Humane teaching methods and experiences of their application at pedagogical universities
By Alexandr Pins’ki, Lecturer at the Department of Botany, National Pedagogical Skovoroda University of Kharkiv
Years of applying humane teaching methods at the National Pedagogical University of Kharkiv have revealed a number of advantages, as well as some challenges associated with their use.
Experience with humane technologies at the Eco-Bioethics Center of the Faculty of Natural Sciences has shown that using educational films and computer programs to teach specific topics in traditional science courses provides comprehensive and valuable learning materials for biology courses. These tools make it possible to dispense with the use of animals in teaching and help foster a bioethical attitude toward nature, shaping an ecological awareness among biology students.
The use of the Alternative Resources Library, established at the Eco-Bioethics Center of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, represents a relatively new form of bioethical education for both students and lecturers in the natural sciences, as well as for those in other faculties where basic biology is taught.
At the end of the 20th century, practical courses such as Vertebrate Zoology, Human and Animal Anatomy and Physiology, and fieldwork typically involved 15–20 animals from various vertebrate classes (fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals) per student over the course of their studies.
Over the past two decades, due to ongoing economic difficulties, 4–6 animals have been dissected—one animal per student group. As a result, students did not to gain practical skills as they were outside observers of the “phenomenon” demonstrated by the lecturer.
The improvements in material supplies in recent years have brought about a dilemma: whether to increase funding for the acquisition and improvement of the quality of animal husbandry or to implement humane teaching methods (given that departments of the Faculty of Natural Sciences are already equipped with at least the necessary computer technology).
The use of the Alternative Resources Library, teaching materials provided by organizations like InterNICHE (International Network for Humane Education), Doctors Against Animal Experiments, and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) has greatly improved the quality of biology education. This is supported by the results of several councils of the Faculty of Natural Sciences and private conversations with lecturers from various Kharkiv universities, who confirm that the challenges faced in biology education are largely similar.
Pedagogical studies suggest that the use of animal-free methods is especially beneficial from a psychological point of view. Humane methods do not traumatize students or lecturers. In fact, only one student of the fourth course of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, specializing in biology, expressed in a 2012 survey that dissections of animals could have increased his interest in zoology.
Humane teaching methods are also pedagogically sound. Students who regularly use these methods need less time to master the necessary content. This opens up new opportunities for self-study.
The most recent humane teaching methods at the Faculty of Natural Science at the National Pedagogical Skovoroda University Kharkiv are used in workshops such as “Technology and Methodology of Biology Education” and “Selected Topics in Biology Teaching Methodology.” These humane methods also allow to effectively consolidate the subject matter outside the classroom, individually and as often as needed. This facilitates professional training of students and, ultimately, getting their first job in a prestigious Kharkiv educational institution.
In light of the above, the need for continued reform of biology education at pedagogical universities—toward a humane direction, including the mandatory introduction of bioethics courses—has become clear. The knowledge gained in this way can later be used by graduates in their work with schoolchildren.
It is necessary to provide students who, for ethical, psychological, or religious reasons, refuse to participate in or witness animal dissections with alternative opportunities to acquire knowledge and skills. In this way, young people are guaranteed respect for their personal rights and freedoms under the Ukrainian “Law on the Protection of Animals from Abuse”, as well as respect for their physical, psychological and mental integrity in accordance with international conventions on the protection of human rights and dignity.
One important development in addressing this issue has been the gradual establishment of multimedia biology laboratories at all departments of the Faculty of Natural Sciences since 2004.
It is also worth noting that graduates of the pedagogical university who go on to teach at schools and gymnasiums are allowed, with prior approval, to use the Alternative Resources Library and copy teaching materials for their classes.
An analysis of the activities of the region’s best biology teachers and heads of working groups of extracurricular institutions of biological education indicates that humane teaching methods have been used in Kharkiv region for a long time. This is reflected in the themes of conferences conducted under the guidance of the Kharkiv Biology Division of the ODD and UT.
The introduction of alternatives not only improves the quality and retention of knowledge, but – as biology teachers in urban and especially rural schools confirm –also enhances students’ preparation for biology competitions and tournaments. In some cases it even influences the direction of research conducted by student science clubs and promotes ecological projects that have a positive impact on students’ mental well-being.
September 24, 2013
Alexandr Pins’ki, Lecturer at the Department of Botany, National Pedagogical Skovoroda University of Kharkiv