable progress in per capita individual income of Kentucky over the recent decades. In contrast (see Appendix B), there is very wide disparity in numbers of college graduates between the country and Appalachia (Ziliak, 2007, 1). This disparity may clarify the reason average levels of income in Appalachia are low in relation to the country. Hence, although the greater numbers of high school graduates in Appalachian Pennsylvania may somewhat explain the lower rate of poverty in Appalachia, the more depressed numbers of college graduates there perhaps somewhat clarifies the reason Appalachia’s average level of income is lower relative to the country (Powell, 2008). Even though the figures mentioned here is entirely exploratory, it indicates that continuous disparities in levels of educational achievement imply continuous disparities in levels of income (Ziliak, 2007), and hence rates of poverty. Outcome Two: Factors Influencing Education in Appalachia Earlier studies have demonstrated that the effects of the community in the condition of education in Appalachia are usually more subtle than the influences of the family. This appears to be the case for educational achievement in Appalachia: parents’ educational attainment and family poverty affected behaviors of achievement later on, as the community ceased to do so (Powell, 2008). Still, even though different in terms of degree of influence on educational attainment in Appalachia, the family and community remain to be the two strongest systems impacting Appalachian education. Education is in fact greatly valued in Appalachia; however, local allegiance and family are usually prioritized. If the family requires help from its young adult, education could be hastily stopped for the sake of family obligations (Edwards, Asbury & Cox, 2006). If a specific job or profession may only be performed away from the immediate community, the family could thwart its realization. Outcome Three: The Interaction between the Family, Community, and Education Attainment of educational goals necessitates significant amount of social support, determination, and resources, and these should be given on a continuous and reliable way (Edwards et al., 2006). Some studies, according to Powell (2008), show that families, instead of communities, in Appalachia could be the main conduit for the delivery of these protections, support, and resources. However, even though the family is definitely vital in rural vicinities, a more thorough consideration of labor utilization and poverty in rural territories, as well as the sense of identity and loyalty to the place, shows that one may assume that the community is important for rural people (Ellis, 2011). This is true, added by Ellis (2011), for higher education objectives among the young adults who are at a crucial stage in the changeover to adulthood. Young adults who are yet to obtain a college diploma and were residing in census zones with greater percentages of college graduates were more prone to promote acquiring a higher education as a major life objective (Ellis, 2011). Particularly, labor market prospects in these census zones probably require lower educational levels; if young adults want a home and job, aspiring for a higher education may be reasonable in lieu of these objectives (Ellis, 2011). This influence of the community was especially prevalent among males in rural areas. According to Powell (2008), rural males seem to be somewhat conscious of behaviors of attainment in the overall population, possibly taking in signs of life course prospects and limitations from the community context in manners that influence females rather less directly. It is crucial to emphasize that a number of current studies report more powerful community influences for educational achievements on males. The prevailing gaps in the labor market supportive of Appalachian males may highlight such inclinations for extra-familial signs of educational achievement to relate more strongly to male (Ellis, 2011) than female objectives. Outcome Four: Possible Strategies to Improve Appalachian Education Educational institutions in Appalachia have to reassess their duty as the prime innovators of educational reform with regard to mitigating the educational difficulties of the area. The distinctiveness of the region of Appalachia, which may be typified as a closed system (Loof, 2009), alongside particular local demands, should be favorable to an acknowledgment of necessary responses which schools may take to fulfill their official functions. Schools in Appalachia may use different Federal programs and resources to help them in this attempt. With the application of reform-oriented processes, such as strategic planning, educational organizations could combine efforts and resources with other organizations to attain major education reform associated with the demands of Appalachia. Furthermore, there are many ways where in state agencies and educational institutions can collaborate in formation and implementation of new strategies. It is particularly crucial that courses for professional development furnish professionals with a wider point of view on educational achievement that recognizes the constantly changing and interactional character of the system of human development, specifically as it concerns individual and cultural ability (Loof, 2009). Cultural groups are never stagnant, and individuals belong to at least two cultural units. For instance, as Appalachians, counselors and educators have common pedagogical principles and cultural beliefs, although they belong to different cultural groups. Hence, identifying culture-oriented features of families and individuals, like beliefs about the importance of education and communication, is identical to aspiring for a moving objective, and the significance of highlighting this commonality to new practitioners can hardly be exaggerated to prevent stereotyping (Fisher, 1993). Professional development courses for educators would be quite beneficial since it could provide them chances to reassess their personal socio-cultural contexts and to reflect on how their points of view may influence ideas they have about Appalachian families, communities, and individuals. In Appalachia, the current relationship between economic progress and education appears unfavorable. Believed to be submissive and respectful, young adults of Appalachia have been viewed and addressed as not particularly intelligent, and they have been socialized not to aim for better economic and professional opportunities in the future (Fisher, 1993). Another unfavorable relationship between economic progress and education in the Appalachian region is the insufficient funding of schools (Powell, 2008). The educational institution is a taken-for-granted asset for the advancement of Appalachia, but in reality they have vast capability for community renewal. Initiatives which build a favorable, positive connection between rural growth and education are vital. References Edwards, G.T., Asbury, J.A. & Cox, R.L. (2006). A Handbook to Appalachia: An Introduction to the Region. University Tennessee Press. Ellis, W.E. (2011). A History of Education in Kentucky. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky. Fisher, S. (1993). Fighting Back in Appalachia: Traditions of Resistance and Change. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Loof, D. (2009). Appalachia’s Children: The Challenge of Mental Health. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky. Powell, S. (2008). Appalachian Educational Realization: A Multi-Dimensional Plan from the Lived Experiences of Appalachian Students. New York: VDM Verlag. Ziliak, J.P. (2007). “Human Capital and the Challenge of Persistent Poverty in Appalachia,” Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, p. 1+ Appendix A *taken from Ziliak, 2007, 1 Appendix B *taken from Ziliak, 2007, 1 Read More