Food for thought: Does the Food—a fact of life website benefit food and nutrition teaching in the UK?

Abstract

Food education in school is compulsory in the UK and is an important means for teaching pupils' basic food skills and about the importance of healthy eating. However, previous research has shown that UK food teachers face challenges due to time and money limitations, and value support to teach about food. Food-a fact of life (FFL) is the British Nutrition Foundation's education programme designed to help give teachers this support, with over 2000 resources online. To assess the impact of these resources, a survey was sent to UK teachers to evaluate their perceptions of the effect of using these resources on their teaching practice, classroom management, pupil learning/engagement and overall exam results. Teachers (n = 501) reported a benefit from using the FFL resources, with most respondents indicating that their use had a positive impact on their teaching practice and the learning of their pupils. This article summarises the main findings from this survey and discusses how they will be used by the British Nutrition Foundation to further improve FFL resources. K E Y W O R D Seducation, food, food and nutrition, impacts, pupils, teaching How to cite this article: White, A. (2021) Food for thought: Does the Food-a fact of life website benefit food and nutrition teaching in the UK?

Food – a fact of life

“…Research was undertaken in 2021 to find out whether FFL benefited food and nutrition teaching 1 . When asked why they used the FFL website to access resources, the most common teacher responses were ‘The resources are free’ (97%), ‘The resources are from a trusted source’ (97%) and ‘I am looking for inspiration and/or new ideas’ (95%).…”

Effectiveness of nutrition education in enhancing knowledge and attitude of pupils on choice of school mid‐day meal in Ibadan, Nigeria

“…Consequently, for children to develop the knowledge, understanding, and skills necessary to make appropriate food choices and develop a positive outlook toward food and health, messages about a healthy lifestyle must be communicated in a clear and consistent manner (Weichselbaum & Buttriss, 2014). Particularly, White (2021) opined that primary schools provide an ideal setting for more effective education about healthy eating. This can lead to the pupils' ability to make informed, positive food choices and manage their diet.…”