Learning the Language of Home: Using Place-based Writing Practice to Help Rural Students Connect to Their Communities

Abstract

The idea of "place" extends beyond the locations where people live.  Place is a narrative which shapes identity and culture and provides an understanding of experience.  By exploring place and the connections which evolve from place, an intriguing context begins to take a shape that inspires transformational ideas and actions. This article investigates how place-based writing practices affect rural middle school students’ connections with their home community as evidenced through their writing. This study follows the critical pedagogy of place theoretical framework and works to support best practices in rural education research. A qualitative case study design was used to conduct this study in a rural middle school in North Carolina.