Pedagogical proposals for the use of animals in higher education: a review

Abstract

Animals are used in teaching and research activities for centuries, especially in studies related to anatomy, physiology and, recently, pharmacology; they are also used in practical classes and educational activities of undergraduate courses. However, with the growing discussion on the rights of nonhuman animals, and aware of the responsibility of man in the preservation of the planet and in maintaining biodiversity, it is necessary to develop alternative resources to the use of animals in teaching and research in higher education. This study aimed to investigate the use of substitutive methods to animal testing, consultation national and international journals related to bioethics, animal experimentation, vivisection and alternative resources. There are substitute’s methods to animal testing, which can be applied to higher education in Brazil, especially in education and biomedical, pharmaceutical and toxicological researches. The use of animals in practical activities where they are sacrificed just to observe anatomical structures or visualization physiological processes that are already known and established, can be replaced by recordings or anatomical models. The use of alternative resources is a technological process, though slow, which should be developed, deployed, and encouraged by the professor, saying his social and scientific responsibility.