Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department works together with the Department of Health and other agencies to support students in the area of health promotion. My Department acknowledges the commitment of schools in promoting healthy lifestyle choices for students in a number of ways - through the curriculum, for example Home Economics, Physical Education and Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE); through school policies including healthy lunch policies; and by the use of resources and programmes chosen by the school such as the Active School Flag (ASF). Work by my Department in this area aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge to enable them to make the right choices to maintain healthy lifestyles throughout their lives.

In relation to healthy eating, my Department supports Agri Aware’s Incredible Edibles programme, a healthy eating initiative for primary school pupils. The programme is also supported by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Department of Health. It encourages schools across the country to grow carrots, lettuce, potatoes, strawberries, turnips and herbs. Schools are supplied with grow packs, activity sheets and videos containing everything needed to grow these foods.

In addition, the Food Dudes Programme is a healthy eating programme developed to encourage children to eat more fresh fruit and vegetables. It is implemented in primary schools and is based on repeated tastings of fruit and vegetables supported by positive role modelling and rewards. The Food Dudes Healthy Eating Programme is managed by Bord Bia in Ireland and is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with support from the European Union under the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme.

Teaching and learning in the subject of SPHE also addresses healthy behaviours. Work is underway to update the SPHE curriculum at primary, Junior Cycle and Senior Cycle levels. A new Junior Cycle SPHE curriculum has been implemented in schools from this September. The specification includes a strand on Making Healthy Choices, including a learning outcome where students should be able to “consider the multifaceted nature of health and wellbeing, and evaluate what being healthy might look like for different adolescents, including how food, physical activity, sleep/rest and hygiene contribute to health and wellbeing”.

SPHE is delivered on a mandatory basis throughout primary level. The aim is to equip pupils with skills and knowledge to enable them to make appropriate choices for healthy lifestyles. Students’ families and their community are well positioned to complement schools’ efforts.

Currently, the primary SPHE curriculum is divided into three strands – Myself; Myself and Others; Myself and the Wider World. Under the strand ‘Myself’, food and nutrition is a major component of the ‘Taking Care of My Body’ unit. At all levels in primary school, topics include: becoming aware of the importance of food; discussing and exploring some qualities and categories of food; and examining dietary needs and identifying the nutrients that are necessary in a balanced diet.

Work on updating Primary specifications has begun, following the publication of the Primary Curriculum Framework last March. This Framework will be the foundation for all new curriculum specifications, including SPHE.

For Senior Cycle, a draft specification has now been developed by the NCCA and this is currently for consultation until 18th of October on the NCCA’s website. This draft specification is made up of three strands, one of which is titled ‘Health and Wellbeing’, which contains learning outcomes pertaining to determinants of good health and healthy life balance. The current consultation for Senior Cycle SPHE will enable parents, as well as students, teachers and other stakeholders, to make their views known. Everyone has an opportunity to take part in this public consultation and to make their views known. Submissions to the consultation can be made here: ncca.ie/en/senior-cycle/curriculum-developments/senior-cycle-social-personal-and-health-education-sphe/