Back to Teachers Home

Harvest of Fear

Viewing Ideas

Before Watching

1. Review with students the difference between traditional plant breeding and breeding done through genetic engineering. (Traditional breeding involves exchanging all genetic material from two related plants; genetic engineering usually only involves moving one or two genes but can cross the species barrier.)

2. Explore with students what they already know about genetically modified foods. Has anyone knowingly eaten them? (See Activity Answer for examples of genetically modified foods.) If students knew a food was the product of genetic engineering would they eat it? Why or why not?

3. Divide the class into two groups. As they watch, have one group keep track of the arguments for genetically modified foods, and another group record the arguments against.

After Watching

1. Have students review and discuss the arguments they noted for and against genetically modified foods.

2. Proponents for genetic engineering suggest it will help end world hunger. Have students research and define areas of the world most affected by starvation. What populations are hardest hit? What kind of land do they have available for farming? What role, if any, could genetic engineering play in making that land useable? What are reasons for and against proposing genetic engineering as a solution?