Secondary School Units

The activities in this unit will provide students with a basic understanding of the alternatives to the use of animals for dissection in biology and other science classes, the arguments for and against dissection and the environmental and social costs of using animals for dissection. Students will also be able to examine the relative merits of dissection as a teaching method and to form their own conclusions.

Forest, meadows, parks, seashores, tidal estuaries and marshes throughout the United States attract and sustain a rich diversity of both seasonal and permanent wildlife species. Even urban environments attract a wide variety of wildlife. New York City, for example, "is located on the Atlantic Flyway, one of the nation's premier bird migration routes... Many of these migrants stop to rest and feed in the city's park before continuing on their journeys (New York- Wildlife Viewing Guide).

This unit will provide information concerning the hunting and trapping of animals and how this has led to extinction and endangerment of some species. Alternatives to the use of animals for fur will also be explored.

The unit will enable students to identify great apes and the similarities they share with humans as well as differences. Students will learn about the family and social structures, behavioral characteristics and physical needs of these highly intelligent animals. Additionally, students will develop an understanding of the ethical issues raised by human use of the great apes and will explore various human perspectives and subsequent actions.

This unit will aquatint students with some of the Medical Research Modernization Committee's concerns about the scientific value of animal research. It will also suggest a variety of non-animal methodologies that could be used as alternatives to animal research.

The following projects won humane science awards at New York Academy of Sciences annual student expos.

In May 2000, Gary Woodward, of Christ the King Regional High School won an award for his project entitled Behavioral Characteristics of Wolves in the Wild.

Students will learn about the ways in which "food animals" are raised on "intensive" versus "free-range" farms while conducting research for this unit. They will learn about the physical and behavioral needs of farm animals. They will learn about health and ethical considerations as well as differences in philosophies among humans regarding consumption of animals raised on farms.

This unit will provide information concerning toxic substances and trash in our environment. Students will learn about the effects of pesticides, acid rain, PCBs and trash on wildlife and people.

This unit will describe a project undertaken by Rhonda Donn, when she was a high school senior at Townsend Harris High School in Queens, New York, in 1990. It deals with an attitudinal scale she developed concerning high school students' attitudes regarding the use of animals in biomedical science. She won Westinghouse National Semi-Finalist, and Metropolitan New York Junior Science and Humanities Symposium Finalist honors with this project.

The activities of this unit will provide students with hands-on manipulative experience, an introduction to the skills of behavioral observation and data collection and an appreciation of the complex nature of insect ecology and behavior, Students will make artificial feeding stations for insects and place these in a variety of locations. They will observe and record the numbers and types of insects which come to feed, and the interactions that occur between individuals at the feeding station. They will attempt to identify the key variables that affect the numbers and types of insects that come to feed, including constitution of the food provided, placement of the food and time of day.

In this unit students will learn about the history of wild and domesticated horses. Students will develop an understanding of the ethical issues involved in the use of horses. They will learn about people who have worked to make life better for horses, and about how students and adults can become involved in helping horses.