Investigation On The Impact Of School Feeding On Primary School Students’ Interest And Performance

Investigation On The Impact Of School Feeding On Primary School Students’ Interest And Performance
Abstract
The study investigated the impact of school feeding on primary school students’ interest and performance in Ife central local government area of Osun State. The study adopted descriptive research method, involving the collection, analysis and interpretation of data on the influence of school feeding programme on pupils’ academic performance in Ife central local government area of Osun state. The population covered pupils, teachers, head teachers and parents in selected schools in Ife central local government. The study adopted a multistage sampling method of data collection, covering a total of 85 people, including primary six pupils, parents and teachers. Results obtained showed that an average of 48.44% of the respondents strongly agreed that alleviation of short term hunger in malnourished or well-nourished school pupils through the O- meal programme have strong influence on pupils’ academic performance. 41.83% of the respondents agreed with this assertion while only 9.73% are either neutral or disagreed. While 52.86% of the respondents strongly agreed that parents’ participation in school activities have strong influence on pupil’s academic performance in Ife central local government, 38.39% also supported this assertion. Results further showed that sustainable school feeding programme strongly influences academic performance. This assertion was made by an average of 55.41% of the respondents and was supported by 41.96%. Generally, the results depict that a p-value or error term of the analysis is less than 5% (α=0.005).Hence, based on the findings that school feeding programme has been effective in alleviating hunger in primary school pupils and that it has helped parents by reducing their cost of feeding of their wards while also noting that some of the parents were employed as ad-hoc staff for the programme, the study therefore posited that the school feeding programme should be sustained and that the government should include more parents as ad-hoc staffers for the school feeding programme. This will help in general economic rejuvenation of the local government in particular and Osun state in general as well as promote pupils’ academic performance and interest in public schools in Ife central local government
Table of Content
Preliminary Page(s)
- Title Page
- Declaration
- Approval
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Abstract
- Table of Content
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
- 1.1 Background of the Study
- 1.2 Statement of the Problem
- 1.3 Objectives of the Study
- 1.4 Research Questions
- 1.5 Research Hypothesis
- 1.6 Significance of the Study
- 1.7 Definition of Terms
- 1.8 Organization of the Study
Chapter Two
2.0 Literature Review
- 2.1 Conceptual Review
- 2.2 Concept of Academic Performance
- 2.3 Alleviation of Short-Term Hunger in Malnourished and Well-Nourished Children and Pupils’ Academic Performance in Primary Schools
- 2.4 Increased Government Involvement in Schools Activities and Academic Performance of Students in Primary Schools
- 2.5 Theoretical Framework
Chapter Three
3.0 Research Methodology
- 3.1 Research Design
- 3.2 Area of Study
- 3.3 Population and Sampling Techniques
- 3.4 Data Collection Techniques
- 3.5 Validity
- 3.6 Data Analysis
Chapter Four
4.0 Results and Discussion
- 4.1 Results
- 4.2 Discussion
Chapter Five
5.0 Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation
- 5.1 Summary of Findings
- 5.2 Conclusions
- 5.3 Recommendations
- References
- Appendix
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
One major intervention from the current administration in Nigeria, as well as the previous administration in Osun State of Nigeria is the home-grown school feeding programme, christened o-meal in the state. Africa in general and Nigeria in particular is ravaged with economic challenges relating to unemployment, poverty, malnutrition which have hindered the grown and ultimate expansion of the economy, which also have hindered the process of knowledge creation, training and development of the young ones within the country. Hence, there comes an urgent need for government intervention to arrest the raging problems of out of school children which have been on incremental basis every year. Most of these children who are out of school do nothing but to aid their parents in the process of buying and selling and other income generating ventures, so that they could raise some money for their daily physiological need. But, the advent of school feeding programme is a hope raiser and burden of at least a meal per day could be removed from the parents. Hence, parents become motivated to send their children to school instead of keeping them at home to work or cater for their siblings (Nyakundi, 2013).
The World Bank (1999) affirmed that when people are given a tool, their lives become better. When you give them education also, they will surely change the world. This highlight the importance of education and the reason why cogent steps must be taken to ensure that the poor have easy access to education, as this is the only visible route out of poverty. Achieving this goal thus becomes easier when the basic physiological needs of the children are taken care of while lessening the burden of their parents. Also, food is a major item which can attract students’ attention and can help ensure their consistent attendance to school related activities (Olatunbosun, 2016). Education remains a fundamental right of every person as it ensures equity in diversity as well as ensuring lasting peace. Education is a social good because it creates opportunities and provides people with choices. It is therefore right to say, education is an end in itself and a means to an end as is help achieve personal development.
The United nation’s framework of Actions identified education as central to human rights and existence which is essential and indispensable for the exercise of all human rights for development. The UN convention on the rights of the child in 1989 also set out the right to education to which every child is entitled. Despite the increasing spread of access to education across the developing countries, with increase in enrolment for higher education, poverty and hunger still serves as a major obstacle and this still keeps about 67 million children of primary school age out of school. About 53% of these numbers are girls while almost 43% are in sub-Saharan Africa. Hence, school enrolment for children of schooling age keeps slowing particularly in countries affected by armed conflicts where over 40% of out of school children live. In Nigeria, progress in reducing the number of out of school children of primary school age had slowed down since 2005. (UNICEF, 2012).
A common characteristic shared among the poor in Nigeria generally and Osun State in particular is the absence of sufficient food at home, and most public schools in the countries do not have a Canteen or Cafeteria. So, when food becomes a challenge in a household especially among the poor who has limited source of income, going to school is no longer a priority for the children or the parent. The resultant effect of this is that children become easily distracted and have problems concentrating on the school lessons while on empty stomachs, creating out-of- school challenges for the government to handle. To the children in this category, education seems unnecessary (Falade et al, 2012). Statistically in developing countries, more than 60 million among the children which are already enrolled in school go hungry daily and about 40 percent of them are in Africa while a large chunk of this statistic; amounting to 7.35 million children are in Nigeria (HGSFP, 2017). Feeding them is therefore vital in nourishing the children. The MDGs was aimed to tackle issues relating to peace, security, good economic, political and corporate governance and to make the continent an attractive destination for foreign investment. Some of these developments include the ‘New Partnership for African Development’ which according to the blueprint is a pledge by African leaders, based on common vision and a firm and shared conviction, to eradicate poverty and to place their countries on the path of sustainable growth and development and, at the same time, to participate actively in the world economy and politics. Also, the ‘Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme’ and the ‘Millennium Hunger Task Force’ amongst others were initiatives which were designed to link school feeding to agricultural development through the purchase and use of locally produced food (Bundy et al, 2009).
In 2005, the Federal Government of Nigeria launched the School Feeding Programme with the assistance of the United Nations’ Children Education Fund (UNICEF) and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). The goal is to provide one meal per school day to all primary school pupils in Nigeria aimed at improving the health of school children, increase their enrolment, retention and completion rate. From then, there is an increase in the children enrolment rate while the attendance of pupils in school is stable especially among girls who used to leave school for street trading and house-help jobs. Mostly, the school feeding programme has lots of inherent benefits. The school feeding in all its variant forms is a well-recognized programme that reduces hunger while supporting education, health and community development while children learn better. School health and nutrition (SHN) interventions have been shown to improve not only children’s health and nutrition, but also their learning potential and life choices both in the short- and long-term (Neeser 2012).
In Osun State, the school feeding programme was given a comprehensive review in 2010 while coming up with an overhauled programme in 2012. Hence, the Osun Elementary School feeding and health programme known as O-meals came to live. The programme was estimated to feed 254,000 school children in the state and this is generally believed to be the largest school meal outreach by a state in Nigeria. The programme was believed to have employed over 3,000 caterers while indirectly employing seven thousand more people (Osun Governance Bulletin, 2017). With the aim of reversing the current low academic performance of pupils in public schools, a daily allowance of N250 was earmarked for each pupil while the caterers were provided with official apparels for easy identification and for effective service delivery. Despite all the inherent benefits of this program, its benefits are yet to be backed up empirically while its current impact of students’ academic performance in the state yet to be analyzed.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Nigeria aims to have one of the most rapid educational expansions in the continent. Hence, primary schools are considered to be providers of basic foundation to education for they provide skills in reading and writing as well as other forms of communication which are very fundamental. Psycharopolus (1988) opined that for any education system to be efficient there should be smooth transition of pupils from one level to another with 100% retention and completion rate. Academic performance of students is dependent on retention of students in schools while being able to complete their studies. In Nigeria, retention and completion rates are low and this contribute to high illiteracy levels within the country.
School feeding programme have been implemented in Nigeria since the 1980s with varying degree of success. The programme is primarily used to incentivize student enrolment especially in rural areas and to achieve basic education for all. The major problem that plaques most school going children in primary schools is poverty. Poverty is the deprivation of income which in turn leaves the households with huge insufficient money to afford their three basic meals per day. Thus, children born in this situation will rather not go to school but stay at home to help their parents in their daily activities, resulting into various nefarious acts like child labor, child molestation, trafficking and others, with the aim of helping their parents to achieve the main goal of food affordability.
Thus, when food becomes a major household challenge, going to school is not a top priority for both parents and children, hence absenteeism and a total drop out of school becomes unavoidable. Social vices such as rape, early marriages, militancy and other nefarious act become inevitable. Even the female students who dropped out of school have an average of 6.25 children while those who are educated have an average of 2.3 children, hence creating a stubborn poverty cycle that is hard to break (Keppler, 2011). Studies like Falade et al (2012), Karissa and Orodho (2014), Adekunle and Ogbogu (2016) among others noted that school feeding program have greatly improved the nutritional status of school children but none of this studies indicated whether the improved nutritional benefit have had any improvement on academic performance of the students.
To this end, the O-meal programme which is an offshoot of the Home Grown School feeding Programme aims to encourage access, regular attendance and enhancing general learning and performance. Even other health related program like children immunization and de-worming can be enhanced through this scheme as much number of children will be encouraged to attend school activities. It will therefore be of immense benefit to policy makers and immense contribution to the growing literatures in this area to assess whether the school feeding programme has had any effect on students’ interest and academic performance in Ife central local government of Osun State.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of school feeding on primary school students’ interest and performance in Ife Central Local government, Osun State of Nigeria. The specific objectives of this study are to;
- Determine how school feeding in school influences pupils’ academic performance in public schools in Ife central local government, Osun State.
- Examine how school feeding and parent’s involvement influence pupils’ interest in public primary schools in Ife central local government.
- Assess how sustainable feeding programme as a school feeding programme influences pupils’ academic performance in public primary schools in Ife Central local government of Osun State.
1.4 Research Questions
- How does school feeding influence primary school students’ academic performance in Ife Central Local government?
- How does school feeding and parent’s involvement influence pupils’ interest in public primary schools in Ife central local government?
- How do sustainable feeding program as a school feeding program influence pupils’ academic performance in public primary schools in Ife Central local government of Osun state?
1.5 Research Hypothesis
- HO1: There is no significant impact of school feeding on primary school students’ interest
- HO2: There is no significant impact of school feeding on primary school students’ academic performance
1.6 Significance of the Study
The findings and recommendation of this study will be useful to all education stakeholders i.e. Ministry of Education, Heads of schools, teachers and parents as well as the policy makers in education sector within an outside Osun State to realize the importance of pupils’ academic performance and due to this, fully support the school feeding programmes. The study will also help pupils realize the effects of food provided at school and take advantage of it as an alternative for food availability or non-availability at home. It is hoped that parents, teachers and the government will be guided on ways of starting and sustaining school feeding programmes in their schools.
1.7 Definition of Terms
The following are the major terms and their meaning as used in the study;
School Feeding Programme:
In this study, it is an organized programme that alleviates hunger while supporting education, health and community development. It is the targeted social safety net that provides both educational and health benefits to the more vulnerable children, thereby increasing students’ academic attendance, reducing drop-out rate and maintaining 100% transitional rate.
Public Primary School:
In this study it refers to an institution owned by a country’s government in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education, usually attended by children within 4-12 years age grade.
Academic Performance:
In this study, it is about students’ remaining in in one government sponsored educational institutions, completing their studies within the required time frame and their cognitive development as supported by the results they obtained.
Sustainable Feeding Program:
In this study, they are ways of providing meals to pupils, improving their quality lives while living within the carrying capacity eco-system, thereby increasing enrollment rates, reducing absenteeism and improving foo security at the household level.
1.8 Organization of the Study
The study shall be organized in five chapters, chapter one comprising of background of the study, problem statement, purpose and objectives of the study, research questions, scope, significance, basic assumptions and definition of terms. Chapter two will deal with literature review on assessment of O-meal and other school feeding programmes on pupils’ academic performance. Chapter three comprises of research methodology focusing on research design, target, sample and sampling procedures, research instruments, validity and reliability of the research instruments, data collection procedures and data analysis techniques. Chapter four constitutes data analysis and discussion of findings, while chapter five shall deal with the summary, conclusion, recommendations and suggestions for further research.
Chapter Five
5.0 Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Summary of Findings
This study summarized the finings based on the study objective which is to determine how school feeding in school influences pupils’ interest and academic performance in public schools in Ife central local government, and how sustainable feeding programme as a school feeding programme influences pupils’ academic performance in public primary schools in Ife Central local government of Osun State.
The study found that each of the indicators of alleviation of short-term hunger in malnourished or well-nourished school pupils through the school feeding programme have high influence on pupils’ academic performance in public primary schools.
It was found under this objective that school feeding programme and parents’ motivation to enroll their children in school and have them participate in school activities regularly helps to promote interest in Ife central local government.
The result of this study showed that an average of 44.96% of the respondents identified sustainable feeing programme as a means through which the high school dropout rate in Ife central local government can be reduced as well as enhancing their academic performance.
5.2 Conclusions
Based on the findings above, the study concludes that the O-meal programme as anchored by Osun state government and delivered in Ife local government has being effective generally in alleviating short-term hunger in public school pupils and have added more impetus to their academic performance. The indicators considered and well supported by respondents include the need to regularly feed the pupils by the parents and supported by the O-meal programme, motivating the pupils to actively participate in school activities through prompt feeding and payment of fees by the parents, total reduction of malnourishment in pupils and the reduction in dropout rates due to short term hunger alleviation.
The study thereafter concludes that parents should endeavor to encourage pupils’ enrolment and have them attend regularly. In doing this, parents should consider the following indicators as shown in this study. This include parents encouragement and motivation, parents going extra mile in enrolling their kids in schools, parents ensuring their gainfully employed to enable them provide for their kids regularly, and allowing the kids, especially the malnourished ones to transfer to schools where school feeding programmes are carried out so that they could be beneficiary of the programme, thereby enabling them to stay in school.
The study further concludes that sustaining the O-meal school feeding programme will highly influence pupils’ academic performance in public schools in Ife central local government. The factors considered for this conclusion by respondents include; reducing dropout rate requires regular food supply for pupils, reducing turnaround time enhances pupils concentration as well as their academic performance, sustaining food supply in schools also help in retaining pupils attendance, reducing parents unemployment will help in sustaining school feeding an pupils academic performance, and sustaining O-meal program reduces poverty through employment generation for caterers and it encourages all pupils remaining in school as well as continuous enrolment of more pupils. Therefore, there exists positive relationship between hunger reduction, parents’ motivation and sustainable feeding programs in public primary schools in Ife central local government in Osun state.
5.3 Recommendations
Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations are made;
It is clear that school feedingprogrammes have had positive impact on the academic performance of pupils in the few beneficiary schools in Ife central local government. The study thus recommends that the government should expand the scope of this programme to reach schools mostly in the rural areas where most poor families live. This programme should be made a major priority in these schools in order to aid pupils’ academic performance and to reduce the financial burden of the parents in feeding the pupils.
Based on the level of poverty in most rural communities in Ife central local government, the study recommend that the parents should be empowered by employing them as cooks and suppliers of raw materials needed in carrying out this programme as this will enable them to have enough financial strength to cater for the school charges of their wards. This will fully enable the parents to see themselves as partners to the government in the process of educating their children and mostly encourage taking responsibility for the program.
The study further recommend that the government should liaise with every organ of the government working responsible for the management of the O-meal school feeding programme to ensure proper management of the scheme, including developing favorable legal policy frameworks that will ensure the continuous sustenance of the programme most especially in the poor areas in ife central local government of Osun state. With proper compliance with these recommendations, there is every possibility that pupils’ academic performance will improve as expected with the ability to retain most of the in the school. This will reduce dropout rates, encourage pupils to stay in school for longer hours, increase their eagerness to enter schools, remain in schools, and learn as well as reducing other problems bedevilling academic emancipation of Ife central local government.


The Complete Material Will Be Sent to You in Just 2 Steps
Quick & Simple…
![]()
Make Payment (Through Transfer) of ₦5,000 to the Account Below
![]() | Acc No: 0811003731 |
| Samphina Academy | |
| Current Account |
Or CLICK HERE To Pay With Debit Card
| FOR STUDENTS OUTSIDE NIGERIA | |
| CLICK HERE To Pay With Card ($15) | |
| FOR GHANA STUDENTS (GHS 100) | |
![]() | MTN MoMo |
| 0553978005 | |
| Douglas Osabutey | |
![]()
Send the Following Details on WhatsApp ( 07062590260 ) After Payment
- Payment Details
- TOPIC: Investigation On The Impact Of School Feeding On Primary School Students’ Interest And Performance
The Complete Material Will Be Sent To You On WhatsApp After Receiving Your Details
T & C Apply
Students Review
List of Related Works
Reading Interests And Habits Of Connecticut Students In Nigerian University
Influence Of Social Media In Sharing Selfies Among Students In Festac Cosmopolitan
Influence Of Teachers Attitude Towards Work On Students Interest And Performance
Strategies For Motivating And Maintaining Students Interest In Mathematics
Effects Of Computerization Of Library On Students Academic Achievement And Interest
Strategies For Enhancing Students Interest In Technical Drawing In Senior Secondary Schools
Using Motivation And Interest To Improve Reading Skills Of Secondary School Students
Availability And Utilization Of Learning Facilities In Correlate Of Students Interest In Biology
Analyzing The Influence Of Gender On Students’ Interest And Achievement In Biology
Influence Of School Disciplinary Styles On Students’ Self-Esteem And Interest In Learning
An Analysis Of Reading Interest And Habits Of The Federal Polytechnic Students In Nigeria
The Effects Of Poor Funding Of Primary Schools In Ethiope East Local Government Area Of Delta State
Effect Of Truancy And Its Educational Implementation On The Performance Of Primary School Pupils
The Impacts Of Teaching Primary Education Studies In Primary Schools In Toro Local Government Area
The Problem Of Indiscipline Among Nigerian Navy Primary School Pupils
Consequences Of Child Trafficking On The Educational Achievement Of Pupils In Public Primary Schools
Motivational Needs For Public Primary School Teachers In Nigeria
The Role Of Leadership Styles On Teachers Working Morale In Primary Schools
Rate Of Female Enrollment In Primary Schools
Effect Of Single Parenthood On Pupils Academic Achievement In Primary School
The Impact Of Family Background On The Academic Performance On Primary School Pupils
The Effect Of Teaching Aids On Teaching And Learning In Some Selected Primary Schools
An Assessment Of Pre-Primary School Education On Primary School Pupils’ Performance
The Influence Of Some School Factors On Academic Performance In Selected Pre-Primary School


