Nutritional Status and School Participation of School

Feeding Program Beneficiaries in Lower Grade Level

Barangay Schools of Lope De Vega District

Rationale

Nutrition and Health problems have beset the Philippines for

a long time. Among public elementary school children short-term
hunger syndrome has been observed because many do not eat
breakfast or have to walk long distances to reach school.

As the primary institution mandated to deliver

quality education for the country’s young student population the
Department of Education provides sustainable programs that in
future will fill the human resource needs of the country in its
never-ending march towards progress. It recognizes that quality
education cannot be attained if students suffer from malnutrition
and nutrient deficiency. Thus, the DepEd launched the School
Based Feeding Program with the aim of addressing the nutritional
needs of severely undernourished pupils.

Previous studies show that school feeding is a significant

component of an effective education system, as children's health
and nutrition directly impact their school attendance, ability to
learn, and overall development.

One of the main problems of our school is the high

prevalence of severely wasted pupils. Despite conducting the
school feeding program we still have non-readers and
undernourished pupils. For the school year 2018-2019 alone, there
were ____ pupils who belong to the below normal weight (Baseline
result), equivalent to ____% of the total school population.
Pupils who could hardly read or nonreaders at the beginning of
the school year has ----- pupils from the total population.
 Many schools in Northern Samar have conducted the school-
based feeding program. But there have only been a few studies
conducted, and many are still unsure about the impacts of school
feeding on the school participation of the pupil beneficiaries.
The researcher believes that as one of the catalysts of education
and nutrition we should gauge the impact of the program we are
implementing specifically on the health of the beneficiaries and
their school participation, and determine the significance of the
school feeding program. A closer look and evaluation of this
study will provide further insights and encouragement to
teachers, pupils and especially to parents in different barangays
and generate support for the program. This study therefore
focuses on the nutritional status and school participation of
school feeding program beneficiaries in the lower grade level
barangay Schools of Lope De Vega District.