Group Difference Forums

I enjoyed the group difference forums. I felt that they were a very effective way to talk about/cover a number of topics in a short amount of time. I appreciated how each member of our class seemed to own their topic and how everyone was considerate and respectful of the views and opinions of others.

I chose to cover "rural" issues mainly because I work in a rural high school and felt that I could easily identify. But after reading our assigned articles, I was made aware of viewpoints that I had never considered. For example, I had never really thought Appalachia to be a true "culture" that deserved recognition and respect.  But after some reflection, I can definitely see the value in preserving this heritage and changing some of the stereotypes. But the most important idea for me was how we tend to encourage students to get their education and leave our communities which deprives all of us of their skills/knowledge and helps perpetuate the cycle of undereducation/poverty in our region. I can now see the value of educators being aware of this idea and possibly changing the dialogue with students to encourage more pride and ownership of their Appalachian heritage.

As for our presentation, my partner and I decided to do things a little bit differently by opening up with the discussion versus opening with a review of the article/articles.  We also decided to hit only on the major points of our chosen article to leave time for more discussion.  And we felt that it was important not to follow a "script" but to let the group generally lead the conversation as their personal experiences/perceptions of Appalachia would be an important factor in where the conversation went. This may have taken up too much time, but I felt everyone was engaged in the discussion. In fact, it continued after class was dismissed. I hope that we left them with something to at least consider as educators in Appalachian communities.