Last week, AP Biology students dissected a sheep's eye. This week, we began the dissection of the fetal pig. Mrs. Ericson has informed us that fetal pigs, or unborn pigs, are a by-product of the meat packing industry. In other words, they did not sacrifice their lives solely for our dissections. Instead, their unfortunate deaths will contribute to our studies of life.
I'm almost positive that every student has to participate in at least some part of the dissection. A few students last year and this year had tremendous difficulty beginning the process, yet followed through eventually. If a student finds the dissection morally incorrect or unsound, should he/she still be obliged to participate? Because we took the AP exam, the lab practical for the fetal pig dissection has taken the place of our final exam. In order to do well on the lab, the students would have had to participate during the dissection. Would the teacher be obliged to make an alternative form of the final exam? Or, all this aside, should the student be forced to dissect the fetal pig?
The reason I bring this up is because of the many lessons we've been learning in health, many of which correlate to the idea of "staying true to one's values/morals." Could the dissection be compromising someone's morals?
(Sam Maliha)
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5 comments:
This is the age-old question of disections. I think that if you are taking AP Bio you should be prepared for dissections. I hope I am right in assuming that your teacher did not just give you a fetal pig one day out of the blue and say it was your final exam. You've been building to this point.
If someone really did not want to dissect the pig they should either, sorry, suck it up, or come up with a practical alternative. I would not be too keen on dissecting a fetal pig but that is for issues with the grossness. So I purposefully am taking Physics for the last year of high school. The teacher can do as she pleases but if a student is really going to make a fuss about a pig dissection then she can probably easily come up with an alternative activity for him/her.
(Kelley Volosin)
I agree with Kelley. Even before we had to choose our science for course for this year, we've heard stories about this dissection. It's nothing new. If a student is really grossed out by it, they should have picked a different course. After all, biology is 'the study of life.' A dissection is a great learning tool that can be used to show the real parts of the body of the animal. Pictures and textbooks can only go so far.
Also, it's not like Mrs. Ericson is some horrible demon lady that is completely heartless. If a student came up with a legitimate reason that they can't do the dissection or feel really strongly against it, I don't think that she would object. The student would just be causing more work for the teacher, but it's not impossible.
That actually leads me to another question. With the advances in technology, dissections can be done online. It's still a hands on experience and gets rid of all the disgusting parts of a dissection. Do you think that schools should consider this method? It seems to take a lot of drama out of the whole dissection problem.
I think there is certainly a difference between not wanting to do a dissection because it's gross, and not wanting to do it because one has moral objections. I see the argument that Kelley and Mary are making, and I think that if Mrs. Ericson were to come up with an alternative assignment many people would vouch for that for the "grossness" reason, which should not be a legitimate reason. But, for those who have legitimate moral objections, how about writing a paper on the topic? Or, practically, they could be lab assistants, helping with the tools and stuff like that, instead of directly participating in the lab. I don't take Bio, so I'm not informed on the topic, but I'm sure Mrs. Ericson knows what she's doing. She's been teaching this class for how many years...?
Emily T.
I agree with Emily. Many students might feel squeamish about dissecting a fetal pig, or uncomfortable because this is a new experience for them. However, those reasons are distinct from having a genuine religious or moral objection to dissecting a pig. The majority of students fall into the first camp, so while they might complain or feel hesitant about the dissection, they eventually go through with it. Very few students have a genuine moral objection, but if they did, I'm sure an alternative assignment could be found for them.
Whether dissections in general or morally right or not remains and enduring question. Personally, I feel that morality is relative. It really comes down to the individual to decide the morality of his actions. No one else should judge.
-Eric W
I agree with Emily that opposing dissection due to moral issues is quite different from opposing it due to an initial discomfort. If an alternative activity were to be offered, I feel that most would choose to opt out of the actual dissection. What good would this do? Once a couple people say that they are not going to dissect the fetal pig, others will follow suit and perhaps falsely claim that they have moral concerns as well. In my opinion, since dissection is an important part of the biology curriculum, unfortunately it must be an aspect of each and every student's experience. (Of course, I am biased because I am one of those fortunate souls who is not too unnerved by the process of dissection.)
Yet at the same time, I recognize the possible morality of dissection and the difficulty of the situation. I'm sure that no teacher feels comfortable forcing his/her students into participating in an activity that compromises their morals. However, a fellow AP Bio student myself, I recall that Mrs. Ericson's response to people's complaining about the grossness of dissection was that MHS AP Bio students had been doing the dissection for years and had all eventually gotten over it. Indeed, as Kelly stated, this is the age-old question of dissections.
We can't necessarily say that students grossed out by dissections "should have picked a different course" because not EVERYONE heard about the fetal pig dissection from past AP Bio students (well, at least I didn't). Perhaps dissection should be included in the course description, though, in order to alert students. Then it would be less of an issue for those who morally object dissecting an eye or organism.
Any thoughts from the other Bio students?
(Janet Lee)
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