Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Why we should feed hungry kids

It boosts test scores (thank goodness), say Harvard researchers:

"In terms of producing good outcomes for kids, it's hard to find a better investment than the school breakfast program," says J. Larry Brown, visiting scholar at the Harvard School of Public Health and senior author of the November report, "Impact of School Breakfast on Children's Health and Learning."The study cites the far-ranging benefits of having students show up for classes with their bellies full: increased attendance, standardized test scores, and grades; decreased classroom disruptions and trips to the school nurse.

I wonder how much that study cost?


  1. I would say, if the study convinces government to do something serious about social and economic inequalities, rather than pretending they're all the fault of bad teachers and schools, then it will have been worth the cost.

  2. The question for me is, why do we need to convince people that feeding the hungry will raise standardized test scores. I mean, what if it didn't?

  3. While I don't disagree with feeding hungry children, I do have concerns that we may just be enabling certain parents. If they can't make sure their children have a glass of milk and a bowl of cereal, how many other crucial areas are they neglecting. This comment is not directed at single working parents, but rather the ones I come across that are not working and continue to have child after child when they can't afford to take care of the first one. I believe children are a priviledge, not a right. Sorry to sound so harsh.


Agree? Disagree? Let me hear from you.