Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education
Food is a part of everyday life, and formal food education is included in compulsory education in many countries, for example through the subject Home and Consumer Studies (HCS). While food education is often underpinned by public health concerns such as preventing non-communicable diseases and prom...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.1240782/full |
| _version_ | 1797665810781569024 |
|---|---|
| author | Gita Berg Eva Lundqvist Ylva Mattsson Sydner |
| author_facet | Gita Berg Eva Lundqvist Ylva Mattsson Sydner |
| author_sort | Gita Berg |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Food is a part of everyday life, and formal food education is included in compulsory education in many countries, for example through the subject Home and Consumer Studies (HCS). While food education is often underpinned by public health concerns such as preventing non-communicable diseases and promoting cooking skills, there has been little focus on aesthetic aspects of teaching and learning about food. This study therefore aims to gain understanding of aesthetic values as a part of HCS food educational practices. Aesthetic values are here regarded as socially and culturally shared, and related to notions of pleasure and taste. As this study uses a pragmatist approach, aesthetic values are seen as constituted in encounters, encompassing experiencing individual(s), artifacts, and context. By thematically analyzing empirical data from an exploratory case study, including classroom observations, student focus groups, and teacher interviews, we show how values are constituted as culinary, production, and bodily aesthetics. Culinary aesthetics involved cooking processes, cooking skills, and presentation of food and meals. Production aesthetics involved foods’ origin and degree of pre-processing, whereas bodily aesthetics related to bodily consequences of eating. Aesthetic values were vital features of the educational practices studied and played a key role in bringing the practices forward. They also indicated what counted as valid, or desired, outcomes and thereby steered events in certain directions. The study highlights the significance of aesthetic values and argues in favor of acknowledging aesthetics in planning, undertaking, and evaluating HCS food education. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T19:49:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6958b20f91354b6b97b9012df678289c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-284X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T19:49:25Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-6958b20f91354b6b97b9012df678289c2023-10-05T12:20:20ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Education2504-284X2023-10-01810.3389/feduc.2023.12407821240782Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food educationGita Berg0Eva Lundqvist1Ylva Mattsson Sydner2Department of Food Studies, Nutrition and Dietetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Education, Uppsala University, Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Food Studies, Nutrition and Dietetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, SwedenFood is a part of everyday life, and formal food education is included in compulsory education in many countries, for example through the subject Home and Consumer Studies (HCS). While food education is often underpinned by public health concerns such as preventing non-communicable diseases and promoting cooking skills, there has been little focus on aesthetic aspects of teaching and learning about food. This study therefore aims to gain understanding of aesthetic values as a part of HCS food educational practices. Aesthetic values are here regarded as socially and culturally shared, and related to notions of pleasure and taste. As this study uses a pragmatist approach, aesthetic values are seen as constituted in encounters, encompassing experiencing individual(s), artifacts, and context. By thematically analyzing empirical data from an exploratory case study, including classroom observations, student focus groups, and teacher interviews, we show how values are constituted as culinary, production, and bodily aesthetics. Culinary aesthetics involved cooking processes, cooking skills, and presentation of food and meals. Production aesthetics involved foods’ origin and degree of pre-processing, whereas bodily aesthetics related to bodily consequences of eating. Aesthetic values were vital features of the educational practices studied and played a key role in bringing the practices forward. They also indicated what counted as valid, or desired, outcomes and thereby steered events in certain directions. The study highlights the significance of aesthetic values and argues in favor of acknowledging aesthetics in planning, undertaking, and evaluating HCS food education.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.1240782/fullfood educationaesthetic valueshome and consumer studiesaesthetic experiencethematic analysisculinary aesthetics |
| spellingShingle | Gita Berg Eva Lundqvist Ylva Mattsson Sydner Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education Frontiers in Education food education aesthetic values home and consumer studies aesthetic experience thematic analysis culinary aesthetics |
| title | Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| title_full | Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| title_fullStr | Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| title_short | Aesthetic values in home and consumer studies – investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| title_sort | aesthetic values in home and consumer studies investigating the secret ingredient in food education |
| topic | food education aesthetic values home and consumer studies aesthetic experience thematic analysis culinary aesthetics |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.1240782/full |
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