An assessment of high school nutrition education

Abstract

To assess nutrition education in New Jersey high schools, teachers were surveyed to determine in what departments nutrition was taught, which nutrition concepts were being taught, how much time was allotted for nutrition education, what types of methods and materials were being used, what percentage of students were enrolled in courses where nutrition was taught, and what background the nutrition educator had. Results indicated that few New Jersey secondary school pupils are being exposed to nutrition education in any depth. Home economics teachers are utilizing more varied reliable resources and covering more current concepts than teachers of other disciplines; however, they reach only a small proportion of the student population. Although health teachers have the opportunity to reach the entire student body, they spend little time teaching nutrition; and their background in the field is weak. Results of the study also indicate that teachers need new reliable resources and a variety of new ideas for presenting material. © 1979, Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. All rights reserved.