Marginally Valued: The Shallow Portrayal of Livestock Animals in Schoolbooks
Analysis reveals: Discrimination of animals in educational textbooks highlighted - Schoolbooks Discrimination Revealed: Unveiling Animal bias in Educational Materials
(By Peter Carstens)* ≈ 4 Min Read
"The cow is a vital livestock animal for us humans. Besides dairy cows, breeding focused on beef cattle yielded beefies, these bullish beasts packing an average daily gain of about one kilogram." This is from a textbook, and it screams one thing loud and clear – milk and meat business. But there’s more going on in the background.
In a 2024 research study by the Biology Education Research Group at the University of Osnabrück, a team scrutinized how animals are depicted in school textbooks. The findings? Authors tend to portray livestock animals as nothing more than resources, devoid of intrinsic worth, and speak about them efficiently – without any emotional appeal. Co-author Milan Büscher puts it this way: “Authors of schoolbooks treat livestock as commodities, devoid of any appreciable lives.”
- Livestock
- Animal Rights
- Psychology
- Education
- Student
- University
Stemming from the Past
The overarching global food system for centuries has viewed animals primarily as resources. However, the systematic way in which schoolbooks perpetuate this dehumanizing trend is concerning, shedding light on a deeper societal issue affecting animal welfare and perspectives toward them.
If this investigation provides one crucial takeaway, it's the urgent need for educators to recognize the importance of teaching students about animals with empathy and incorporating discussions about animal welfare. A higher awareness of the complexity and sentience of animals in textbooks would foster more humane attitudes toward them, encouraging the next generation to question and potentially challenge the factory farming system.
- Animal Sentience
- Factory Farming
- Animal Ethics
- Animal Rights Movement
- Societal Attitudes
- Human-Animal Relationships
Against the Grain
It's past time for textbook authors to think beyond milk and meat and consider the lives of livestock animals as individuals capable of emotions, pain, and self-awareness. By interweaving insights into the cognitive, emotional, and social lives of animals into school curricula, we might help students recognize animals as beings deserving of our compassion and respect.
Make no mistake; the changes needed for better animal welfare are not limited to schoolbooks. Policymakers, industry leaders, and the general public must also assume accountability and be proactive in creating a more sustainable and compassionate global food system. Let's strive for a world where the cow is more than a kilogram per day increment, but rather a sentient, feeling being deserving of our care and compassion.
- The portrayal of livestock animals in school textbooks should be reconsidered, as they are usually depicted as mere resources instead of individuals with emotions, pain, and self-awareness.
- A shift in thinking is required among textbook authors who, rather than focusing solely on milk and meat, need to consider the lives of livestock animals from a psychological perspective.
- In order to foster humane attitudes towards animals and encourage questions about factory farming, it is essential for educators to teach about animals with empathy and incorporate discussions on animal welfare into school curricula.
- Adopting community and employment policies that prioritize animal rights and welfare can contribute to a more sustainable and compassionate global food system, helping us to move beyond viewing the cow as just a kilogram per day increment.
