A Study on the Normalization of Biology Education in Russia after the Period of Lysenko's Monopoly

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K16271
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Sociology/History of science and technology
• Research Institution: Tokyo Institute of Technology
• Principal Investigator: Saito Hirofumi 東京工業大学, 国際教育推進機構, 特任准教授 (30573050)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 科学史 / 生物学 / 遺伝学 / ロシア / ソ連 / 歴史学 / 教育 / ルィセンコ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study tackled to the problem of normalization of biology education in Russia after the downfall of T.D. Lysenko in 1965. Since Lysenko established his monopoly over Soviet biology in August 1948, research and education in biological fields had been circumscribed in Russia. Above all, genetics was excluded from the curriculum of universities and secondary schools. Thus, after 1965, leading biologists and pedagogues soon had to take on the difficult roles of reconstructing biology education to restore it to contemporary levels. This study elucidated the process of the reform of biology education in the post-Lysenko period through two tasks. The First, we appraised the restoration of Mendel-Morgan genetics courses into Russian universities, especially provincial ones, where it was almost unknown compared with central universities such as Moscow State University. Second, we investigated the backstage discussions for creation of the new biology curriculum for the secondary education.

Free Research Field

ロシア・ソヴィエト生物学史