The First Shared Online Curriculum Resources for Veterinary Undergraduate Learning and Teaching in Animal Welfare and Ethics in Australia and New Zealand.

Jane Johnson,Janice Lloyd,Vicky Tzioumis,Rafael Freire,Clive Phillips,Kevin Stafford,Teresa Collins,Paul Mcgreevy,Andrew Fisher,Christopher Degeling,Susan Hazel,Anne Fawcett,Jennifer Hood

doi:10.3390/ani5020362

Abstract

Simple SummaryThere is a need for teaching Animal Welfare and Ethics in veterinary schools and we are developing online resources to meet this need. In this paper we describe how we prioritized the development of these resources by polling experts in the field.The need for undergraduate teaching of Animal Welfare and Ethics (AWE) in Australian and New Zealand veterinary courses reflects increasing community concerns and expectations about AWE; global pressures regarding food security and sustainability; the demands of veterinary accreditation; and fears that, unless students encounter AWE as part of their formal education, as veterinarians they will be relatively unaware of the discipline of animal welfare science. To address this need we are developing online resources to ensure Australian and New Zealand veterinary graduates have the knowledge, and the research, communication and critical reasoning skills, to fulfill the AWE role demanded of them by contemporary society. To prioritize development of these resources we assembled leaders in the field of AWE education from the eight veterinary schools in Australia and New Zealand and used modified deliberative polling. This paper describes the role of the poll in developing the first shared online curriculum resource for veterinary undergraduate learning and teaching in AWE in Australia and New Zealand. The learning and teaching strategies that ranked highest in the exercise were: scenario-based learning; a quality of animal life assessment tool; the so-called ‘Human Continuum’ discussion platform; and a negotiated curriculum.

Highlights

Australian and New Zealand community concerns and expectations about Animal Welfare and Ethics (AWE) have risen steeply in the last decade, and continue to grow [1]
To determine the learning activities best able to achieve the AWE skills and learning outcomes identified as crucial to veterinary graduates, we engaged in a modified form of deliberative polling with an invited panel of leaders (n = 8) in the field of animal welfare education in Australia and New Zealand
Drawing on the learning resources described above, the panel agreed that the project should focus on the goals articulated under the former Australian Animal Welfare Strategy (AAWS), namely: (i) a national approach to animal welfare (AW); (ii) sustainable improvements to AW; and (iii) improved communication, education and training [29]

Summary

Introduction

Australian and New Zealand community concerns and expectations about Animal Welfare and Ethics (AWE) have risen steeply in the last decade, and continue to grow [1]. Recommends that Day One veterinary graduates “should be the leading advocates for the welfare of all animals, recognizing the key contribution that animals make to human society through food production, companionship, biomedical research and education” [3]. This paper describes part of an ongoing project that aims to ensure Australian and New Zealand veterinary graduates develop the knowledge, and the research, communication and critical reasoning skills, to fulfill the AWE role expected of them in contemporary society.

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Discussion

Conclusion