Overview
Who could possibly support the selling of human organs? Isn’t that wrong? What about all the people waiting for transplants? Who benefits from the sale? Who loses? This video looks at the debate over the sale of human organs.

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Grade level and subjects
• Recommended for grades 6-12
• Subjects: Science / Technology and Health / Phys. Ed
• Works in Classroom, Hybrid, and Homeschool settings

What students will learn
By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
• discuss the importance of organ transplants;
• explain the impact of the lack of organs for transplant;
• summarize the ethical questions surrounding the sale of human organs; and
• assess the impact of legalizing the sale of human organs for transplant.

Key concepts and terms covered
Black market.

Sample discussion questions
• Who owns you?
• How can we increase the number of people saved by organ donations? Do we need to use force? Should we?
• What about the people who die while waiting for organs?
• What is an “incentive”? Lloyd Cohen said that financial incentives work for everything. They work for food, they work for housing, they work for clothing. Why?
• The National Organ Transplant Act states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human organ for valuable consideration for use in human transplantation if the transfer affects interstate commerce.” Why does the act specify “interstate commerce”?

What’s in the free teacher’s guide
This printable 7-page Teacher's Guide includes a lesson description, learning objectives, key vocabulary, a fill-in viewing guide with answer key, discussion and analysis questions, and classroom activities.

Standards alignment
Aligned to state standards — use the SITC Standards Tool to match this video to the standards in your state.