Teachers positive

Over the past year, two lessons from the Smaaklessen teaching programme for special primary education (SO) and one lesson from the Weet wat je eet teaching package from the Netherlands Nutrition Centre for special secondary education (VSO) were adapted. Before the adaptations were made, input was gathered through 18 interviews with teachers, teaching package developers and other experts. The advisory group for this project, which included Gezonde School, Jongeren op gezond gewicht (JOGG), the Sectorraad GO (specialised education), and teachers and school administrators from (V)SO schools, also contributed ideas. The adapted lessons were tested in a pilot at 15 SO and VSO schools at the end of 2023. In total, 21 teachers completed a questionnaire and 13 teachers were interviewed. Most teachers enjoyed teaching the lesson (95%) and were positive about it (86%). Most also felt that the right topics were covered and that the lesson connected with the pupils’ frame of reference. In addition, nearly all teachers felt that sufficient support materials had been provided to make the lesson easy to implement. Two-thirds still found it difficult to determine which target group the material was intended for, and 29% of the teachers were neutral or negative about the length of the lesson. Suggested improvements included more variation through images and videos, such as additional videos about the Wheel of Five and digestion.

Wishes for the future

Three-quarters of the teachers (76%) indicated that they would like to use the teaching materials more often. The remaining 24% also wanted to use the teaching materials more frequently, but subject to certain conditions, such as adaptations to the manual, a well-functioning digital environment and further tailoring of the teaching materials to the target group. Since teachers have a continued interest in food-related topics, they indicated that more lessons would be welcome.

The results of the pilot show that adapting teaching materials is a promising first step in developing suitable food education materials for (secondary) special education. Looking ahead, expanding and scaling up the teaching materials offers a valuable opportunity to further strengthen food education within (V)SO.

Ready to get started?

The adapted teaching materials from Smaaklessen and Weet wat je eet are and will remain freely available for use. Would you also like to use them in (secondary) special education? Visit Smaaklessen voor speciaal onderwijs and Weet wat je eet.
If you work in mainstream education, use the free materials from Smaaklessen voor speciaal onderwijs and Weet wat je eet for secondary schools. Or visit the websites of Jong Leren Eten and Stichting Special Heroes for more inspiration and support options.

For more information

The project was funded by the Jong Leren Eten national programme and the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality.

Source: Louis Bolk Institute.