Why food matters
Food is a global issue, of everyday importance to people and a necessity in life. We are all consumers, users and makers of food. If children are not educated about food from an early age they will still make food choices, develop preferences and find ways of meeting their food needs, but from a very low baseline of knowledge and understanding. Being out of control in this way makes them powerless, passive rather than active citizens.

A little basic food education can make a real difference to the quality of people's lives. It empowers them to make choices and provides them with a greater range of options. Not to be educated about food has consequences for the quality of life.

Learning about food should be as practically involving an experience as possible at all ages, because food presents people with everyday decisions to make and problems to solve. Children need to develop the knowledge, skills and practical capability to meet needs and requirements through appropriate responses to the challenges which food presents in their lives. As such, food has a role to play in linking aspects of education that relate to health, lifeskills and in preparing young people as citizens.

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Where does food teaching happen?
In secondary schools at KS3 (11-14 years) food is taught within Design & Technology (D&T) in the majority of schools in England and Wales. In some schools home economics is still the preferred subject for teaching about food, but this is outside of any National Curriculum provision, and so not part of students' statutory entitlement. (Scotland and N.Ireland have their own curriculum and food is more likley to be taught within home economics.) Food is also part of the KS3 science curriculum and aspects of food, health and diet may be covered as part of students' personal, social and health education.

At KS4 students are expected to take a GSCE course in a D&T subject, of which food proves to be a popular option. For students post-16 they may opt for A Level Food Technology, GNVQ Manufacturing or GNVQ Catering.

Food technology differs from home economics largely in the perspective it takes. Both are practical subjects covering food science, nutrition, safety and hygiene, and food preparation and handling. In home economics the focus is primarily home, family and society oriented. In food technology the focus is science, technology and society. Food technology acknowledges that the home and family are not the only contexts in which people prepare and eat food in today's technological society. Consequently, students study food in a broader range of contexts including the industrial and commercial.

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What is taught?
The OfSTED 'Characteristics of Good Practice in Food Technology' publication (HMSO, 1996) states that:
"the curriculum in food technology helps pupils to understand the physical, chemical, nutritional, biological and sensory properties of foods and how to exploit these properties when designing and making food products."

The British Nutrition Foundation has defined food technology as:
"the process involved in the conversion of raw materials to edible food products including meals"
and suggests that this may operate at two levels:

There are many issues to be debated about the type of food education that is most appropriate for today's young people. Click here to read an account of some of these issues in the Hot Potatoes article 'Food in the National Curriculum: balanced diet or seriously malnourished?'

However, most food teachers would agree that essentially, food education involves the practical study of:

and so requires students to learn about:

It follows that students should be taught knowledge and skills about and with food, such that they can use and apply them:

This should also mean that in everyday life young people are able to:

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Food and the national curriculum
In National Curriculum (England and Wales) terms, the purpose of the Design & Technology (D&T) curriculum is to develop each individual's capability to combine practical skills with knowledge and understanding. It is from this context that food technology is taught.

D&T must provide opportunities for students to develop the relevant knowledge, skills and understanding about their world, considering what it consists of, how it is made up, how it impacts on people's lives and how individuals can interact with it and improve it.

Variety of activities
The National Curriculum Order for D&T requires that students' learning is developed through a variety of types of activity (common to each key stage):

It is good practice to combine these three types of activity within any food course or programme of learning. This can be done in many ways, but the aim should be to provide rich and varied learning experiences for students, such that they are able to work capably (ie. skilfully and knowledgeably) with food as a result.

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Teaching strategies
Teachers will, therefore, need to employ a range of strategies to support this learning taking place - ensuring that these are carried out within the applied context of developing overall capability, never just to perfect skills and knowledge in isolation. The following checklist of strategies might be used to ensure that students are developing the full range.

Over time students should learn to:

• develop thinking skills (critical, evaluative, reflective, analytical)
• explain their thinking and account for their actions
• communicate and develop their ideas
• learn by doing - getting hands on and having a go
• model their ideas
• make and carry out plans
• practise and improve techniques for designing and making
• prioritise and make decisions
• work individually and in groups or teams
• work from other people's designs or ideas
• respond to appropriate teacher intervention
• investigate and explore ideas in order to develop them
• make appropriate choices about, and use of, materials, tools and resources
• review how their work is developing
• take action as a result of their reflections
• consider issues of manufacture/production and their impact
• consider the user, human needs and values
• appraise outcomes against original intentions and in use

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What support is there?
There are a number of resources available either to support D&T generally or food technology more specifically. A number of these are listed in detail in the Resources section. The following are particularly useful in helping to develp an understanding of the principles of food technology teaching:
'Characteristics of Good Practice in Food Technology', OFSTED, 1996, HMSO - explains and exemplifies features of good practice in food technology from KS1-4
'Food Technology in Practice' - a teacher's guide and materials for use with pupils (KS3 & 4) from DATA/ DfEE, sponsored by Unilever, authored by Ali Farrell, a free copy was distributed to every secondary school in October 1996 - contains ideas for schemes of work for eight different topics, industrial case studies, an explanation of food manufacturing and the use of IT in the food industry
'DATA KS3 Guidance Materials - provides general guidance on developing, managing and organising the curriculum and a number of food technology units of work. See also the 'DATA Secondary Head of Department's File', 'DATA Assessment Handbook'
'Food Technology' including video of food product development processes, from The British Nutrition Foundation - www.nutrition.org.uk
'National Scheme of Work for D&T, KS1 and KS2 (primary) and KS3 (secondary) versions - both are a useful reference for secondary teachers
'Bringing Baking to Life' materials now on this site

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