Education Commons^™

An Exploration Of Experiences Of Ontario Teachers With Animals And Their Perception Of Animals In The Classroom, Avery M. Harte

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Educators in Ontario have been challenged to support student achievement in academia, sustainability, social justice, and experiential learning. There is a need for tools which accomplish this learning simultaneously. This qualitative research explores the opinions and experiences of teachers with respect to student interactions with animals as a means of accomplishing learning in these areas. Semi-structured interviews with seven teachers were qualitatively analyzed through the framework of humane education and animal-assisted education. The teachers answered questions that explored their knowledge of animals, humane education, and animal-assisted education; their perception of animals in the enactment of pedagogy; their experiences with animals …