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The
Case For Appalachian Studies
page 23
Inasmuch as the region needs more than 200,000 college graduates -- a
minimum of 6,400 physicians, many more thousands of nurses, teachers,
businessmen, government leaders, ad infinitum, the region's schools must
develop a sensitivity in their youth to the problems of the region.
The Appalachian studies programs would strive to familiarize the
students with the economic and social history of the region, its
politics, its religion, its education, and its current social
institutions. It would also provide insights into the
"psychology" of the mountain people and the development work
being done, while endeavoring to sensitize the participants to the
qualities of mountain life which deserve preservation.
Students should be given the flexibility to develop their own courses in
Appalachian studies. The major objective of most of these courses
would be to do original research on Appalachia which can be printed for
distribution and/or placed in he libraries for future reference.
One of the problems in studying Appalachia is the lack of written
materials. These classes could be utilized to provide speakers who
represent the Appalachian institutions or who are experts in these
fields for these classes and/or the entire student body. Following
each speaker, there could be class discussions to synthesize the
material presented in relations to the students' past experiences.
As a beginning, these institutions could offer courses such as
"Social Welfare Policy and Service in Appalachia,"
"Values and Cultural Themes in Appalachia," The Social
Problems of Unemployment in Appalachia," Appalachian
Politics," Education in Appalachia," Economics in
Appalachia," "Appalachian Literature," ad infinitum,
which would provoke thought about who speaks for Appalachia, the
uniqueness of the culture and people, and an analysis of the ways that
regional institutions have and have not responded to the problems of
Appalachia.
If we accept the premise that Appalachian problems are not, in general,
the result of terrain inadequacies incidental to American development,
or to any special lack of ability or maturity in its people, then
we logically hold that the opposite is the case, that much of Appalachia
has been subjected to an economic and political neglect which largely
made the mountain area a colony for the use and pleasure of the larger
part of the country and for corporations. Therefore, it makes
sense to set up Appalachian studies programs which will benefit both the
student, who will get a much more relevant and meaningful education than
that to which he is now subjected, and the region as a whole, which will
benefit from the students' research as to present Appalachian poverty,
the reasons for Appalachia's low rank as contrasted to the rest of
America, and the social and political factors behind these
problems. As minerals are, in most of Appalachia, the largest
natural resource, it also makes sense specifically for these students to
research this source of power and wealth.
Pride and knowledge of a region, however, is not enough. The
region's educational system must contribute to finding ways for their
young people to remain in Appalachia.
James
G. Branscome
www.appalachiacoal.com
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