An award-winning book from UW–Madison’s Julia Eklund Koza is being showcased by the University of Michigan Press (UMP) in its Dialogues in Democracy series leading up to the November elections.
The book in the spotlight is, “ ‘Destined to Fail’: Carl Seashore’s World of Eugenics, Psychology, Education, and Music.”
Koza, a professor emerit in the School of Education’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction and with the Mead Witter School of Music, wrote a blog post explaining the importance this work titled, “A Book Too Dangerous to Assign?”
Koza notes how chapter 10 of her book, “Resemblances,” goes over “connections between past and present that illustrate the continuing influence of eugenics” in today’s political realm.
“Destined to Fail” was named the Winner of the 2022 Outstanding Book of the Year Award in Division B: Curriculum Studies by the American Educational Research Association (AERA). UMP explains that because of the book’s timeliness (especially chapter 10, as the author notes), the entire book is available free for the rest of 2024.
“Destined to Fail” dives into the relationship between eugenics and prominent U.S. psychologist and educator Carl Seashore’s views on ability, race, and gender. Koza concludes that Seashore promoted eugenics and its companion, euthenics, because he was a true believer, and she discusses the longstanding silence surrounding Seashore’s participation in eugenics.
In the award letter, the AERA Curriculum Studies review committee writes that Koza’s book is “exquisitely written and patiently researched,” and they add, “The care and time that was poured into this anti-racist remembering of (Carl Seashore) cannot be underemphasized.”
“We believe that this work not only contributes significantly to the field of curriculum studies and music education themselves, but also more broadly to both the literary base and methods of the field of educational studies writ large,” the review committee writes. “It is critical to re-visioning an anti-racist future in education and educational research.”
Koza notes that she is offering to make a virtual visit to any class interested in talking about the book and the timely issues it raises.