Monday, March 05, 2007

Outlaw Dissections!

In Bowie High School, I actually had an class assignment asking them to dissect a frog. Yes, the standard frog dissection. I choose not to and rather study the frog using a anatomical chart and worksheet. I respect animal rights wholly, and there are already alternatives to dissections.
...for those morally opposed, or simply too squeamish, modern technology has provided a ready alternative: computer-based virtual dissections, sometimes with three-dimensional technology that makes the experience far more vivid than regular photographs.

Some students prefer the computer versions because they are "tuned in electronically," Scovel said.

"That is their method of learning, and they can translate a virtual environment very easily into a real environment," she said. Other kids can't do that. "It has to do with their learning style and brain development."
With these alternatives, I would rather outlaw the practice of dissecting dead animals, including dead human beings. (Although We have not seen any real incidents of that sort of thing)

1 comment:

Andrew Kujan said...

Well, human dissection and research are necessary, and normally those who are dissected for the purposes of science have given permission and consider it an honor to be part of the advancement of science.

When it comes to animal dissection, I see no reason to continue its use in basic high school/middle school courses. When we dissected a frog, our teacher simply passed them out and let us go to town, no worksheet, no goals, nothing. It just smelled bad really and no one learned anything.

While dissection certainly presents a good "teaching moment" there are better ways to get the information across. While I don't believe dissection should be outlawed, it should at least be reserved for use in University/Advanced High School work, and in those cases, alternatives to dissection should be available.