 Beyond Frogs and Formaldehyde
By Jonathan Balcombe, Ph.D., and Allison George
Every week, PCRM receives inquiries about alternatives to dissection
from students, teachers, and concerned parents. Some need help
phasing out dissection at their schools; others want information
about the best alternatives. One Baltimore mother even purchased
and donated $3,000 worth of dissection alternatives to her children’s
school.
The signs are clear: Dissection is on the decline. In 2006,
New Jersey became the 13th state to recognize a student’s
right to choose humane alternatives to dissection.
With a quarter of all states now protecting student choice, a robust
market for high-quality alternatives has emerged.
In addition to
being humane, alternatives to dissection have science on their
side. Since 1968, when two schoolteachers conducted a study showing
that high school students who watched films of animal dissections
demonstrated greater factual knowledge than students who performed
dissections,1 at least 30 studies have compared the performance
of dissection as a teaching tool with various alternative methods.
Collectively, these studies have shown that alternatives ranging
from CD-ROMs to 3-D models foster equal or better learning, compared
with dissection.2
 Many students are concerned about the ecological
cost of dissection. Well-chosen alternatives do not entail the
environmental disruptions caused by collecting animals (e.g., frogs
and snakes) from their natural habitats, nor do they introduce
toxic substances like formaldehyde into the classroom.
Below are
some of the great humane CD-ROM dissection alternatives available
today. Each company offers many more programs than we can highlight
here. Costs vary, but are generally low compared with the costs
of obtaining animals. For users of any of several alternatives
loan programs available, the only cost is postage. For more information
about alternative loan programs, please contact dissection@pcrm.org.
Frogs
Digital Frog 2, by Digital Frog International, is an interactive
CD-ROM program that teaches frog dissection, anatomy, and ecology.
With individual sections focusing on advanced concepts, such
as synaptic physiology, Digital Frog 2 also allows students to
study neurological, digestive, endocrine, and immune systems
in far more detail than dissections could offer, and learning
proceeds at the student’s own pace. Though suitable for
middle school audiences,Digital Frog 2 also contains information
to challenge high school seniors. Prices range from $80 to $899,
depending on the number of users and other options.Curriculum
guides are also available. For more details, visit www.digitalfrog.com.
For a free, single-user copy of Digital Frog 2, please send  your
name and address to dissection@pcrm.org (one
per individual/school only).
Amazing Deal
Froguts, a company founded initially on its frog dissection program,
now offers frog, squid, cow eyeball, and fetal pig programs through
its “Virtual Dissection CD Subscription Service.” For
$300 a year, schools can access all of these programs, which
are renowned for their graphics, to every student. More information
is available at www.froguts.com.
Dissection Delux
ScienceWorks offers “Dissection Works Delux,” a CD-ROM
compilation of frog, fetal pig, earthworm, crayfish, and perch
dissections appropriate for grades 6-12. The Delux kit comes with
10 copies of each program for $175. More information is available
at www.scienceclass.com.
 Virtual Reality
Neotek’s revolutionary virtual reality education system allows
students to feel like they could actually reach out and touch the
specimen—without sacrificing multiple animals. Neotek’s “Dissection
Package” includes their CatLab, FrogLab, Cellular Structure,
and DryLab series, including fetal pig, crayfish, perch, rat, frog,
and worm programs, which are also available individually. All images
are based on actual dissections. The base system required for virtual
reality effects starts at $295, with additional liquid crystal
glasses sold separately. For more information, visit www.neotek.com.
Middle School Alternatives
 Younger students may enjoy Ventura Educational Systems’ software
alternatives to frog, pig, and earthworm dissection. By focusing
on hand-drawn images of the subjects, rather than photographs,
Ventura (www.venturaes.com) clearly emphasizes the systems
under scrutiny—without any gory images. The few pictures
of actual dissections that are available can be blocked by teachers
or students. Single-user copies start at $59.95, and multiuser
options can exceed $400.
1. Fowler HS, Brosius EJ. A research study on the values gained
from dissection of animals in secondary school biology. Science
Educ.1968;52: 55-57.
2. Balcombe JP. The Use of Animals in Higher Education: Problems,
Alternatives, and Recommendations. Washington, D.C.: Humane
Society Press; 2000.
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