Review of De Young,"Life & Death of a Rural American High School: Farewell Little Kanawha"

Authors

  • Craig Howley ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools Appalachia Educational Laboratory; Charleston, WV
  • Paul Theobald South Dakota State University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v3n8.1995

Keywords:

Book Review, Rural Schools, Rural Areas, Socioeconomic Status, School efficiency, Financial Support

Abstract

lan DeYoung's story of the circumstances surrounding the birth, growth, and death of a high school in rural West Virginia is an intellectual contribution of the first order. And Farewell Little Kanawha is certainly one of the best stories to be told by an educational researcher in recent decades. Its strength derives in large measure from DeYoung's deftness in crossing disciplinary borders. The interplay of economics, sociology, history (both oral and documentary), anthropology, and biography render this story far more compelling than most educational research. DeYoung bases his narrative, in fact, on C. Wright Mills' precept that social science worth doing must interpret the intersection of biography and history. Mills was the wisest and best American sociologist and DeYoung is among a very small contingent of scholars concerned with rural education to embrace his advice.

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Author Biography

Craig Howley, ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools Appalachia Educational Laboratory; Charleston, WV

I've written about, studied, and lived in rural places. (It's debatable whether or not I still live in a rural place, but the local chamber of commerce says I do, given that our house sits 2 miles north of I-64). Culture, politics, economics, and history concern me. I wish schools were better at promoting 'the life of the mind' (whatever that is; finding out is part of the adventure) among everyone. And I think there are reasons they don't, but these reasons constitute more than just inattention or foolishness. Culture, politics, economics, and history suggest reasons. Literature (fiction) may be a much better guide to true education in rural places than the sorts of poor studies we educationists sponsor. Check out Wendell Stegner's Second Growth (circa 1950) or Annie Proulx's The Shipping News (circa 1990) and even E.M. Forster's Howards End (circa 1920). These folks have preserved something we have tried desperately to abandon, but can't actually escape. The wonder is that, though these books (and many more) treat the dilemmas of rural life, they also deal with the idea of a true education more universally. Now, that's fun because it's not easy. In particular, novels don't lend themselves to translations as cookbooks. Teaching well is the most difficult work in the world. We make a great mistake with attempts to make it easy or happy. Happiness is not a worthy aim for education, nor is getting and holding a good job.

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Published

1995-03-31

How to Cite

Howley, C., & Theobald, P. (1995). Review of De Young,"Life & Death of a Rural American High School: Farewell Little Kanawha". Education Policy Analysis Archives, 3, 8. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v3n8.1995

Issue

Vol. 3 (1995)

Section

Articles