Table Of ContentAnimal Bioethics
Principles and Teaching Methods
edited by:
M. Marie
S. Edwards
G. Gandini
M. Reiss
E. von Borell
Animal Bioethics: Principles and Teaching Methods
This book was partly developed within the AFANet Socrates Thematic Network for
Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture and the Environment (2000-2004). This project
has been carried out with the support of the European Community in the
framework of Socrates programme. The content of this book does not necessarily
reflect the position of the European Community, nor does it involve any
responsibility on the part of European Community.
Animal Bioethics
Principles and Teaching Methods
Edited by:
M. Marie
S. Edwards
G. Gandini
M. Reiss
E. von Borell
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Preface
It is a matter of fact that, nowadays, animal bioethics is assuming a growing
importance in our societies. Issues such as, for example, the conditions of farm
animals’ breeding and housing, transport and slaughter, the introduction of genetic
engineering into animal production, the use of animals in experimentation, or
wildlife in captivity for public demonstration, entertainment or even in a domestic
environment as ‘new’ companion animals, are subjects of discussion and question
our conceptions of the human-animal relationship. This situation can be attributed
to multiple causes, including the evolution of practices and uses of animals, the
abuses and misuses which have been brought to the attention of the public, the
higher sensitivity of the general public to these issues, the growing influence of
pressure groups and the consideration of such societal demands at the political level,
and the evolution of the moral framework in a post-modern, multicultural, global
society. As a consequence, there has been a reappraisal of the legal framework, first
at different paces in individual European countries, then in a co-ordinated way in
Europe from 1978 onwards. The subject is now under consideration at the
international level under the auspices of the OIE (the World Organisation for Animal
Health).
This situation emphasises the increasing moral responsibility of professionals in
their actions involving animals, and the necessity for them to communicate with
the wider society in this respect. In order to respond to these concerns, many higher
education institutions are engaged in a process of setting up new courses and
curricula devoted to societal demands and the moral aspects of human action, and,
specifically in veterinary, agronomy and science studies, to animal bioethics. This
trend is rather new: as revealed by a survey performed in 2003 in 17 European
countries, 43% of such courses were created during the previous five years. It
appears also that the pedagogic practice in such courses is quite variable between
institutions in terms of content, volume, background of the teachers, and teaching
methods. However, these courses represent only a small share of the global curricula,
and the topic is still largely excluded from biology textbooks. Accordingly, there is
a need to share experience regarding this subject in terms of materials and teaching
methods in order to help teachers to develop new courses and to spread good
practice. This book, aimed at teachers, students, professionals, and every individual
wanting to develop skills for communication and moral reasoning, is designed to
fill this gap.
Animal Bioethics:Principles and Teaching Methods 7
In the first chapters, this book addresses fundamental aspects of animal bioethics:
concepts relating to the human-animal relationship and the corresponding moral
positions are examined from different perspectives, according to the historical,
philosophical, religious, cultural and economic points of view. The contributions
of antic, virtue, deontologic, utilitarianist, contractualist or post-modern ethics are
reviewed. Is humankind unique and different from animals (dualism), or do we all
belong to the same community (monism), and what consequences should be
inferred from the answer about ethical conduct towards animals? What are the
implications linked to theo-, anthropo-, zoo- (or patho-), bio- or eco-centred world
views? These questions are also tackled. Whilst animal welfare is often considered
as the first, if not the only, entry to bioethics, broader approaches such as the respect
for animal integrity or intrinsic value (based on cases such as blind or featherless
hens obtained by selective breeding, or pigs genetically engineered in order to be
used for xeno-transplantation) have also to be taken into account. Through the
different contributions, the points of view of different parties and driving forces such
as stockpersons, scientists, consumers, animal protectionist associations, lawyers,
and economic forces, are explored. It is hoped that this in-depth analysis will
contribute to the enhancement of the content of the teaching and give an
understanding of the dynamics of the concept of bioethics, in the past as well as in
the future.
The second part of this book is about objectives, strategies and methods of
teaching and communication. Beyond developing knowledge on fundamental
aspects of ethics, with special reference to animal bioethics, the objectives are to
increase sensitivity and awareness about this subject, to develop skills in moral
reasoning and judgement for problem solving, and, also, to shape the moral
psychology and moral behaviour of individuals.
The proposed methods are mainly student-centred, facilitating an active
participation of the learner, with intensive use of the problem-based learning
approach. They present a large range of complexity, from simple games, to exercises
of variable length, case studies (either constructed or real-life dilemmas), role
playing, and structured tools such as the ethical matrix and the reflexive equilibrium
method. They are adapted to the different stages of the learning process or to the
final evaluation, and help in supporting the different levels of attainment, from
specific phases (such as motivational, or analytical steps) to elaborated handling of
complex cases.
Description of existing courses, with reviews of experience, emphasizing
interdisciplinary approaches and the link between ethical theory and concrete cases,
8 Animal Bioethics:Principles and Teaching Methods
on one hand, and the in-depth analysis of the content of a syllabus such as that
devoted to animal welfare, on the other hand, will help in developing curricula,
identifying relevant material and shaping ‘ideal libraries’.
Three different indexes (i: philosophical concepts, schools, authors; ii: cases,
situations; iii: teaching methods and objectives) have been designed to help locate
relevant information and references within the book.
The concept of this book arose during the course of the AFANet project, the
European Socrates Thematic Network for Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture and the
Environment (2000-2004), within the Aristoteles activity devoted to animal bioethics
teaching. This activity incorporated the above-mentioned survey of contemporary
practice in bioethics teaching, two workshops (Nancy 2002: “Teaching animal
bioethics in agricultural and veterinary higher education in Europe”; Dublin 2004:
“Design and implementation of case studies in animal ethics teaching”), and the
development of an on-line course database (http://www.ensaia.inpl-
nancy.fr/bioethics/). We hope that it will help the sharing of experience and the
spreading of good practice in this still evolving domain.
M. Marie
S. Edwards
G. Gandini
M. Reiss
E. von Borell
Animal Bioethics:Principles and Teaching Methods 9
