Barriers to Nutrition Promotion in Private Secondary Schools in Kolkata, India: Perspectives of Parents and Teachers

Rathi, Neha; Riddell, Lynn; Worsley, Anthony

doi:10.3390/ijerph15061139

Cited by 18 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Consistent with previous research in this space, this study has shown that strong school food policymaking requires committed advocates at all levels, especially within the school community (22,24,68). Our study and others (71,80,81) have shown that actors responsible for implementation generally have a strong interest in the wellbeing of children, but that this does not necessarily translate to policy compliance by those actors (71).…”

Section: Capitalising On Commitment From Political and Community Leaderssupporting

confidence: 86%

“…The relative expense of healthy food, and a perceived lack of nancial viability for implementing school nutrition standards, are frequently reported as barriers to the implementation of school food policies (21)(22)(23). The lack of understanding of healthy food provision and school food standards, and absence of the requisite knowledge and skills to execute them is common among school-based vendors (17,19,20,22,24,25).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

Reeve

Thow

Bell³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Despite global recommendations to prioritise policies that create healthy environments within education institutions, the implementation of effective healthy school food policies has proved challenging for many countries. This study examined the experience of Samoa in introducing a stronger policy to improve the healthiness of school food environments. Our aim was to identify opportunities to strengthen healthy school food policy implementation in Samoa and other comparable contexts. Methods: We used a qualitative case study approach, underpinned by policy science theory. We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 30 informants, coupled with analysis of relevant documents, to generate a detailed understanding of the relevant policy implementation processes in Samoa, and the perspectives and capacities of key implementation actors. Data collection and analysis were guided by the Health Policy Analysis Triangle supplemented by other policy theories relevant to policy process. Results: Samoa’s school food policy operationalizes international ‘best practice’ recommendations. We found health policymakers and leaders in Samoa to be strongly committed to improving school food environments. Despite this, there continued to be challenges in ensuring compliance with the school nutrition standards. Key issues that negatively impacted on the policy’s effectiveness were the lack of priority given to school food by stakeholders outside of health, the high prevalence of unhealthy food in the areas immediately surrounding schools, and the high degree of agency exercised by actors in and around the school. We noted several opportunities for policies to be effectively implemented and sustained. Respondents identified community level leaders as potentially pivotal stakeholders, particularly in a context where school governance draws heavily on community representation.Conclusions: Despite previous commitment to the issue, political and community leaders need to be re-engaged to identify the institutional and operational changes required to improve the implementation of healthy school food policies. Strong incentives for compliance and effective enforcement mechanisms are likely to be crucial to success.

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Section: Capitalising On Commitment From Political and Community Leaderssupporting

confidence: 86%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

Reeve

Thow

Bell³

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Moreover, private school students make up about 40 percent of Indian secondary students [ 32 ]. Methodological details for this survey have also been reported previously [ 33 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parents’ and Teachers’ Views of Food Environments and Policies in Indian Private Secondary Schools

Rathi

Riddell

Worsley

2018

IJERPH

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School food environments and policies can play a pivotal role in inculcating healthy food habits among young people. This cross-sectional survey explored teachers’ and parents’ views of the role of school food environments and policies in promoting healthy food consumption among Indian adolescents. Thirty-two teachers and 280 parents from five private, English-speaking, secondary schools in Kolkata, India took part in a short questionnaire survey which included closed and open answer questions. Descriptive and chi-square analyses were performed to compare the responses of parents and teachers. Thematic data analysis underpinned by Template Analysis Technique was employed to examine the qualitative responses. The easy availability and accessibility of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods, the limited availability of nutritious foods, the absence of written food policies, and inflated prices of nutritious foods were reported as problems in the Indian school food environment. However, the respondents also noted that schools restricted the sale of sugar-sweetened beverages and adopted hygienic food practices. Novel ideas for creating healthy school food environments and effective school canteen policies were also captured during the survey. These findings point to the need to create effective school food policies in Indian secondary schools to help adolescents eat healthily at school. Future research is required to test the feasibility of the implementation of school food policies.

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“…We have shown that strong school food policymaking requires committed advocates at all levels, especially within the school community (20,22,66). Developing a common purpose and building a sense of responsibility among school-level stakeholders is critical to improve implementation of school food policies (17).…”

Section: Capitalising On Commitment From Political and Community Leadersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The relative expense of healthy food, and a perceived lack of financial viability for implementing school nutrition standards, are frequently reported as barriers to the implementation of school food policies (19)(20)(21). The lack of understanding of healthy food provision and school food standards, and absence of the requisite knowledge and skills to execute them is common among school-based vendors (15,17,18,20,22,23). Additionally, the multisectoral nature of food policies can often lead to dispersed implementation and governance arrangements (24,25).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

Reeve

Thow

Bell³

et al. 2019

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Despite global recommendations to prioritise policies that create healthy environments within education institutions, the implementation of effective healthy school food policies has proved challenging for many countries. This study examined the experience of Samoa in introducing a stronger policy to improve the healthiness of school food environments. Our aim was to identify opportunities to strengthen school food policy implementation in Samoa and other comparable contexts.Methods We used a qualitative case study approach, underpinned by policy science theory. We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 30 informants, coupled with analysis of relevant documents, to generate a detailed understanding of the relevant policy implementation processes in Samoa, and the perspectives and capacities of key implementation actors. Data collection and analysis were guided by the Health Policy Analysis Triangle supplemented by other policy theories relevant to policy process.Results Samoa’s school food policy operationalizes international ‘best practice’ recommendations for school food policy, and provides insights into the outcomes resulting from high level political commitment. We found health policymakers and leaders in Samoa to be strongly committed to improving school food environments. Despite this, compliance to the school food policy had continued to face challenges. Key issues that negatively impacted on the policy’s effectiveness were the broader food environment in which schools were surrounded by unhealthy options, the lack of priority by stakeholders outside of health, and the high degree of agency exercised by actors in and around the school. We noted several opportunities for policies to be effectively implemented and sustained. Respondents identified community level leaders as potentially pivotal stakeholders, particularly in a context where school governance draws heavily on community representation.Conclusions The re-engagement of political and community leaders to identify the institutional and operational changes required, including a fully-enforceable accountability mechanism, may be needed to improve and embed effectiveness.

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Barriers to Nutrition Promotion in Private Secondary Schools in Kolkata, India: Perspectives of Parents and Teachers

Cited by 18 publications

References 47 publications

Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

Parents’ and Teachers’ Views of Food Environments and Policies in Indian Private Secondary Schools

Identifying opportunities to strengthen school food environments in the Pacific: a case study in Samoa

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