Browsing by Author "Miikkulainen, Saara"

Sustainable lifestyle is more important than before because climate is changing rapidly. Food waste has a significant impact on climate change, as food production requires a lot of natural resources. The reduction of food waste could lighten the environmental burden and promote a more sustainable lifestyle. Households are major producers of food waste, so special attention should be paid to reducing food waste at home. Home economics education could help here because in the lessons students would learn not only to make food but also to appreciate it in a new way and to reduce food waste both in the lessons and in their own daily lives. In the past, there have been studies about the attitudes of home teachers towards food waste and the skills that students have in reducing food waste. This study examines how the issue of food waste is addressed in home economics classes and what concrete ways to reduce waste are utilized by teachers and students. The study material was collected through qualitative interviews of five home economics teachers selected from all over Finland. Interviews were recorded and transcribed for analysis. The material was analyzed using data-driven content analysis, so issues relevant to the research were highlighted from the interviews. All the home economics teachers that were interviewed think it is important to address food waste during home economics lessons. Some of them believe that home economics textbooks should have clearer educational content on food waste. Teachers thought that in the curricula there was some guidance on how to deal with sustainable development, but there is no mention of food waste. There are many types of food waste during classes, but the amount is not very large. Most of the waste is produced while cooking or eating. Food loss during the ordering of ingredients and food spoilage are minimal. This study will help to understand how food waste is currently reduced during home economics classes. Based on this study, the issue of food waste should be addressed more thoroughly in home economics textbooks and the curriculum. Pupils' attitudes towards food should also be addressed, as some indifferently throw food into the rubbish either while preparing it or eating it. It seems that teachers know a lot about the effects of food waste and want to avoid it by all possible means. Therefore it would be important to utilize teaching methods that would also inspire students to reduce food waste.