SCIENCE. RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY, 1970-79 51 5 



Testimony by Dr. Lewis S. Salter, executive vice president of Knox 

 College in Galesburg, 111., documented the effect of subcommittee 

 actions in the science education field. Dr. Salter presented a chart to 

 indicate "the systematic drive to eliminate from Foundation support 

 all science education programs of essentially sustaining type." He then 

 added : 



Without the action of Congress, and specifically of this subcommittee, each of 

 these particular programs might now be extinct. 



Dr. Salter suggested that the NSF had been forced to adopt a crisis 

 approach and response to national problems, which resulted in a lack 

 of stability and predictability in scientific education. 



Academia did not always produce the best communicators. One 

 educator rambled on about Piaget psychology, creativity development, 

 and "hands-on approaches to teaching." This was too much for Sym- 

 ington, who puckishly asked the witness: 



Before I get to the serious questions, I note you refer to a hands-on approach to 

 teaching. Is that spanking? 



Chairman Teague on February 5, convened the full committee to 

 receive a general briefing from NSF Director Stever, as well as the 

 Chairman of the National Science Board, Dr. Norman Hackerman. 

 In the briefing Dr. Stever defended reductions in science education 

 funding by noting that "our first priority, under difficult budget con- 

 straints, is to maintain the strength of the research enterprise." 



Mosher reminded Dr. Stever: 



I have reviewed the public law — in fact, I have it here in front of me — certainly 

 there is nothing in the public law that says the Foundation has a priority greater for 

 basic research than it does for support of science education. 



Dr. Stever cleverly ducked the issues with the observation: 



I agree. We have several children, and it is as hard to talk about who is your 

 favorite child, as it is to assign a priority in this instance. 



CONLAN ATTACKS MACOS 



As the briefing drew to a close, a member of the full committee, 

 Representative John B. Conlan (Republican of Arizona), raised an 

 issue which ballooned into a bitter debate within the committee, 

 within the Congress, and to some extent within the Nation. NSF was 

 clearly on the defensive in having funded a program which suddenly 

 became controversial largely through Conlan 's efforts: MACOS. 



Conlan started out rather mildly, mentioning the dozens of adverse 

 telegrams he had received from concerned parents. He indicated that 

 the anthropology course for fifth- through seventh-grade students, 

 centered on social habits and practices of the Netsilik Eskimos and 



