![Sample our Environment & Agriculture journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5934/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Environment-Agriculture.jpg"})
ABSTRACT
A quasi-experimental one group pretest/posttest design study was undertaken in two primary schools from two rural villages of Vhembe District in Limpopo Province, South Africa. About 172 children aged 9–14 years in Grades 5 and 6 were recruited for the study. All children in the grades were invited to participate pending written consent from parents and verbal assent from children. Due to school migration and absenteeism, only 154 children were available for posttest evaluation. However, nutrition education was administered to all 172 children. Nutrition education focused on types and health benefits of indigenous foods and was divided into three lessons. Observation and counting was used to note the responses given by children. The results suggest that the nutrition education was effective in imparting knowledge to children as well improving dietary diversification with indigenous foods. It is concluded that nutrition education is a valuable tool to change eating behaviors.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the following people:
Participants who were primary school children for participating in this study and their parents for providing consent for their children to participate in the study
School principals for granting the research team permission to conduct the study at their facilities
University of Venda for institutional approval and Department of Basic Education Circuit for registering the project and issuing ethical clearance for the project
Fourth-level BSc nutrition students who collected data: Baloyi Cedrick, Neluheni Tendani, Fhedzisani Thivhilaeli, and Khoza Jabulile
Data capturers: T. C. Mahopo and Masingita Makamu
Funding
The research project was funded by the National Research Foundation.