Within our textbook it highlights how technology can affect folk culture with the integration of popular culture to the masses. What if the opposite could be used instead? What if you leveraged technology to maintain your cultural or religious practices?
While there are Mormons that live in Arizona, most of the Mormon population in Arizona was in northern and central Arizona. When I lived in southeastern Arizona there were a surprising number of people within my high school that were Mormon. Since most of the schools that cater to the Latter Day Saints are based in Utah, they had no choice but to go to a traditional or public high school. Perhaps if they would have had the choice to go to a Latter Day Saints affiliated school then they still would have chosen a public school. Without viable options people can be forced to use educational resources that are available.
Now however with technology there is school Liahona Preparatory Academy that offers distance education along with their private high school education. Here is a link to the website http://www.liahona-homeschooling.com/Default.aspx. When students enroll in Liahona Preparatory Academy they are given access to streaming video of the classes they are registered in.
Just as with Bellevue University there is a discussion board with daily assignments, supplemental notes, and an area for students and parents to check grades. For a practicing Mormon that migrates to another area in the United States or world for that matter they can still continue to have their children embrace what they hold to be important. While visiting the Liahona website there was testimonial from distance learners from Idaho to Alaska. I would be interested to find out where the farthest distance learner lives away from the academy.
There are some drawbacks to distance learning in my opinion. The interaction with the teacher and other students is a crucial portion of the learning process. I know that seems hypocritical to say when I am currently enrolled in distance learning. However, I feel that is different from a high school learning environment where people learn social cultural norms and interaction. My interaction with kids that were home schooled could be described as awkward. Since they had limited interaction with cultural standards of a school environment and I had no idea of the cultural standards of a home schooled environment it was difficult for both parties in my opinion to relate. I wonder how this continues when they interact with more and more people throughout the United States. Most people in the United States attend some form of public or private schooling and learn school cultural standards.
While I am not a practicing Mormon or an advocate of distance learning or home schooling, I respect parent’s wish to have their child educated in the manner that see fit. I applaud any cultural or religion that does not view technology as a pitfall and embraces the technology to maintain its culture and religious practices.
