Dr. Susan Rubin. “Nutrition Education is failing our kids – it’s time to get our hands dirty.” January 4, 2010. Ezinearticles.com, February 7, 2011.
Dr. Susan Rubin offers up a very interesting take on one of the issues that is affecting our children’s growth, and knowledge. She speaks to the benefit of healthy eating in our children, and a genuine understanding of which foods really are healthy and those that are not. In reference to the food pyramid frequently taught to elementary students she states, “Why are we wasting time teaching our kids a government sanctioned official word on nutrition that just doesn't stick?” According to Rubin the answer from food industries, to the question of what is healthy, is a horde of food that is “100 calorie” products. She compares that answer with “light” cigarettes, saying if something is junk you can’t just modify it and have it not be junk. "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"(Albert Einstein), this is a point that is emphasized to call for a reform instead of just altering the food that children eat. She feels that the way for a healthier tomorrow is to have schools plant gardens, to help children not only have healthier food accessible to them, but also a better understanding of what healthy is.
A change from the “food pyramid” that allows children a more hands on approach to what their body needs to grow healthy and strong, seems like an issue that should be addressed. This is a concept that was taught to me all through my younger years of education and I genuinely gained no applicable understanding of nutrition in those early years. Almost anytime when going through media such as TV, magazines, and internet websites, you are guaranteed to run across some new miracle diet, whether that is medication or some form of avoidance of calories, or carbs. This should be a very clear sign that even as adults, most of our population never learned what healthy eating really is, and what we need to do to be more healthy. If we were able to give children a genuine interest in nutrition through planting gardens and being involved in the process of growing, is this something that might even help with our nationwide attempt to better young student’s success in the classroom?
Hi Michael:
ReplyDeleteI'm responding to your two extended bibliography entries, along with your in-class freewrite, here. You found some good sources: one which spoke toward the importance of nutrition to learning, and one which spoke about the importance of cultural diversity. Either one of these articles could lead toward your larger interest (as expressed in your freewrite), which is what can lead toward more effective learning in the classroom. Nice.
If I have any concern-- and it isn't that big of a concern, considering you're still doing exploratory research-- it's that the idea of effectivity and learning is a bit vast. As your articles speak toward, it can encompass topics as far ranging as ethnic diversity and nutrition. As we continue along throughout the semester, you'll want to hone in a more manageable question. Eg: how does nutrition (perhaps as nutrition intercedes with economic class) contribute to learning outcomes? Or, in what ways does ethnic diversity and multiculturalism offer both challenges and potentials for educators?
I appreciate your hard work, and you're definitely on the right track. You might also consider spending more time with paraphrasing/quotation so as to express what your articles are saying-- and respond to them-- in a more granular way.
Keep it up!