Many state schools ignore ban on dissection

Hyderabad: Many studies have shown that exposing students to animal dissection can traumatise them, foster insensitivity toward animals and even dissuade them from pursuing careers in science.

Animal dissection still exists in many classrooms and is an essential part of practicals for science students of Classes XI and XII.

All schools under the Central Board of Secondary Education Board had banned animal dissection in 2001.

Schools under ICSE had stopped dissections even before that. The teachers’ training course under NCERT had also banned animal dissection.

State board schools, however, continue to carry out dissection.

Many animal rights activists have been seeking the use of modern pedagogical tools to learn anatomy of animals.

Some teachers and professor, though against unjustified dissections of animals, said that demonstration is important for students to gain practical knowledge.

“Every student must be able to see, touch and understand the anatomy,” said a zoology professor.