We know too little about science education. What is clear is that, as science itself is affected by the society in which it is embedded, science education is even more directly impacted by the social, political, cultural, philosophical, ethical and religious views of the society which provides and promotes this education. How science education is affected by these forces is an important general question for the history of science, for the history of education, and for science and education policy. We are in great need of case studies in order to understand the interaction of science and society in science education. Dr. Weiss is examining one of the most important cases, that of the impact of Nazi ideology on biology education in the Third Reich. To understand how this ideology permeated the "objective" teaching of science in the secondary schools cannot but serve as a clear warning about the need for enormous care in the preparation of our school curricula and the training of our teachers. Despite the growing interest and importance in examining the production, role, and fate of science in the Third Reich, primary and secondary school science education under National Socialism has yet to find its historian. Dr. Weiss's study of biology education during the Third Reich will provide a corrective, at least in part, to this situation. She will examine in detail the dialectical relationship between biology instruction and Nazi ideology by focussing on three different facets of the topic: 1) an analysis of the specific content of the biology taught in the schools; 2) an examination of the implementation of their reform of biology education in the primary and secondary schools; and 3) an investigation of both the educational training and the political and professional outlook of biology teachers. This grant will allow Dr. Weiss to finish the first phase of the project: a study of biology education in boy's secondary schools. The completed project will contribute to our understanding of the function of Nazi science education and also serve as a model for more extensive research on science education in general.
