Book smart

John Rudolph, assistant professor in School of Education and a faculty affiliate in science and technology studies, “Scientists in the Classroom: The Cold War Reconstruction of American Science Education,” Palgrave Macmillan, 2002.

In response to Soviet advances in science and engineering education, the United States’ top scientists launched in 1956 a reform of pre-college physics and biology education. Rudolph traces the origins of the movement’s leading projects.

The scientists directing these programs drew on their wartime experiences in weapons research and development, and in defense consultation to guide their foray into education. Specifically, they used the systems-engineering approach in weapon-system design as a model for how textbooks, laboratories and films might function together to maximize student learning, Rudolph says.

The broader social and political conditions of 1950s Cold War America fundamentally shaped the nature of the course materials the scientists produced. Contrary to the common perception, they focused on reaching students who were not going to become scientists.

“Scientists in the Classroom” received honorable-mention awards from the History of Education Society and the American Educational Research Association in 2003.

Now focused more broadly on the history of science education in America, Rudolph is examining changing portrayals of scientific epistemology in school classrooms during the 20th century.

— Karen Faster