In 1933, the National PTA Congress issued the following statement in support of Humane Education:

“Children trained to extend justice, kindness and mercy to animals become more just, kind and considerate in their relations with each other. Character training along these lines will result in men and women of broader sympathies, more humane, more law-abiding - in every respect more valuable citizens.

Humane education is the teaching in schools and colleges of the nations the principles of justice, goodwill, and humanity toward all life. The cultivation of the spirit of kindness to animals is but the starting point toward the larger humanity that includes one’s fellow of every race and clime. A generation of people trained in these principles will solve their international difficulties as neighbors and not as enemies."

Humane Education helps teachers instill the values that are taught in a character education program because animal content captures a child’s attention, imagination and heart in ways that people-focused content might not. (The Character Connection)

According to a 1999 study conducted by Ban and Cummings, school provides the primary influence on moral behavior. Based on this study and the many studies that show the positive effects Humane Education has, Humane Education should become an integral part of every school's curriculum.

"Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." Albert Einstein

©2007-2009 Humane Education Teacher