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USDA Studies Whether Mandatory Breakfast Improves Learning

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has recently launched a three-year study in six school districts across the nation to determine whether mandatory breakfast served at school improves students' performance. The study is being conducted in elementary schools in Shelby County, Alabama; Boise, Idaho; Wichita, Kansas; Santa Rosa, California; the Washington Elementary School District in Phoenix; and the Harrison County School District in Gulfport, Mississippi. Participating elementary schools-poor and privileged alike-are eating breakfast at government expense so that researchers can determine whether guaranteed breakfast for all students will lead to improved attendance, test scores, and cognitive development. Similar studies conducted in Maryland and Minnesota have suggested that breakfast for all boosts performance, but the federal government wants its own test, and some say the results could lead to a new national policy.

Source: Teacher Magazine, November/December 2000

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