Abstract
The relationship between students’ living in poverty and academic underachievement challenges schools across the nation. Poverty is particularly prevalent among children with disabilities. One detrimental condition of poverty that directly affects student development and academic achievement is food insecurity and hunger. With the increasing number of children identified as living in food-insecure households, it is inevitable that at some point, a teacher will work with a child suffering from hunger. With this article, the authors hope to assist educators in understanding poverty and its relationship to childhood hunger. Tips for identifying the signs and symptoms of hunger are shared. School- and classroom-level recommendations are made to aid in alleviating hunger in school-age children.
The number of people in the United States living in poverty is staggering. In 2011, 46.2 million people living in the United States were living in poverty, or 15% of the total U.S. population (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2012a). The number of poor Americans increased by 27% between 2006 and 2010, while the country’s total population increased by only 3.3% (Smiley, 2012). The population most affected by poverty is children. In 2011, 21.9% of children under the age of 18 years were living in poverty (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2012b). Approaching levels typically associated with the poorest developing countries, close to 3 million American families with children live on less than $2 a day (Smiley, 2012).
Poverty is particularly prevalent among children with disabilities (Emerson, Shahtahmasebi, Lancaster, & Berridge, 2010; Fujiura & Yamaki, 2000). Twenty-eight percent of children with disabilities are living in poverty, whereas 16% of children living in poverty do not have disabilities (Fujiura & Yamaki, 2000). Poverty is particularly worrisome for children with disabilities because it is more plausible for them to live in conditions that can potentially impede their development and academic attainment (Emerson et al., 2010).
The relationship between students’ living in poverty and academic underachievement challenges schools across the nation. Children who live in poverty are more likely to struggle academically and not achieve at the same levels as their middle- and high-income peers (Taylor, 2005). They are more likely to be retained, suspended, and expelled and to drop out (Taylor, 2005). The achievement gap between students living in poverty and those not living in poverty exists in both reading and math and is consistently a concern at all levels of education.
One detrimental condition of poverty that directly affects students’ development and academic achievement is food insecurity and hunger (Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003). Food insecurity refers to limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate foods acquired through socially acceptable means; hunger refers to the pain or discomfort resulting from a prolonged lack of food (Hadley, Zodhiates, & Sellen, 2007). Hunger, depriving children of sufficient calories and vital nutrients, has a significant physical and psychological impact on children’s ability to learn in the classroom (Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003).
The purpose of this article is to articulate the potential significance of poverty and hunger on the education of students with learning disabilities living without enough to eat. With the increased prevalence of poverty in the homes of students with learning disabilities and consequently increased risk for hunger, it is critical that educators understand hunger and its impact on students’ social, emotional, and academic development. Extensive attention is given to developing a deeper understanding of poverty and the reality of families feeding their children at and below the poverty line. Approaches to identifying the warning signs and the long-term consequences of hunger are shared, as well as additional recommendations for supporting children and families living with hunger.
Poverty
Poverty guidelines, frequently referred to as the federal poverty line, are a simplified version of the poverty threshold issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Poverty guidelines are used for administrative purposes, one of which is identifying individuals’ eligibility for programs. The guidelines vary by family size and geographic location. In 2013, the poverty guidelines ranged from an annual income of $11,490 for a single household to $39,630 for a household of eight family members.
The Department of Health and Human Services, a primary provider of federal programs to support low-income families, determines program eligibility on the basis of ranges of incomes at or above a certain percentage of the poverty line (Fisher, 1992; O’Brien & Pedulla, 2010). Typical range markers are incomes within 130% or 185% of the poverty line. For example, to be eligible for a food program such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), an individual’s income can be up to 130% of the poverty line. With the 2013 poverty guidelines, for a family of three, an income of $19,530 or less indicates that the family is living in poverty. A family of three earning $24,828 a year, or 130% of the poverty line, statistically is not categorized as living in poverty but would be eligible for the SNAP program. Incomes above that amount, even slightly, disqualify a family for this type of support.
There are several major concerns related to the poverty line, which remains structured as it was in 1965 upon its inception. First, measures of poverty continue to use food as the primary measurement and fail to consider cultural changes such as the relative costs of food, housing, transportation, energy, health care, and child care (Meyers & Sullivan, 2012). Additionally, the poverty line does not account for a person’s regional location and the costs of living associated with that region (Bartlett, 2011; O’Brien & Pedulla, 2010).
Food Insecurity and Hunger
Food insecurity and hunger are principal concerns of poverty (Kozak, Lombe, & Miller, 2012) and are particularly prevalent in households with children. In 2011, approximately 16.7 million children lived in food-insecure households (Feeding America, 2013a). Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia reported that 20% or more of the total child population lived in food-insecure households (Feeding America, 2013a). Rates of food insecurity in children range from 10.6% in North Dakota to 29% in Oregon and Arizona. Food insecurity and hunger are especially worrisome for children living in single-parent homes. Approximately 35% of children living with single mothers are food insecure (Share Our Strength, 2013). Consequently, 78% of children living in the United States are eligible for federal nutrition programs (Feeding America, 2013c).
Signs and Symptoms of Hunger
With the increasing number of children identified as living in food-insecure households, it is inevitable that at some point, a teacher will work with a child suffering from hunger. Educators should be aware of the signs and symptoms of hunger in children and understand that hunger can be the root cause for a lack of motivation to learn or behavioral concerns (Slack & Yoo, 2005). The initial consequences of hunger are subtle: fatigue, irritability, dizziness, frequent headaches, and difficulty concentrating (Lewit & Kerrebrock, 1997) but have a tremendous impact on a child’s ability to learn and perform in the classroom.
Many times, children will complain of physical ailments that result from a lack of food or insufficient amounts of nutritious food, often including headaches and stomachaches (Lang, 2001; Share Our Strength, 2013). These complaints usually result in a trip to the nurse’s office, where a child may be given the opportunity to rest. Reporting head or stomach pain before school may result in a higher incidence of school absences (Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003).
Another symptom of hunger in children can been viewed through overall energy levels. A lack of nutrition can make school-age children lethargic (Share Our Strength, 2013). A limited caloric intake affects the body’s and the brain’s ability to function. Reduced energy levels due to hunger can be viewed in the classroom as apathy and passivity toward learning and interaction (Alaimo, Olson, & Frongillo, 2001).
Children living with food insecurity may also have persistently high levels of hyperactivity and inattention (Melchior et al., 2012; Share Our Strength, 2013; Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003). The diet of a food-insecure child is typically high in fat, refined sugar, and sodium but low in fruits, vegetables, fiber, vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, and iron. Consuming large amounts of refined sugars and not enough iron may contribute to children’s hyperactivity and inattention (Melchior et al., 2012).
Children who are hungry may also exhibit behavioral problems (Share Our Strength, 2013) that inhibit their ability to develop relationships. Uncertain access to food may lead to feeble attachments between parents and children (Melchior et al., 2012), affecting their ability to build relationships with others. They may withdraw because of difficulty concentrating and interacting with others, or they may show signs of irritability and aggression (Alaimo et al., 2001; Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003). These deficits in interpersonal relationships can often lead to lowered academic achievement, rejection from teachers and peers, and higher rates of problematic behavior in the school environment (Gresham, Elliott, Cook, Vance, & Kettler, 2010). For food-insecure students, their diets could be directly related to their social skills deficits, as a poor diet may affect the brain’s capability to perform effectively, leading to irritability and distractibility (Fishbein & Meduski, 1987).
Children living with hunger are also more likely to exhibit signs of depression and anxiety. Uncertain access to food is a chronic stressor, and studies have indicated that the members of food-insecure households have elevated depressive symptoms (Kollannoor-Samuel et al., 2011). These families consistently live with feelings of deprivation, restricted food choices and constant worry (Kollannor-Samuel et al., 2011), creating anxious and depressed households for children (Alaimo et al., 2001).
Impact of Hunger on Academic Performance
Whether hunger presents itself as a physical ailment, as poor concentration and lethargy, or through behavioral changes, it will have an impact on the academic performance of children in the classroom (Share Our Strength, 2013; Tapper-Gardzina & Cotunga, 2003). Hunger has many adverse consequences that can directly affect the academic achievement of children. Children born in food-insecure homes have a higher incidence of low birth weight (Hromi-Fiedler, Bermúdez-Millán, Segura-Pérez, & Pérez-Escamilla, 2011). Their diets are linked to the development of risk factors associated with Type 2 diabetes (Seligman, Bindman, Vittinghoff, Kanaya, & Kushel, 2007), obesity, and hypertension (Rosas et al., 2009). These illnesses can affect the brain development and cognitive functioning of a child and thus his or her capacity to learn.
Food Programs
Federal programs have been created to target children experiencing hunger. Eligibility for key programs such as SNAP, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, the School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Programs, and the Summer Food Service Program is based on the incomes of potential participants relative to the poverty line (Fisher, 1992). Private organizations also provide emergency food assistance to increase children’s access to nutritious food. The goal of each program is to provide supplemental support to ensure that participants consume a sufficient number of healthy calories. Table 1 summarizes key supplemental food programs, target populations for those programs, and income eligibility criteria.
Supplemental Food Programs.
A Continuing Epidemic
Although helpful, the reality is that these food programs have not eliminated childhood hunger in the United States. Table 2 summarizes the eligibility guidelines of SNAP, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, and the National School Lunch Program for the 2013–2014 school year. SNAP is designed to provide supplemental dollars to families for the purchase of nutritious food. Table 3 shows the maximum SNAP benefits. The SNAP program expects families to spend 30% of their net incomes on food; only households with net incomes of zero are eligible for the maximum benefit.
Child Nutrition Programs: Income Eligibility Guidelines.
Source: Adapted from U.S. Department of Agriculture (2013).
Note: For the 48 contiguous states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and American territories.
Maximum Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefits by Household Size.
Source: Adapted from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (2013).
Table 3 indicates that the maximum benefit a family of three will receive is $526 dollars per month (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 2013). This equates to approximately $175 dollars per person for a month of meals. In a 30-day month of 3 meals per day, these benefits will support meals costing no more than $1.95 per meal per person. This limits even the most budget-savvy shopper in the ability to acquire and consistently prepare high-quality, nutritious meals. It is especially important to note that as household size increases, the amount of money per meal decreases, as illustrated in Table 4.
Costs per Meal Based on Maximum Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefit.
It is evident that SNAP benefits do not provide enough support to help a family eat for the entire month. Although the maximum benefits statistics are staggering, the reality is that the average monthly SNAP benefit per person is $133.85, less than $1.50 per person per meal (Feeding America, 2013c). Approximately 90% of SNAP benefits are exhausted by the end of the third week, and families must turn to food banks to supplement their diets (Feeding America, 2013c). Sadly, only 55% of food-insecure individuals are income eligible for SNAP benefits (Feeding America, 2013c).
It is also evident that many families struggle to coordinate services. Even though the eligibility requirements of the School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program are the same, approximately 20 million children eat free lunches, but only 9.7 million eligible students eat breakfast at school (Share Our Strength, 2013). Similarly, only 1 in 7 eligible children participates in the Summer Food Service Program (Share Our Strength, 2013). Knowing that SNAP benefits do not carry most families through the entire month, 76% of food-insecure families did not seek the support of food pantries or emergency meals. Twenty-seven percent of individuals reported that there were no food pantries in their communities, and 15% reported that they did not know if one was available (Feeding America, 2013b).
Recommendations
Although educators cannot end hunger, they can play a key role in helping support children living in food-insecure environments, in turn creating better conditions for academic achievement. Teachers and counselors are critical in developing relationships with children and families, identifying signs and symptoms of hunger, and leading families to coordinated resources to support their nutritional needs. Administrators can adjust the instructional schedule, develop community partnerships, and coordinate efforts among home, school, and the community to minimize hunger to support learning. In the following paragraphs, individual classroom–level and school system–level options are discussed that may help schools not only reduce the immediate effects of hunger but also potentially improve children’s overall hunger conditions through education.
Individual Classroom–Level Recommendations
Because classroom teachers spends the most time with individual students during the academic day, their role in identifying students who may be food insecure or living in hunger and providing resources to support these students is crucial. Individual classroom teachers should focus on building communities within their classrooms that are supportive of students and provide them with opportunities to share their experiences. Additionally, individual classroom teachers should be well informed about resources to support families who are food insecure or living in hunger and should also learn skills to have critical conversations with parents or guardians about the food needs of their children.
Building Supportive Classroom Communities
The most important thing a teacher can do to support a child living with hunger is to build a strong relationship with that student. Hunger is a very private issue, and some families may be embarrassed or try to hide the fact that they do not have enough food to eat. It is essential for teachers to know their students and be aware of their circumstances to gain better insight into their struggles. For students and their families to be willing to not only open up about their difficulties but also accept help and support, they must know that they can trust their classroom teachers. They must have confidence that their struggles are kept confidential and that they will not be judged for the circumstances in which they are living.
One way for teachers to create a supportive classroom community is to spend time during the first weeks of school establishing a safe environment for all students. Teachers can create specific rules and procedures that address the use of pejoratives related to individuals on the basis of components of their identities (e.g., race/ethnicity, language, appearance; Morgan, Mancl, Kaffar, & Ferreira, 2011). Teachers should also ensure that students understand that the classroom is a space where open dialogue can occur, and they should be willing to share information with their teachers (although teachers should also make it clear that they are mandatory reporters of information, and any information that is shared that might indicate risk to a student must be reported). When building this community, it is important for teachers to make it clear to students that they are welcome in the classroom and are an important part of the classroom community.
Teachers can also build individual conversations with students into the curricular day. One strategy for incorporating students’ voices and experiences is the use of dialogue journal writing (Garmon, 2001; Yoshihara, 2008). Teachers can plan open journal writing time with students, where they can share their experiences over the weekend, respond to their specific thoughts about a topic being discussed in the classroom environment, or answer a question from the teacher. Teachers can then spend time responding directly to students through these journals, creating a space for open dialogue that is closely related to academic writing curricula. Depending on the number of students in the class, teachers may read each journal entry every week but only do in-depth responses to a predetermined number of students and rotate those students each week.
Teachers can also build individual student meetings into the classroom structure. Although teachers may not have time to meet with all of their students one on one every day, they can build conference times into their schedules during independent practice activities. Similar to the journal dialogue, teachers can create schedules of student conferences that rotate as frequently as they would like to meet with students (e.g., weekly, biweekly, monthly). During this conference time, teachers can discuss issues students are facing both socially and academically and find out if there is any way they can provide support to these students. Through these types of activities, students will realize that their teachers are concerned with their well-being and are there to support them. This creates a community environment in which students may be open to sharing information that will aid teachers in determining if they are food insecure or living in hunger.
Signs of Food Insecurity or Hunger
It is critical for teachers to know the signs of hunger and to be aware of how they affect learning and behavior. Lethargy from hunger can be mistaken for laziness. A student’s inability to concentrate because of hunger might characterized them as being “just not focused enough.” Headaches and stomachaches may be viewed as a way to get out of class. The physical effects of hunger are often far too strong for many students to simply overcome and push through on a daily basis.
One way teachers can monitor their students for signs of food insecurity or hunger is to schedule time to sit and eat lunch with them. Teachers should watch for the speed with which students eat their food (e.g., they eat rapidly, as if they have not eaten in a long time; they eat large amounts of food). Teachers should also watch to see if students are attempting to take food from the cafeteria, often a sign that they are worried they will not have food later. Additionally, teachers should try to make healthy snacks (e.g., granola bars, fruit snacks) and water available to students in their classroom environments. These resources should be made available to all students in the classroom environment, with specific rules and procedures attached to their consumption. Teachers should monitor if there are specific students asking for the food resources every day and make note if they are asking for food more than once in a day. These resources can be purchased by the teacher or secured through partnerships with community businesses. Teachers may also ask parents who are able if they are willing to provide healthy snack options for the classroom at the beginning of the school year on the school supply list. By doing so, teachers can stock their classrooms with food resources for the academic year while allowing parents to be involved in helping minimize classroom hunger as well.
Resources and Support for Parents
If a teacher identifies a student who may be food insecure or living in hunger, it is crucial for the teacher to be knowledgeable about supplemental food programs and be willing to make contact with parents to point them in the right direction. This is the point at which a teacher’s relationship with the student and his or her family becomes critical and will determine their willingness to accept support services. When teachers make contact with students’ families with concerns about food insecurity or hunger, it is important that they be humble and polite, because this is a sensitive topic for families to address. Teachers should be willing to ask critical questions of family members in a supportive way and let them know that they are there to support both students and their families.
Teachers should also spend time learning about the resources for families who are food insecure or living in hunger in their community. Being knowledgeable about the food support programs available, a teacher can help a family coordinate multiple available resources to help children acquire more nutritious foods. Many families are frequently unaware of the various programs available to them and fail to take advantage of them. For example, although eligibility for the National School Lunch Program includes breakfast, according to Share Our Strength (2013), approximately 20 million children ate free or reduced-price lunch, but only 9.7 million ate breakfast at school. Only 19% of eligible children from low-income families participate in the Summer Food Service Program (Lee, 2008). Through knowledge and conversation, teachers can provide vital wraparound services to students and families to address their needs.
School System–Level Recommendations
In addition to the support provided by individual classroom teachers, school administrators should spend time implementing strategies and techniques at the school system level to identify and support students who might be food insecure or living in hunger. From a systems approach, school administrators should make it a priority for staff members to get to know about the students in the community to identify students who may be dealing with hunger. Administrators can support the development of systems that ensure all students on their campus have access to nutritious food. Additionally, administrators can be central figures in ensuring that families have access to resources to support their dietary needs.
Home Visits
Trust and respect must be built between educators and families if collaborative efforts are to be developed to support the nutritional and, ultimately, academic needs of children. One way to build good relationships with parents is to conduct home visits (Byrd, 2012; Stetson, Stetson, Sinclair, & Nix, 2012). School districts have found home visits to be highly effective in promoting academic achievement and social development in students (Middleton, 2008; Stetson et al., 2012). Visiting students in their homes helps educators gain a deeper understanding of their students and their life experiences (Stetson et al., 2012). Understanding these life experiences will help educators identify needs and effectively match them with available resources.
Home visits should be designed around the unique needs of the school and community. Teacher comfort level, time, and expenses should be considered in the development of visitation models. The comfort of a teacher in visiting students in their homes should be the primary consideration. Initially, teachers may have reservations about visiting students in their homes (Stetson et al., 2012), or they may struggle to connect with families. One way to address these reservations is to have teachers visit homes for the first time as pairs or teams (Colcord-Stuht, 2009; Middleton, 2008).
The next step in designing schoolwide home visits should be deciding when the visits will take place. For home visits to be effective in building relationships, the initial visit should take place early in the school year, prior to experiencing any academic or behavioral concerns. The sole focus of the visit should be to learn about the student and his or her family. Schools may choose to conduct summertime visits, or they might use professional development or faculty meeting time. Districts could also use dedicated back-to-school professional development time, a few Saturdays prior to the start of school, or during the first week after school dismissal to visit homes. Districts might also limit the number of faculty meetings during the year to allow teachers to visit homes (Middleton, 2008). Decisions about home visit timing should consider not only teachers’ time but the community’s work schedule and availability as well.
Once the logistics of the home visit model have been established, compensation for teacher time and travel expenses should be determined. If teachers are required to conduct home visits during the summer, or if they are not released from meeting or professional development expectations, it is important for schools to consider paying teachers stipends for their time. Additionally, fuel stipends could be given to reimburse teachers for their travel from school to students’ homes (Middleton, 2008). School budgets could be a source for funding stipends, but schools can also link with community organizations to acquire grants or other support funds to pay for the extra time dedicated to conducting home visits.
Before initiating home visits, it is important that schools develop protocols and provide teachers with training on successful visits. Protocols and training should be developed on the basis of the school community and teachers’ levels of experience in building relationships with parents. Although protocols and training should be individualized for each school, the following areas are important to consider in developing protocols and training:
the purpose of the visit (Byrd, 2012; Middleton, 2008),
how to communicate with parents about the visit (Byrd, 2012; Middleton, 2008),
the length of the visits (Middleton, 2008),
language barriers (Byrd, 2012; Middleton, 2008),
knowledge of and respect for the home culture (Byrd, 2012), and
how to learn about the student and their family without being intrusive (Middleton, 2008).
Considerations for planning successful home visits can be found in Table 5. Table 6 displays a sample home visit agenda with communication points.
Considerations for Successful Home Visits.
Sample Agenda and Communication Points for Teachers on Home Visits.
Provision of Food to Students in the School Environment
School breakfast should be a focal point for school administration. It is critical that children from food-insecure homes partake in the breakfast opportunities at their schools. Statistics indicate that not even half of the students who are identified as eligible for breakfast programs eat breakfast at school. Timing is one reason students may struggle to eat breakfast at school (Share Our Strength, 2013). Many breakfast opportunities require students to leave their homes at an earlier hour. The stigma of eating breakfast is also another issue as to why students may not eat breakfast at school (Share Our Strength, 2013). Typically, students not eligible for the National School Lunch Program eat breakfast at home, prior to arriving at school. In an effort to increase the number of children eating breakfast, schools can provide free breakfasts to all students. In addition, breakfast can be moved from the cafeteria to the classroom. Breakfast in the Classroom or Breakfast in a Bag is a portable breakfast system that provides free breakfast to all students, regardless of income, after the school bell rings (Breakfast in the Classroom, 2010). This allows all students to eat and provides some flexibility in the timing of breakfast. Students can enjoy breakfast with their classroom peers while teachers conduct start-of-day activities, such as taking attendance and collecting homework. Breakfast in the Classroom is funded by the Walmart Foundation. This partnership covers up-front costs related to equipment purchases, parent outreach, and program promotion (Breakfast in the Classroom, 2010).
Schools also might want to consider identifying school programs that provide supplemental food services. Many community food support agencies partner with after-school programs to provide after-school snacks and meals most weekdays. An example of such a program is Kids Café (Feeding America, 2013a). Kids Café is a program developed by Feeding America Food Banks and seeks to provide nutritious meals to children at risk for hunger at easily accessible sites and provide educational enrichment activities. They provide snacks and meals to low-income children who are in after-school community programs such as Boys & Girls Clubs. They also partner with community churches and public schools that provide after-school care for students. Currently there are over 1,500 Kids Café sites in schools and other after-school organizations (Feeding America, 2013a).
Another additional support program, coordinated by many local food banks, is the School Pantry Program. As previously mentioned, some communities do not have food banks to supplement families once SNAP benefits have run out, or families are unaware of their existence. The School Pantry Program sets up a food bank on a school campus and is designed to provide a more readily accessible source of food for low-income students and their families. Feeding America (2013b) reported that school-based food pantries are also more discreet and provide families with the privacy most seek when struggling with food insecurity. Currently, 25 food banks run over 400 school-based food pantry programs (Feeding America, 2013b). If a school is interested in a school-based food pantry, administration may contact the local food bank to assess need, resources, and logistics in starting a school food pantry.
Coordinated Community Efforts to Support Parents
Schools also might want to think about incorporating presentations about the role of a healthy diet on academic achievement during parental involvement events. These presentations could also be coupled with how to feed children a healthy diet on limited incomes. ConAgra Foods and Walmart have partnered to create a community food education program called Cooking Matters. Cooking Matters teaches families how to plan, purchase, and prepare healthy, tasty, and affordable meals at home on limited budgets, such as SNAP benefits. Specifically, family members are taken on guided grocery tours and are taught how to select nutritious, low-cost ingredients and prepare them in ways that provide the maximum nutritional value. Volunteers at community-based agencies such as Head Start, housing centers, and after-school programs teach these classes. At the conclusion of each class, each family takes home a bag of groceries. Schools that do not have Cooking Matters as an active program in their states can train to be facilitators and provide the training in their schools or communities. Volunteers, school counselors, or other administrative school-based staff members can access training videos and multiple resources to be able to lead grocery tours and provide families with the needed information on how to select and prepare healthy meals using their limited food program benefits. Whether schools live in states with active Cooking Matters programs or use the online training programs, these trainings can be successfully integrated into family involvement programs throughout the year.
Conclusion
Education is a key to ending the cycle of poverty. Although every child in this country is afforded a free public education, the benefits are not equal when hunger is a significant variable. Living with hunger places additional and substantial demands on learning beyond the educational challenges of living in poverty. Failing to address hunger could potentially negate or minimize educational reform efforts aimed at ending the cycle of poverty. A child who is hungry struggles to learn, and therefore, it is imperative that educators understand the impact of hunger and the strategies and resources available to help support families who are affected by the issue.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.