A Troubling Inheritance: Reworking Problematic Curricula

by Seth A. McCall

Overview

As long as there have been formal curricula, there have been disappointing curricula. In an increasingly authoritarian world, problematic curricula are on the rise, leaving teachers in a bind. When faced with these problematic curricula, some teachers will submit and do as they are told, while other teachers will oppose the problematic curricula, and, in some cases, face the consequences. Instead, Seth McCall argues for reworking problematic curricula. Turning to the nearest bookshelf, he engages with his own troubling inheritance, a problematic curriculum: E. D. Hirsch et al.’s The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. As a gift from a beloved family member, that text proved too dear to discard and too problematic to accept unchanged. Drawing on examples of assemblage art, the author reworks the problematic curriculum through cutting, juxtaposing with other materials, and re-contextualizing in a different setting. Navigating in the wake of reactionary movements, A Troubling Inheritance: Reworking Problematic Curricula encourages teachers to find forms of subsistence while continuing to work toward a larger vision of social justice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781666912586
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/01/2024
Pages:	136
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.38(d)

About the Author

Seth A. McCall is postdoctoral research associate at the Center for Technology and School Change and teaches social studies education courses at Wayne State University.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: The Meaning of Hirsch

Chapter 2: The Problem of Curriculum

Chapter 3: The Object as Given

Chapter 4: Troubling Inheritances in Schools

Chapter 5: Archives in Flux: A Methodological Dilemma

Chapter 6: Experimenting with a Troubling Inheritance

Chapter 7: Reassembling Problematic Curricula

Conclusion

Bibliography

About the Author

Editorial Reviews

Dehistoricization is a tool used by those who would undermine, exploit, or attack the field of education. A Troubling Inheritance situates our current moment by placing it in relationship with what McCall describes as a troubling inheritance. This book matters because it historicizes the current work of teaching and learning, which helps educators resist neoliberal trends that undermine democracy in schools and society.”

Samuel Jaye Tanner

In this beautifully written, brilliantly argued book, Seth McCall challenges us to find more playful ways to deal with our (curricular) troubling inheritance. Framed by a sophisticated and nuanced use of affect theory, McCall wonders what curricula can do, and then experiments with the many ways in which problematic pedagogical objects can move us to imagine education otherwise.”

Dani Friedrich

This book tells multiple stories about another book, received as a gift from the author’s aunt, who was also a teacher. Seth McCall interrogates this text within multiple contexts—personal, historical, racial, philosophical, and curricular—for what it does and what it tries to do. The troubling of accepted knowledge across the chapters brilliantly illustrates our entanglements with books and curricula that both fetter and free, exploit and enlighten. McCall moves in close on our curricular attachments and offers inventive approaches for reworking those inheritances.”

Nancy Lesko