Leveling the playing field through school meals
An analysis of learning outcomes from the evaluation of a national school feeding program in Ghana reveals that disadvantaged students benefited most from free school meals. Overall, students with access to school meals had higher academic and cognitive test scores on average compared with students...
| Autores principales: | , |
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| Formato: | Brief |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
International Food Policy Research Institute
2019
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147351 |
| _version_ | 1855541026482028544 |
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| author | Gelli, Aulo Aurino, Elisabetta |
| author_browse | Aurino, Elisabetta Gelli, Aulo |
| author_facet | Gelli, Aulo Aurino, Elisabetta |
| author_sort | Gelli, Aulo |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | An analysis of learning outcomes from the evaluation of a national school feeding program in Ghana reveals that disadvantaged students benefited most from free school meals. Overall, students with access to school meals had higher academic and cognitive test scores on average compared with students without access to the program, but the program led to much greater gains for certain disadvantaged groups including girls, students from poor households, and students from the Northern regions of Ghana. This evidence suggests that providing free school meals is an effective way to increase opportunities for disadvantaged youth by leveling the playing field through improved educational achievement. However, key structural changes could maximize potential learning impacts resulting from the program. Improvements in program implementation through monitoring the quality and quantity of food served are needed to overcome program implementation challenges identified by the evaluation. Beyond the feeding program itself, investments to improve the quality of education are expected to further improve learning outcomes, especially when school meals incentivize increased school attendance. |
| format | Brief |
| id | CGSpace147351 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1473512025-11-06T07:39:25Z Leveling the playing field through school meals Gelli, Aulo Aurino, Elisabetta child nutrition school feeding schoolchildren nutrition schools children An analysis of learning outcomes from the evaluation of a national school feeding program in Ghana reveals that disadvantaged students benefited most from free school meals. Overall, students with access to school meals had higher academic and cognitive test scores on average compared with students without access to the program, but the program led to much greater gains for certain disadvantaged groups including girls, students from poor households, and students from the Northern regions of Ghana. This evidence suggests that providing free school meals is an effective way to increase opportunities for disadvantaged youth by leveling the playing field through improved educational achievement. However, key structural changes could maximize potential learning impacts resulting from the program. Improvements in program implementation through monitoring the quality and quantity of food served are needed to overcome program implementation challenges identified by the evaluation. Beyond the feeding program itself, investments to improve the quality of education are expected to further improve learning outcomes, especially when school meals incentivize increased school attendance. 2019-12-31 2024-06-21T09:13:32Z 2024-06-21T09:13:32Z Brief https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147351 en https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxz079 https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134319 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Gelli, Aulo; and Aurino, Elisabetta. 2019. Leveling the playing field through school meals. Voice for Change Partnership Program Brief December 2019. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147351 |
| spellingShingle | child nutrition school feeding schoolchildren nutrition schools children Gelli, Aulo Aurino, Elisabetta Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title | Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title_full | Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title_fullStr | Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title_full_unstemmed | Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title_short | Leveling the playing field through school meals |
| title_sort | leveling the playing field through school meals |
| topic | child nutrition school feeding schoolchildren nutrition schools children |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147351 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gelliaulo levelingtheplayingfieldthroughschoolmeals AT aurinoelisabetta levelingtheplayingfieldthroughschoolmeals |