SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAM: A CATALYST TO LACK OF EDUCATION

JOEL M. BABADILLA

“Children of poor parents fail to complete their education because hunger and malnutrition force them to drop out from school to help their parents earn a living. “— Jesli A. Lapus, former DepEd Secretary

Indeed, food is one of the basic human needs, and perhaps the most important. Humans, being the highest form of animals, are considered to be the luckiest for we were sufficiently provided with food and given free will to know what is right from wrong.

Gone are the days that food is easily available within our yards, not to mention the purest water from the stream. As they say, we are what we eat. Due to the unregulated integration of preservatives and chemicals in our food and drinks, variety of illnesses ballooned rapidly. We forgot what Hippocrates said, let food be our medicine and our medicine be our food.

Food plays a vital role in our everyday activities, especially with children. All people must have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy lifestyle at all times.

Records have it, that majority of Filipino schoolers suffer from malnutrition (over and under nutrition), especially in Public Schools. According to United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) 2015 report, 95 child deaths in our country everyday are due to undernutrition. Around 31.2% of Filipino children aged 5-10 are underweight and 31.1% children in the same age group are under-height or stunted, according to 2015 report made by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). In which, the Philippines ranked 93rd among 130 countries, ranked lowest to highest on wasting prevalence. While on stunting, it has 30.3% prevalence, 88th among 132 countries, according to 2016 Global Nutrition Report. These alarming reports do not lie and showthat malnutrition is a culprit towards children’s educational attainment .

To address the undernutrition among public school students, the Department of Education (DepEd) asked the schools in 2016 to establish the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP), as a source of ingredients for the School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP) and encourage families in the community to have their own garden for nutritional sustainability at home.

As per DepEd Order No, 39 s. 2017, School Feeding Programs (SFPs) are considered to be a sound investment in education. There is evidence that SFPs increase school enrollment (Ahmed 2004; Gelli, Meir, and Espejo 2007), cognition (Whaley et al. 2003; Kristjansson et al. 2007; Jukes et al. 2008) and educational achievement (Tan, Lane, and Lassibille 1999; Ahmed 2004; Adelman et al. 2008), particularly if supported by complementary actions such as deworming and micronutrient fortification or supplementation (Simeon, Grantham-McGregor, and Wong 1995; van Stuijvenberg et.al. 1999; Jukes et al. 2002).

Aside from SBFP, the other school programs such as deworming, micronutrient supplementation, Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP), and WASH, ensure that children are ready to learn and thrive in a healthy school environment that allows them to develop health-promoting habits and behaviors for a healthier future generation.

The implementation of SBFP shall improve the nutritional status of the SW and W learners at the end of 120 feeding days; Ensure 100% deworming of target beneficiaries prior to the feeding activity; Conduct group daily hand washing and tooth brushing activities as stipulated in DepEd Order No. 10, s. 2016, to impart development of positive health-promoting values and behaviors; Promote health and nutrition information and awareness among target beneficiaries through the K to 12 Curriculum and its alternative modalities of education; and Encourage Gulayan sa Paaralan Program and backyard vegetable gardening to augment the feeding program and to complement the nutrition and poverty-reduction initiatives of the Government.

School canteens are also tasked to help in the elimination of malnutrition among students by banning junk foods detrimental to a child’s health., serving nutrient-rich foods (i.e., fruits, vegetables, fortified products), providing reasonable prices, and clean preparations and facilities.

It is a given that poverty is a social issue. But no one should be denied of education due to poverty. With proper nutrition of the body, mind, and soul, lack of education is out of the question.

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The author is Secondary School Teacher I (TLE) at Mabalacat Community High School