Appalachian Culture Competency--Ciera Rinck

The article I read for this week was in the category of rural populations with a focus on Appalachian Cultures.  The article was edited by Susan E. Keefe and is a part of Appalachian Cultural Competency: A Guide for Medical, Mental Health, and Social Service Professionals.  The article largely focused on people from Appalachian Cultures and the history that makes up who they are--which is an important part of knowing your students.  The assumptions of the author seem to be "for" the people living in Appalachian Regions with a purpose of creating a voice for these people within regions outside of Appalachia.  By looking at the history of these people they can be better understood.  For example, many of the people who currently live in the regions of Appalachia came as immigrants seeking religious and political freedom and the story of these people is really sad, but I think many people are reluctant to learn about the history of the people or students they are working with--this can be a very important aspect to understanding students and the way they learn or the way their parents think which will ultimately effect the students worldview.  The article also emphasized the importance of the culture of people in Appalachia in terms of family connections and their importance in the area.  As a history major I feel like it is extremely important to understand and partake in perspective taking when working with people in any profession, but as a teacher I think that making connections with your students is extremely important and beneficial in educating children.  Students should be able to trust their teachers.  This point goes along well with the idea that oftentimes people who aren't part of Appalachia see people who are from the region as "backward" "ignorant" and even "historyless," however, these people are rich in culture and see themselves as strong, independent, having strong ties to their personal community, having a distinctive linguistic dialect, and a social structure based largely on kinship.  As teachers it would be a huge disservice to our students if we followed suit of the public view and believed and treated our students in a stereotypical way.  Finally, the author of the article claimed that often times people make the mistake of reading cultural differences as a deficit. It is a shame that people do this, I can say I have been guilty of doing this before I came into the profession of teaching, however it is important to take into consideration the differences of your students when planning lessons and differentiating instruction and as I have worked with a variety of students it has become clear to me that every student I have come across has potential no matter their background.  Incorporating aspects from the diverse variety of students within the classroom community will create a culturally accepting and rich classroom environment that will benefit students in their lives for years to come. 
I really enjoyed this article, and I think it really culminated much of my educational experiences.  It is important to accept each and every student you encounter as a teacher and to understand and connect with them on a personal level by incorporating their likes, beliefs, and family background into classroom lessons and activities.  On a final note, the article mentioned that a positive identity is difficult to maintain in the face of prejudice and discrimination--the dilemma is that Appalachians (and really any group of students that are seen as "different") are often forced to choose between two equally unacceptable identities: on one hand they are just like everybody else and undeserving of any special attention; on the other hand that their culture is inferior and to blame for most of the social problems in the region.  By falling into the group of people that shun those from different backgrounds it will only discourage students, however by showing acceptance and understanding, students can break the cycle that they fall into just from the encouragement of one teacher--it sounds cliche, but I really believe that teachers can change the world through creating encouraging and positive environments which allows their students to be great and accomplish things that seem impossible