Read and study this example to study for the evaluation starting MONDAY, AUGUST 21st.
“Cloning goes against nature and harms an individual’s identity.”
First of all, I am going to talk about what I can see in this photograph. There are 12 individuals across the whole photo that are all wearing dark-coloured suits and holding a white banner. The interesting aspect is that they are all wearing the same mask, which represents the idea of cloning, and it looks a little strange. Every mask is the face of a caucasian male. In the centre of the banner, it says that cloning equals cruelty. I can see that they are representing an organisation called Compassion in World Farming, which is in the bottom corners of the banner.
Second of all, I will connect the message from this photograph to the IB topic of Science and Technology. We can see the themes of cloning in a lot of science-fiction movies, but we don’t often think about how it could really affect us. It can be a very difficult topic. On the one hand, we have the possibility of cloning cells and tissues for scientific research, from which everyone in society can benefit. But the question remains- are these small pieces considered human life? On the other hand, we have the cloning of humans and other animals, which is where people start to get worried. After the first mammal was successfully cloned in 1996, people’s minds ran wild with ideas of what could be done without thinking of the consequences. If we clone other humans for donating organs, for example, what happens if the clone gets sick? Do we take organs from the “original” human to keep the clone healthy? How much do we spend on health care to cure them? Who will be allowed to clone themselves? This is why cloning goes against nature, in some ways. Who is responsible for taking care of them, giving them jobs, and educating them? If the clone commits a crime, how can we prove it was not the “original” human? This is why it is a threat to an individual’s identity.
Lastly, I will relate this photograph to a target culture. I most strongly relate this photograph to England because that’s where the first mammal was successfully cloned, and it was a sheep named Dolly. Many cultures seem to have their own area of science and research where they are ahead of everyone else, and cloning has always been that area for England and the UK. There is a significant amount of scientific and medical research going on in England regarding cloning, and we can see in this photo that there are organisations that are strongly against this idea within the target culture. There are many regulations around stem cell research, genetics research, and cloning in England, but it’s also one of the countries where the majority of this research is currently happening, and has been happening since the early 2000’s. For more than a decade, it has been legal to clone human embryos for research in the United Kingdom, which is a big step forward toward cloning humans. More recent controversies are about cloning animals for food and consumption purposes, and whether it’s safe to eat cloned meat from a pig or drink cloned milk from a cow. Scientifically, it’s pretty amazing what England has accomplished in the world of cloning, but it can be a little scary to think about how it could affect society if things don’t go perfectly.
Do not forget to address the following points:
- Describe the photo (location of information, actions and colours, etc.)
- Link the photo to the IB topic – Science and Technology (Using information from class activities and readings, as well as your previous knowledge and opinions!)
- Describe its relation to the target culture
English B IB Programme 
