Kristine Engebretsen Illøkken was born in Harstad, and raised in Trondheim and Lier. She has a master's degree in Public Health Science from 2015 and a bachelor's degree in Nutrition, Food and Culture from 2012, both from the University of Agder. From 2016 to 2019 she worked in NAV and with public health in Iveland Municipality. Since April 2022 she has been employed as an advisor for social sustainability and public health in Lyngdal Municipality.
Evaluation Committee:
- Professor Hege Wergedahl, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
- Professor Christel Larsson, University of Gothenburg
- Head of evaluation committee: Associate professor Dag Tomas Sagen Johannesen, UiA
Supervisors:
- Main supervisor: Frøydis Nordgård Vik, Professor, Department of Nutrition and Public Health, UiA
- Co-supervisors: Nina Cecilie Øverby, Professor, Department of Nutrition and Public Health, UiA; Berit Johannessen, Associate professor, Department of Health and Nursing Sciences
Summary
The overall goal of the thesis was to investigate the role that breakfast and school lunch can have on student performance at school and on public health. Three sub-studies were used to address this goal in different ways.
The first study was based on an intervention study where the aim was to evaluate the effect of a free school meal, called the “school meal project”, on the student’s school environment. This study did not find any significant findings, which may be due to methodological limitations.
In the second study, qualitative interviews were conducted among a sample of students and teachers involved in the school meal project, where the aim was to examine their experiences with the school meal. These interviews were conducted immediately after the school meal project and a follow-up five years later. Findings from the interviews showed that the school meal was important for the students’ social environment, for friendships and for social learning. Furthermore, the school meal was important for the students’ diet, and the findings indicated that the students learned new healthier eating habits that lasted five years later. In addition, the school meal project was important for the students’ functioning at school and for a sense of social equality. At the same time, it is clarified that it was a small sample, the participants were not the same both years, and that those who signed up for the interviews may have been the most positive.
The thesis discusses these findings as the significance of eating breakfast and having lunch at school for students' achievement and for public health. Although the home has traditionally been responsible for breakfast and lunch, the findings indicate that these meals may also have an impact on how students perform at school and for public health in Norway. This documents a need to place breakfast and lunch on the school agenda. At the same time, the findings must be interpreted in light of methodological challenges. More research is needed to clarify the significance of food and meals for school achievement and for public health in Norway.