Picturing Rural America

An Analysis of the Representation of Contemporary Rural America in Picture Books for Children

  • Karen Eppley Penn State University, Altoona

Abstract

A quiet but persistent dialog about the importance of place is happening in educational research. This study contributes to that conversation by offering a critical analysis of how picture books show a “placed,” rural America. To increase understanding of the social constructions of rurality, 24 picture books were analyzed using qualitative content analysis to determine how contemporary rural life is represented in picture books for children. Results indicated images falling into six categories: Rural people are self-reliant; rural people are connected; rural people are satisfied and happy; rural people are diverse; rural areas are expendable and, rural people are ‘Other’.  

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Author Biography

Karen Eppley, Penn State University, Altoona
Karen Eppley is an assistant professor of language and literacy education at Penn State, Altoona, where she teaches in an undergraduate teacher preparation program which prepares most of its teacher candidates for work in local schools. Her research interests include poststructural theory, rural education and rural teacher preparation. Karen is a ‘rural’ person who grew up attending country auctions.
Published
2010-11-15
How to Cite
Eppley, K. (2010). Picturing Rural America. The Rural Educator, 32(1). https://doi.org/10.35608/ruraled.v32i1.433
Section
Research Articles