Although this hasn't gotten a lot of ink, here in this corner of Abingdon the Board of Education's new policy on not giving students rewards with food receives a resounding thumbs down.
Currently students can receive pizza parties, ice cream socials for achieving class goals. Sometimes these are given for outstanding academic outcomes/good behavior. The new policy disallows these parties citing them as rewards. The new policy also prohibits taking away recess as punishment because students need the entire 15 minutes to exercise.
We know that children are more overweight than ever, but is it really caused by a pizza party once every marking period? The gift of a candy cane to a child who's gotten a good report card is leading to a life of obesity?
This is one of those cosmetic fixes so that it appears the school board is addressing a serious problem without doing anything.
Here at TAA we rarely allow our students to purchase school lunches, or what's commonly known as the choice of pizza, mozarella sticks, nachos, chicken poppers, pizzatas, and other assortments of fried, artery-clogging stupefying foods. Oprah's guru Dr. Oz did an informal study at a school where he discussed with teachers what happens after students eat school lunches: nothing. The students are dazed and lethargic. Isn't this a greater problem?
The New York Times has an op/ed piece about this outlining the problems of the current system. You can read it here. With all the local farms closeby, wouldn't it be a win/win to try something like this? A help to the local farmers as well as healthy food for students.
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2 comments:
I have to agree with you on this one. Why outlaw the occasional - as long as it truly IS occasional - pizza party or ice cream social. Kids need to learn to eat sensibly, and a little treat now and again is part of that. It seems ludicrous to outlaw these events, and then offer cheap, artery-clogging foods at lunch.
While I don't think that a reward here and there will seriously endanger a child's life or cause obesity, schools these days are often and unfortunately expected to take on the role of parent. So it doesn't surprise me. Perhaps in an effort to not be blamed for yet another thing by parents who expect the school to do their job (i.e. make sure their children eat healthy, play outside, and get enough exercise) the schools would prefer to issue a blanket policy without questions.
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