The Effects of an In-Class Breakfast Program on Attendance and On-Task Behavior of High School Students

Bro, Robert T.; Shank, Lorraine; Williams, Randy Lee; McLaughlin, T. F.

doi:10.1300/j019v16n03_01

Cited by 28 publications

(28 citation statements)

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“…To date, positive associations have been reported between school breakfast and academic performance (17), and further research has reported increases in attendance rates in accordance with school breakfast provision (17, 18). Moreover, positive effects of school breakfast consumption on classroom behavior have been reported with observed increases in on-task behavior (19, 20), and teacher reports of reduced hyperactivity and increased alertness (21). Conversely, no effect and negative effects have also been reported in research examining the educational impacts of school breakfast.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Universal Free School Breakfast: A Qualitative Model for Breakfast Behaviors

Harvey-Golding

Donkin

Blackledge

et al. 2015

Front. Public Health

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In recent years, the provision of school breakfast has increased significantly in the UK. However, research examining the effectiveness of school breakfast is still within relative stages of infancy, and findings to date have been rather mixed. Moreover, previous evaluations of school breakfast schemes have been predominantly quantitative in their methodologies. Currently, there are few qualitative studies examining the subjective perceptions and experiences of stakeholders, and thereby an absence of knowledge regarding the sociocultural impacts of school breakfast. The purpose of this study was to investigate the beliefs, views and attitudes, and breakfast consumption behaviors, among key stakeholders, served by a council-wide universal free school breakfast initiative, within the North West of England, UK. A sample of children, parents, and school staff were recruited from three primary schools, participating in the universal free school breakfast scheme, to partake in semi-structured interviews and small focus groups. A Grounded Theory analysis of the data collected identified a theoretical model of breakfast behaviors, underpinned by the subjective perceptions and experiences of these key stakeholders. The model comprises of three domains relating to breakfast behaviors, and the internal and external factors that are perceived to influence breakfast behaviors, among children, parents, and school staff. Findings were validated using triangulation methods, member checks, and inter-rater reliability measures. In presenting this theoretically grounded model for breakfast behaviors, this paper provides a unique qualitative insight into the breakfast consumption behaviors and barriers to breakfast consumption, within a socioeconomically deprived community, participating in a universal free school breakfast intervention program.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Universal Free School Breakfast: A Qualitative Model for Breakfast Behaviors

Harvey-Golding

Donkin

Blackledge

et al. 2015

Front. Public Health

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“…(Though, some studies have not found effects on specific attention, memory and mood measures, Cromer et al, 1990;Smith et al, 1994;Benton et al, 2001) These findings are borne out by experimental studies conducted in school settings, which have shown positive effects of breakfast on memory (Vaisman et al, 1996), arithmetic (Powell et al, 1998), verbal fluency (Chandler et al, 1995), physical endurance, creativity (Wyon et al, 1997) and on-task behaviour (Bro et al, 1994). In a review of this literature, Pollitt (1995) concluded that breakfast consumption consistently improves the cognitive performance of undernourished children and, in the United States and Great Britain, also has cognitive benefits for well-nourished children.…”

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confidence: 99%

Development of a scale to measure 9–11-year-olds' attitudes towards breakfast

et al. 2007

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Objective: Development and validation of a questionnaire to measure children's attitudes towards breakfast. Design: A pilot study was used to select questionnaire items and assess test-retest reliability. The questionnaire was then administered to a larger sample of children together with a dietary recall questionnaire. Randomly selected subsets of these children also completed a dietary recall interview or their parents were asked to complete a questionnaire relating to their child's breakfast eating habits. Setting: Primary schools in south, west and north Wales, UK. Subjects: A total of 2495 children (199 in pilot testing, 2382 in the main study) in years 5 and 6 (aged 9-11 years). Results: The 13-item scale showed good construct validity, high internal reliability and acceptable test-retest reliability. Boys displayed more positive attitudes towards breakfast than girls but differences between the two age groups did not reach statistical significance. Children who did not skip breakfast displayed more positive attitudes than children who skipped breakfast. In addition, more positive attitudes towards breakfast were significantly correlated with consumption of a greater number of 'healthy' foods for breakfast (i.e., fruit, bread, cereal, milk products), consumption of fewer 'unhealthy' foods for breakfast (i.e., sweet items, crisps) and parental perceptions that their child usually ate a healthy breakfast. Conclusions: The breakfast attitudes questionnaire is a robust measure that is relatively quick to administer and simple to score. These qualities make it ideal for use where validity at the individual level is important or where more time-consuming dietary measures are not feasible. Development of a scale to measure 9-11-year-olds' attitudes towards breakfast Breakfast consumption is associated with a range of benefits. Laboratory research shows that consumption of an adequate breakfast is linked to short-term improvements in attention (Wesnes et al

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“…This effect has also been demonstrated in adolescents. Two studies in small samples of adolescents aged 14-19 years showed an increase in on-task behavior in the classroom following an unstandardized teacher led SBP in vocational schools in USA (Bro et al, 1994(Bro et al, , 1996. More recent evidence failed to show the same benefit in undernourished children (≤ −2 SD height-for-age of the NCHS reference) aged 11 years.…”

Section: Intervention Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This was apparent in children who were either well-nourished, undernourished and/or from low SES or deprived backgrounds. Two studies carried out in undernourished samples (Chang et al, 1996;Richter et al, 1997) and three studies in children from low SES backgrounds (Bro et al, 1994(Bro et al, , 1996 demonstrated positive effects on on-task behavior following breakfast. One study reported a negative effect of a SBP on behavior in undernourished children (Cueto and Chinen, 2008) and three studies in children with behavioral problems demonstrated no effect of breakfast composition on behavior (Kaplan et al, 1986;Milich and Pelham, 1986;Wender and Solanto, 1991).…”

Section: Observations Of Behavior In the Classroommentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many studies lack details of the composition and amount of food provided and consumed, precluding conclusions regarding breakfast type. SBPs are often associated with increased attendance Simeon, 1998;Kleinman et al, 2002) punctuality (Murphy et al, 1998), readiness to learn (Wahlstrom and Begalle, 1999), decreased dropout rates (Cueto and Chinen, 2008) better behavior in the classroom (Bro et al, 1994;Richter et al, 1997) and increased pro-social behavior (Shemilt et al, 2004), all of which are likely to impact school performance concurrently. The positive effects of SBPs on other outcomes that will also influence academic performance make it difficult to attribute the effects either to the breakfast meal or as an artifact of increased attendance and punctuality.…”

Section: Academic Performance Measuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dietary Intake and Plasma Levels of Choline and Betaine in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Adolphus¹,

Lawton²,

Dye³

2015

Prenatal and Childhood Nutrition

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Breakfast consumption is associated with positive outcomes for diet quality, micronutrient intake, weight status and lifestyle factors. Breakfast has been suggested to positively affect learning in children in terms of behavior, cognitive, and school performance. However, these assertions are largely based on evidence which demonstrates acute effects of breakfast on cognitive performance. Less research which examines the effects of breakfast on the ecologically valid outcomes of academic performance or in-class behavior is available. The literature was searched for articles published between 1950-2013 indexed in Ovid MEDLINE, Pubmed, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE databases, and PsychINFO. Thirty-six articles examining the effects of breakfast on in-class behavior and academic performance in children and adolescents were included. The effects of breakfast in different populations were considered, including undernourished or well-nourished children and adolescents from differing socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds. The habitual and acute effects of breakfast and the effects of school breakfast programs (SBPs) were considered. The evidence indicated a mainly positive effect of breakfast on on-task behavior in the classroom. There was suggestive evidence that habitual breakfast (frequency and quality) and SBPs have a positive effect on children's academic performance with clearest effects on mathematic and arithmetic grades in undernourished children. Increased frequency of habitual breakfast was consistently positively associated with academic performance. Some evidence suggested that quality of habitual breakfast, in terms of providing a greater variety of food groups and adequate energy, was positively related to school performance. However, these associations can be attributed, in part, to confounders such as SES and to methodological weaknesses such as the subjective nature of the observations of behavior in class.

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The Effects of an In-Class Breakfast Program on Attendance and On-Task Behavior of High School Students

Cited by 28 publications

References 0 publications

Universal Free School Breakfast: A Qualitative Model for Breakfast Behaviors

Universal Free School Breakfast: A Qualitative Model for Breakfast Behaviors

Development of a scale to measure 9–11-year-olds' attitudes towards breakfast

Dietary Intake and Plasma Levels of Choline and Betaine in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

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