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Chapter 04

Historical Slide Series on the History of Science from Biology Lessons in the German Democratic Republic (GDR): Gregor Mendel and Ernst Haeckel

Authors: Karl Porges — Uwe Hoßfeld — Carla Porges

Scientific lives as told through classroom images.

Chapter 04
Black-and-white historical portrait photograph of Gregor Mendel wearing round spectacles and a dark coat.
Gregor Mendel — historical portrait. Historical portrait, public domain. Source of this copy to be confirmed before publication. Illustrative reference image; not reproduced from the publication.

Look beyond the image

School materials do more than transmit facts. They also introduce students to particular stories about scientific discoveries and the people associated with them. Slides about Gregor Mendel and Ernst Haeckel provide a lens for studying those choices.

Placing these teaching materials within the history of the GDR raises broader questions about science education, historical interpretation and the relationship between a scientific biography and the era in which it is taught.

One idea to uncover

Questions to explore

  1. Which parts of a scientist's life become a classroom story?
  2. How can visual teaching materials frame scientific history?
  3. What would a present-day classroom emphasize differently?

This is a digital companion, not a reproduction of the published chapter.