Animals in the Learning Environment

In classrooms all across the country there are little plastic cages with hamsters and gerbils trotting away on their wheels. Turtles or frogs or fish sit in aquariums minding their own business while young eager eyes peer in at them and high-pitched voices argue over whose turn it is to sprinkle a pinch of food into the water. Or, as was the case with my private school in Vermont, a few dogs and cats traipse the halls looking to be pet and played with by someone who isn’t stuck sitting in a desk at the time. In some schools, the animals are sent home with students to be taken care of—a tool meant to teach responsibility. In other schools, the pet in question is kept in the classroom as a sort of companion for the students. I have never seen any evidence, however, that keeping animals in class improves learning in any way.

I’m wondering if any of you think there are benefits to keeping pets in the classroom? What are they?