[Bridging_the_digital_divide] Virtual Biology Labs due to animal rights?

[Jason Barkeloo]

A second look at the biology lab
By April Austin | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
  A single whiff of formaldehyde transports many adults back to biology 
class and dissection. It's hard to forget the odor that arose from 
trays of rubbery, preserved frogs or fetal pigs.

  But that rite of passage is now being challenged by students who find 
dissection objectionable on animal-rights grounds.

The issue came up recently on the prime-time television show "8 Simple 
Rules." The character Kerry, one of the two daughters, becomes 
concerned about frog dissection in her school and organizes a sit-in to 
protest the practice.

As animal-rights groups have stepped up their campaign to stop the use 
of animals for research, the message is being heeded by some students 
in middle and high school.

It's a controversy that pits animal rights against traditional methods 
of teaching science and anatomy.

"There's no substitute for dissection," says Wayne Carley, executive 
director of the National Association of Biology Teachers. He insists 
the move against dissection comes more from squeamish students being 
manipulated by radical animal-rights groups than from a groundswell of 
concern for animal welfare. "High school kids are easy targets," he 
says.

Still, the NABT supports the idea that "teachers should consider how 
their students would react [to dissection]," says Mr. Carley. "We 
support the wise use of animals, and that could mean a reduction in the 
number of specimen animals used."

About 6 million animals are dissected each year in US schools, 
according to the Humane Society of the United States. These include 
frogs, fetal pigs, and cats. The cats come from shelters that would 
have euthanized the animals, Carley says, or the animals are procured 
by dealers in the US or Mexico.

But today, the quest is on to find credible alternatives to dissection 
at all levels - from high school and college classrooms to research 
labs and veterinary schools. This means some type of computer 
simulation, such as can be found on websites such as www.froguts.com. 
Because the technology is still being refined, the programs for the 
most part aren't sophisticated. Some life-sciences teachers, including 
Jessica Crosby of Pollard Middle School in Needham, Mass., use virtual- 
dissection programs to prepare students for the real thing.

In April, before the unit on frog dissection, Ms. Crosby gave each of 
her 90 students a confidential survey that asked how hands-on they 
wanted to be during the procedure. This year, she says, although some 
were apprehensive at first, every student participated. "I saw how 
engaged the kids were. They were so proud that they could identify the 
organs," she says.

Nine states have laws or policies that allow students to opt out of 
dissection, according to the Humane Society of the United States, and 
several more are contemplating such measures.

But the issue goes deeper, says Andrew Rowan, chief of staff for animal 
research at the Humane Society. "It's much easier to get students' 
attention by dropping a dead animal in front of them," he says. "But 
when students are forced to do dissection, they're turned off. The 
lesson, which is in part to get them interested in science, has exactly 
the opposite effect."

Crosby says dissection offers an unmatched opportunity to see how each 
anatomical system is part of the whole. "I wouldn't force a student to 
do it if it violated their beliefs," she adds.

A March survey by the National Science Teachers Association showed that 
80 percent of its members think dissection activities are important to 
science learning, with 76 percent including dissection of animal 
specimens in their lessons. Of the teachers who said they've decreased 
the frequency of dissection in class, the biggest reason cited was the 
expense of specimens, not pressure from students or outside groups.

Concern for animals in the larger society has trickled down to high 
school students, says Rowan. "As a society, we now think differently 
about hunting, about how well pets are treated, about cosmetics 
testing, and the rights of animals," he says. "But biology classes are 
still doing the same things they've always done. Biology should be a 
study of life, not death."

Crosby says her students seemed better able to recall the material 
after the dissection. "The virtual dissection is still on a screen," 
she says. "You're not really doing it."

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0608/p14s01-legn.html

---

Jason Barkeloo
President
TouchSmart Publishing
http://www.touchsmart.net
tele 513.225.8765


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