Abstract:
The study examined the status of teaching and organising Food and Nutrition
practical work in the senior high schools in the Hohoe Municipality of Ghana.
Three research questions and three hypotheses were formulated to guide the
study. The mixed methods research design was adopted and used for the study.
The population for the study comprised four (4) Home Economics Heads of
Department, five (5) Food and Nutrition teachers and 162 third year students
offering Food and Nutrition in four senior high schools within the Hohoe
Municipality of the Volta Region of Ghana. The census sampling technique
was employed for the study. Three instruments comprising a questionnaire,
observation checklist and interview guide were used to collect data. The
questionnaire data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS 22.00), computer software. Descriptive statistic was used to
analyse the observation data and thematic analyses for the interview data. The
results of the study showed that students were not taken through enough
practical due to financial challenges faced by students, qualified teachers
exhibited adequate knowledge of the subject matter and all the schools lack
well equipped food laboratory for organising practical work. Students‟ poor
performance is mainly as a result of lack of material resources in the schools.
It is recommended that The Ministry of Education, PTA, NGOs, churches and
Old Students Associations should aid the schools by providing the material
resources needed for Food and Nutrition practical work.
