Why isn't cooking taught in school, since unhealthy eating is such an epidemic problem?

Question

http://therelevance.blogspot.com

Answer 1

I have often wondered why they force feed the kids knowledge about ancient cultures but dont teach them any life skills, like cooking, balancing a checkbook, etc. The simple lack of knowledge about what is in commercial foods and meats is why the industry is thriving. But, we are the ones considered the weirdos! lol

Answer 2

It's taught in a community college where I live, and I think the university may have a degree in it. But I agree it should be be a class in schools- such as healthy eating habits and the dangers of bad foods like saturated fats etc. Parents shouldn't be expected to teach this since so many parents are overweight and know nothing about good eating.

Answer 3

I took my high school's cooking class all four years I was there (1982-1986) yes, I am a heterosexual male...At first I took it because I thought it would be an easy "A". After the first month or so I found out that I really enjoyed cooking and still do to this day. I cook most of my family meals and I am now showing my son ,age 4, that cooking can be fun. He looks forward to cooking with Daddy, but not near as much as I enjoy cooking with him!

I don't think I would have got the enjoyment out of cooking if it wasn't for my high school cooking class and my teacher Mrs. Wong.

Answer 4

We had Cooking I and Cooking II in high school. The problem was it was mostly a girly class for easy A's, and they did a lot of baking instead of real food. There was even Cake Decorating I and II. More sugar and fat!

However, I've heard that since I've graduated they've added Grilling I. And more guys are taking the class to hook up with girls.

I hope they're teaching nutritional information. If I were a teacher, I'd put those kids through he** learning. It would not be a fluff class like it used to be.

And no, I never took any of them, but my friends did.

Answer 5

Actually, I had cooking for half a quarter in 6th and 7th grade, before they deemed it as too costly and got rid of the program. That's the main problem with teaching cooking: it's too costly. The education systems don't think it's effective or useful to be taught in school so they don't teach it to save money. It's the same with art and music programs that they cut back on to save money.

Answer 6

When I was in highschool, in the mid-90s, we were required to take a "personal living" class to graduate. Cooking was a big part of that class, but nutrition was not. We were allowed to cook what we wanted, and I specifically remember making chili cheese dogs for the "microwave" unit. Yuck!

Answer 7

cooking used to be taught in schools when there was enough money for schools. now that we are thinking our schools have gone to hell in a hand basket, we don't have the time or money to dedicate to something this 'meaningless'. BTW I agree with you that it would be helpful. I gained most of my cooking skills from school because after i became a vegan my mother wouldn't cook for me any more and I had to start fending for myself overnight.

Answer 8

if you think about it, when you were in school, would YOU have gave a crap about what they told you what was good or not, to eat? (i mean no offense by this)

it is a sad state of affairs that kids are in these days...most don't care, or are obnoxious little pricks who have egos the size of their parents' uber-unnecessarily obese houses; and the ones that do care are either taunted or end up on the six'o'clock news. (heh, not really, but you get my point)

*here comes the reminiscing scene* when i took a cooking class in middle school, it was, yeah, for a select few groups...
a) the jocks who thought it was a joke, and main mission was to hit on girls,

b) girls

c) the curious, the hungry, &/or the health-wise (at age 14??)

yep. it was pretty pathetic. i was in group c, one of the curious/hungry individuals. (yes, i am straight. no, i am not overweight.)

i wish they'd have classes on cooking like that in schools now, but they rarely do. you can't find one unless you go to a chef store, or culinary college...or you have a silician grandmother hahaha.

too bad they don't have cooking classes for vegetarians/vegans...

OH! and rock on for that one dude who shows his son how to cook! are you a chef, man?

Answer 9

Actually, cooking is all they really taught in my school, but I did go to culinary school so that's probably it. But we did have sections on nutrition, and even a whole class dedicated to healtheir cooking

Answer 10

We had a year's worth of cooking in high school. We didn't really make anything healthy though.