Publication: An evaluation of school feeding programme in Matungulu sub–county, Machakos county.
Total Views 5
total viewsTotal Downloads 8
total downloadsDate
2015-12
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Mount Kenya University
Cite this Item
Abstract
The purpose of the research was to evaluate school feeding programme
in Matungulu Sub – County, Machakos County. School feeding
programs have been defined by the World Bank as “targeted social
safety nets that provide both educational and health benefits to most
vulnerable children, thereby increasing enrollment rates, reducing
absenteeism, and improving food security at the household level.”
It is hypothesized that giving children a daily breakfast at school may
improve their scholastic achievement through several mechanisms:
increasing the time spent in school, improving certain cognitive
functions and attention to tasks, and, perhaps indirectly, improving
nutritional status. Two Jamaican studies showed that providing breakfast
to students at school improved some cognitive functions, particularly in
undernourished children. However, changes in classroom behavior
varied depending on the quality of the school. Children in better-
organized schools concentrated on tasks for longer periods and made
fewer undesirable movements, whereas in poorly organized schools the
children's behavior deteriorated. Studies to date have provided
insufficient evidence to determine whether children's long-term
scholastic achievement is improved by eating breakfast daily. Well-
designed, randomized, controlled, long-term trials are essential for
determining public policy on the implementation of school feeding
programs.
In the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 it was stated that educational progress
was an objective of the United States School Feeding programs. In spite
of this fact no serious attempt has ever been made to evaluate whether
this objective has been met; the few evaluations that have been
conducted lack scientific rigor. As a whole the studies fail to provide a
strong basis from which to make valid inferences regarding the long-
term effects of the feeding program on school achievement and
adaptation. Studies that have focused on the short-term effects of hunger
or morning feeding suggest that the provision of breakfast may both
benefit the student emotionally and enhance his capacity to work on
school type tasks
Description
Keywords
Education