Participation Type
Workshop
Session Title
Session 5.15 Education
Session Abstract or Summary
This workshop will explore the impact of prospective teachers’ self-identification with Appalachia and the effect on their future students.
Common stereotypes of Appalachians are well documented and great efforts are being made to reduce these archaic caricatures. In this struggle to educate “outsiders,” the implications of self-identity and sense of place for Appalachian higher education students must not be overlooked. There is a need to educate teacher candidates on how their perceptions influence their connectedness in the classroom in order to prevent creating a self-fulfilling prophecy with Appalachian students. A positive relationship between school connectedness and GPA in students who were from the Appalachian region has been demonstrated (Wilson & Gore, 2009). Another study found that even though Appalachian students in a teaching program do not identify with “negative” beliefs about the region, they report holding those views of their future students (Winter, 2013). What implications do these finding have for Appalachian teachers regarding their self-identification with Appalachian culture and the impact it has on their connectedness with students? This workshop provides an opportunity to explore and discuss these issues as well as examine practices that have positive effects for building connectedness and self-efficacy in the classroom.
Presentation #1 Title
Changing Views of Appalachia from the Inside Out: Helping Appalachian students reach their full potential through improving teachers’ perceptions of their future students.
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
This workshop will explore the impact of prospective teachers’ self-identification with Appalachia and the effect on their future students. Common stereotypes of Appalachians are well documented and great efforts are being made to reduce these archaic caricatures. In this struggle to educate “outsiders,” the implications of self-identity and sense of place for Appalachian higher education students must not be overlooked. There is a need to educate teacher candidates on how their perceptions influence their connectedness in the classroom in order to prevent creating a self-fulfilling prophecy with Appalachian students. A positive relationship between school connectedness and GPA in students who were from the Appalachian region has been demonstrated (Wilson & Gore, 2009). Another study found that even though Appalachian students in a teaching program do not identify with “negative” beliefs about the region, they report holding those views of their future students (Winter, 2013). What implications do these finding have for Appalachian teachers regarding their self-identification with Appalachian culture and the impact it has on their connectedness with students? This workshop provides an opportunity to explore and discuss these issues as well as examine practices that have positive effects for building connectedness and self-efficacy in the classroom.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Stephanie Marder is a full-time Masters student at Kent State University in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program. She spent over two years at Bellefaire, Jewish Children’s Bureau in Cleveland, OH, as a CPST worker, assisting adolescents and their families in-home and in the community. Stephanie received her M.A. in Psychology from Boston University. Her academic interests include family therapy and working with incarcerated youth, including exploring the impact of culture on both. Stephanie lives in Beachwood, Ohio with her husband, cats, and dog.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Pam Ebert is an adjunct professor at Northeast Ohio Medical University and a doctoral student in Counselor Education and Supervision at Kent State University. She is also employed by the Counseling Center of Columbiana County as an outpatient psychotherapist and crisis counselor. Her areas of inquiry are Appalachian Studies, education and supervision of students in the Appalachian region and the use of creative modalities in counseling. Pam lives with her husband and children in Lisbon, Ohio.
Changing Views of Appalachia from the Inside Out: Helping Appalachian students reach their full potential through improving teachers’ perceptions of their future students.
This workshop will explore the impact of prospective teachers’ self-identification with Appalachia and the effect on their future students. Common stereotypes of Appalachians are well documented and great efforts are being made to reduce these archaic caricatures. In this struggle to educate “outsiders,” the implications of self-identity and sense of place for Appalachian higher education students must not be overlooked. There is a need to educate teacher candidates on how their perceptions influence their connectedness in the classroom in order to prevent creating a self-fulfilling prophecy with Appalachian students. A positive relationship between school connectedness and GPA in students who were from the Appalachian region has been demonstrated (Wilson & Gore, 2009). Another study found that even though Appalachian students in a teaching program do not identify with “negative” beliefs about the region, they report holding those views of their future students (Winter, 2013). What implications do these finding have for Appalachian teachers regarding their self-identification with Appalachian culture and the impact it has on their connectedness with students? This workshop provides an opportunity to explore and discuss these issues as well as examine practices that have positive effects for building connectedness and self-efficacy in the classroom.
