Bringing Compassion to Class
The HSUS is strongly committed to the best in biology
education, but learning science does not have to involve
harming animals. Virtually all of the educational research—more
than 25 studies—shows that students using humane alternatives
learn as well as or better than those who use
dissection. But approximately six million animals—from cats and
fetal pigs to frogs captured in the wild—end up as dissection
specimens in biology classrooms across the country every
year.
We bring humane options to these classrooms. Our Humane
Education Loan Program (HELP) lets teachers and students
borrow—for free—the latest humane biology teaching
resources, such as interactive computer-based simulations,
videos, and models. And our Biological Science Consultancy
Service helps teachers identify the best resources for their
lesson plans so they can limit—and eliminate—classroom
dissection. Our service works; we've helped biology teachers
from California to Massachusetts adopt humane alternatives to
dissection in their classes.
Eight states mandate that students who want to learn without
harming animals can choose humane methods of instruction. In
other states, some school boards have adopted dissection choice
policies—and we've offered help. We recently gave evidence at a
Baltimore County, Maryland, Board of Education meeting on
behalf of honor student Jennifer Watson, who was precluded from
honors biology when she refused to dissect a cat. The school
district listened, and the very next day Jennifer was back in
class—with a loaned alternative CD-ROM from The HSUS HELP. Our
new Student Choice in Biology Education: A Policy Guide
brochure helps school boards develop choice policies to ensure
that all biology students receive a humane education—and to
prevent similar conflicts from coming up.
The future for humane biology education is bright—more
teachers are adopting alternatives and school boards are
allowing students to choose not to dissect. Science will
benefit from compassionate students who aren't forced to choose
alternate careers. And we'll keep working to ensure that
biology truly becomes the study of life. To find out more about
the resources we offer to help make classrooms more humane,
visit www.hsus.org/research or call our Animal Research
Issues staff at 202-452-1100. And for younger students, see the
link below for information on adopting an elementary school
classroom by providing a subscription to KIND News™, our
youth education division's award-winning classroom newspaper
that helps kids learn respect for animals, the environment, and
one another.
