GC students cut into learning
SLICING INTO ANATOMY– Junior Robin Nolin studies her feline subject during dissection in Christina Goatley’s Anatomy and Physiology class.
CAUTION: SOME READERS MAY FIND DISSECTION PHOTOS BELOW UPSETTING. SCROLL AT YOUR OWN RISK.
During 4th period on both A and B days, the upstair hallway has a peculiar smell that tends to sting the nose. Christina Goatley’s anatomy classes have started a new unit that involves hands on learning, dissection.
Goatley explained, “Dissection is a hands-on approach to learning the body systems. Surprisingly, most of the muscle names in a cat are the same name in a human, therefore, making the cat a great model for learning not only the muscles, but also the anatomy of other major body systems. Students set themselves up for their own level of success because each of them take pride and ownership in making their cat a model specimen.”
Each student is given a dissection kit that includes a scalpel, medical scissors, and forceps. Each pair follows a step by step procedure that helps them dissect the body and study each area. Students learn to properly use these tools as they also learn the different layers and areas of the cat’s body. Each section is carefully dissected and studied. All surface muscles, organs, and bones will be studied in the dissection process.
The cats that are provided are not killed for the purpose of dissection. They are cats from the Humane Society that had to be euthanized and they are preserved for dissection purposes. These animals are used to teach students and provide a hands-on experience to improve the quality of learning.
