Clustering of Youth Empowerment and Health Behaviors Among Sixth to Eighth Grade Adolescents

Document Type

Abstract

Publication Date

7-2017

Abstract

Study Design, Settings, Participants, Intervention: The sample consisted of n¼263 students nested in 18 classrooms in North Carolina and Ohio. Nine classrooms used FMI and nine used traditional mathematics and science curriculum in a quasi-experimental design. Outcome Measures and Analysis: Multi-level models were used to assess the relationship between student-level variables including: gender, free and reduced lunch status (as a proxy for student socioeconomic status), and baseline nutrition knowledge; classroom-level variables including: control or intervention status, teacher experience and teacher nutrition training on student nutrition knowledge at the conclusion of the program. A total of five models were built and analyzed using PROC MIXED and estimated using maximum likelihood in SASv9. 4. Conclusions and Implications: Classroom-level variables including curriculum and teacher characteristics accounted for $56% of variability in nutrition knowledge after the program. The FoodMASTER intervention was found to be a significant predictor of nutrition knowledge. Students exposed to FMI score on average 4.32 points higher than control classrooms (p¼. 0001). Teachers with 8+ years of experience were found to improve predicted post-nutrition knowledge scores (p¼. 006). Based on these analyses, integrated nutrition education such as FoodMAS-TER significantly increases student nutrition knowledge. Further, there is a moderating influence of teacher experience indicating that effectiveness of nutrition education programs may be improved when administered by experienced teachers.

Publication Title

Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior

Volume

49

Issue

7

First Page

S25

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS