A few years ago, the Church and monarchical institutions launched a fierce attack against initiatives to remove crucifixes and portraits of the monarchs from public school classrooms. They knew that children and adolescents are most susceptible to absorbing ideas, and that this is the period in which they develop a moral, political, and social foundation. Preserving these symbols in classrooms contributed to the acceptance of both institutions and, therefore, facilitated their continued existence. Fortunately, monarchical and religious symbols are no longer seen in classrooms.
Ahora la sociedad empieza a cuestionar algunas prácticas relacionadas con la explotación animal y, como respuesta, los sectores más cuestionados están dirigiendo sus campañas a los centros educativos. La Federación de Caza de Castilla y León ha preparado un video financiado por la Junta para niños de entre 7 y 12 años en el que se promociona la caza. Por su parte, la Comunidad de Madrid organiza excursionsde colegios a la plaza de Las Ventas.
These initiatives aimed at perpetuating and promoting animal exploitation have been met with outrage by the animal rights movement. However, we must bear in mind that while these cases are more visible, speciesism is completely ingrained in education. If we don't try to eliminate it from classrooms, we will hardly be able to eliminate it from society.
Regardless of the level chosen, educational curricula and therefore textbooks treat the interests of non-human animals in two distinct ways: by ignoring them or by overtly manipulating them.
In most cases, the education system treats animals as things or resources. For example, the importance of fishing for certain human societies is discussed without any mention of the fish that lose their lives in this practice. The need to kill wild boar or deer to protect crops and ecological balance is discussed, ignoring the fact that ecosystems don't feel, but animals do. Food and clothing are discussed while concealing the fact that behind every animal product there is a victim.
On the rare occasions when animals are treated as individuals, lies are told about their interests. From a very young age, children are led to believe that animals are happy in circuses or on farms. Later, fallacies are presented, such as the idea that bulls are the primary beneficiaries of bullfighting because otherwise they would disappear, and that pigs benefit from meat consumption because otherwise they would become extinct. By making new generations believe that animals are happy with exploitation, their continued existence is guaranteed. "If animals want to be exploited, what's the problem?"
This technique is as simple as it is effective; in fact, within the "animal rights movement" there are those who defend the use of "therapy dogs" or even "police dogs" without questioning from an ethical perspective that these individuals are treated as resources.
EnAnimal Classcreemos que una educación adecuada no puede basarse en mentiras o en ocultar la verdad. Es fundamental a la hora de desarrollar competencias básicas como la competencia social y ciudadana o el pensamiento crítico, hacer comprender a nuestros alumnos que los animales tienen unos intereses que deben ser considerados y para ello debemos plantear actividades en las que se pongan en el lugar de los animales.