Textbooks used in grades 2 through 12 in a county school system in rural North Carolina were analyzed to determine the degree of cultural congruency between school curriculum and ethnic cultural setting in Appalachia. Thirty-five elementary school reading books, high school and elementary school social studies books, and high school literature books were examined for explicit or conceivable rural Appalachian content and setting, frequency of Appalachian related items indexed, and authorship by Appalachian writers. Attention was paid to distortion, factually incorrect or incomplete statements, ethnocentric viewpoints, and the absence or imbalance of material relating to ethnic minorities. Elementary reading books contained no stories set in Appalachia and stories generally took place in urban settings. Social studies texts showed similar urban orientation and evaluative distortion of rural areas. Material about Appalachia stressed the area's deficiencies and the backwardness of its inhabitants. High school literature texts contained one short story by an Appalachian writer and no selections set in Appalachia. The content of the examined textbooks confirmed complaints of Appalachian students and parents that schools were run by and for outsiders. Selection of more balanced texts and use of supplemental reading materials were suggested to help students see school as relevant and worth continuing. A 43-item reference list concludes the document. (LFL)