I think that the ideas of health, nutrition and obesity are necessary for the schools to evaluate and consider, but I'm not convinced that all of these issues are the responsibility of the school. Celeste and Amanda's presentations were in correlation to each other because I think that obesity and nutrition work hand in hand. The school plays a lead role in obesity(if applicable) and either poor or adequate levels of nutrition, in terms of what it offers students for breakfast and lunch. According to the class discussion, it seems many of the school offerings are poor substitutes for good food. So, yes, the schools (government) should be held accountable for what they feed the students while in the school building, but cannot be held liable for what a child eats outside its walls. It is depressing to see the rates of current and future childhood obesity and I agree with Amanda in that parents must be educated in this area of nutrition. What the child consumes at home plays a significant role in the level of nutrition he receives. We can, as in the article about banning french fries, restrict certain junk foods, but the student needs to have them limited at home too.
Ria offered insight into the necessity for immunizations and while I believe wholeheartedly that they are necessary, I do not believe that it is the school's responsibility to provide that service. I think that the current approach the school's hold right now is sufficient, that the shots must be up-to-date in order for the child to attend class. I like the school providing clinic information to the parents, as Ria does. Some immunizations aren't given for religious reasons, and the government cannot interfere in religious matters (seperation of state and religion) so it follows that the government cannot be responsible for these procedures.
Parents are responsible for their children. Some parents don't follow through on that duty but it is just that; a parental duty. Schools are responsible for what they feed children, mentally and physcially. The schools must teach proper nutrition habits, allow for daily exercise and ensure that physcial education is offered. Beyond that, parents have to be ultimately accountable for their own children.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that schools are not responsible for what children eat outside of school. We can only teach our students what are better choices, so that if they have the chance to make a healthier food choice, maybe they will. Often times families do not eat as nutritionally as we would like them, but as someone mentioned in class, healthy food is expensive and if a parent does not know how to cook from scratch, kids will eat a lot of processed foods and carry-out. Is it not a shame many schools have removed cooking from their curriculum. What a great place to teach students the importance of eating and cooking healthy. Our local community service center offers a cooking from scratch class to parents who are asking for food or money to make ends meet. Their goal is to teach parents how to stretch thier money and still feed their family healthy meals. I guess education is for children and adults alike.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that we cannot see what is happening in the home life of the child. HOWEVER, I can also assure you that although we cannot fix these problems we can alleviate some of them as well as prevent other things from happening as a result of are actions as a teacher. How do we know that what we teach about healthy nutrition and better food choices does not go home with the child? I feel that teachers can do their part by simply allowing some form of exercise in their classrooms. Talking to parents about snack time and giving parents ideas of what you would like to see for snack. Ask about whether breakfast and lunch programs are meeting nutritional standards. Allow recess and movement if it is an indoor recess. We can teach to children lifestyle choices and healthy habits. We can atleast try to create awareness in all of these ways and more. According to the article Facing Up to the Obesity Problem from Edweek in the Action for Healthy Kids report it was stated that "obese children have lower test scores and other academic deficiencies". This is an alarming statement since we are sooo focused on testing scores in our schools. Maybe teachers can do something about this!
ReplyDeleteDeb- I completley agree with your comment that schools can only control what goes on regarding nutrition in their buildings, and are not responsible for what kids eat at home. Parents need to provide healthy foods for their children to eat in order to set good habbits in place at an early age. There seems to be a lot of fast food being consumed in the home, because of its convience and the fact that it's cheap. Although it seems that more fast food chains are offering healthier options (fruits, milk instead of pop, etc.), it is up to the parents to order those for their kids and not let them get the french fries every time. Alos, I think that the "Eat this, not that for kids" book is something that parents should invest in, because you don't always know the nutritional information for restaurants, and this is a wonderful resource. On another note, is it just me or does anyone else think that the "Book-It" program needs to find a new sponsor. Students are rewarded for reading with a coupon for a free personal pan pizza from Pizza-Hut. Not the best or healthiest option in my opinion. Can't they make it something more active (bowling? ice-skating?) and not just reward them with food? Just a thought...
ReplyDeleteJenny said: "I guess education is for children and adults alike." YES!!!
ReplyDeleteAmanda, I like your suggesitons that we as teachers be proactive--and maybe even activists! And Kari, as a parent who went through the "Book-It" program, I absolutely agree. Again, though, an occasional pizza is not the worst thing in the world, and for some kids, that was a pretty big deal. It comes back to that moderation you spoke of in another comment...which, again, goes back to the parents...
I agree that it shouldn't be the schools responsibility to provide immunizations for children. The school should provide information about the importance of getting vaccines. However, I think that it is the parents ultimate responsibility to make sure their child has the appropriate vaccinations for school. It is necessary for schools to stress to parents how it is important that their child be vaccinated. "Broad exemptions to mandatory vaccinations weaken the entire compliance and enforcement structure" (New Jersey Health Department). I believe that the pros of getting vaccinated outweighs the cons.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the pros do outweigh the cons but in the end it should be the parents choice to vaccinate or not. I also agree though that the schools have the same right to accept students who have had vaccinations or not. Why should the school put everyone is risk because of your one decision based for your family and child. This is just part of you making the choice to get the shot or not.
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