Teachers’ Resources to Support School Lunch: Professional Development Is Warranted

Abstract

In the United States, many children who come from low-income backgrounds and experience food insecurity do not take and eat school lunch, despite it being a nutritious meal. Teachers could play a role in encouraging students’ consumption of school lunch; however, teachers in America are traditionally uninvolved in the lunch period. The purpose of this research was to understand the resources kindergarten through twelfth grade (K-12) teachers need to encourage students to take and eat school lunch. Two data collection workshops and semi-structured follow-up interviews were conducted with K-12 teachers. The workshops and interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for salient themes. Ten teachers participated in the workshops and six teachers participated in the follow-up interviews. In general, teachers believe school meals are essential for students’ focus and behavior in the classroom. However, to encourage students to take and eat school lunch, teachers need support and resources. From the workshops and interviews, three themes emerged: (1) improvements in the food quality; (2) school community support; and (3) professional development. The data suggests professional development is the greatest resource teachers need, as professional development can enhance teachers’ motivation to advocate for better food quality and engage school community support. Greater teacher involvement in school lunch could lay the groundwork for future healthier generations.

Healthy, Inclusive and Sustainable Catering in Secondary Schools—An Analysis of a Transformation Process with Multiple Tensions

“…The findings indicate that teachers are key actors when it comes to encouraging pupils to get involved. Under the premise of more favorable working conditions, teachers could be trained to use their influence as role models more strategically and with greater awareness [ 29 ].…”

“…Other studies highlight the influence of socio-cultural aspects within and outside schools on meal acceptance. These include the supervisory but also supportive role of teachers [ 29 ], the role of eating and relaxing in peer interactions [ 30 ], differences in the cultural heritage of pupils [ 31 ] and their tastes [ 32 ], as well as the influence of meal routines at home [ 17 ].…”

Sifting through preschool teachers' funds of knowledge to reveal culturally sustaining child-feeding professional learning opportunities at one university in Singapore

“…Early childhood educators' knowledge of how to facilitate mealtimes may thus remain incomplete (Rapson et al, 2020). Educators want and need more resources to assist them in facilitating mealtimes (Olarte et al, 2022). More culturally tailored and socially particular, child-feeding learning opportunities are required.…”

“…Educators may be confused about food-related issues (Ishikawa et al, 2018). They desire more educational resources on child-feeding (Olarte et al, 2022). What is more, as Rapson et al (2020) reported, without appropriate support, early childhood educators often misestimate the quantities of food that young children require.…”