SNAP Challenge in Teacher Education

Abstract

Training pre-service teachers often focuses on educating them about issues they will see in their own classrooms. One such issue is food insecurity. Food insecurity is defined by limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate and safe foods or the ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (Rabbitt et al., 2023a). This article focuses on pre-service teachers’ experiences while engaging in the SNAP Challenge to learn more about food insecurity while also learning how food impacts student learning and motivation. Participants in the study discussed how living off the allocated dollar amount was not enough money to eat a healthy diet. When exploring participants’ responses, we often saw the nutritional, physical, and social toll of living off SNAP benefits. Understanding our role as educators, we believe it is essential to create a three-pronged approach to exposing individuals to the issue of food insecurity in public schools. The first prong involves instructor-driven teaching that guides students to bridge experience and practice. The second prong involves immersive experiences that prompt personal reflection. The third prong involves ongoing professional development for in-service teachers.

Keywords: SNAP challenge, food insecurity, teacher education, reflection

Introduction

We train pre-service teachers to be responsive to the varied needs of their future P-12 students. Within foundational coursework, education departments often focus on three tiers to engage pre-service teachers. The first tier focuses on diverse learners and settings. The second tier focuses on the development of children and adolescents. The third tier focuses on learning, motivation, and assessment. Within all three tiers, pre-service teachers learn about complex individual and social factors that impact P-12 students. One issue impacting students’ learning and motivation that needs more attention in educator preparation is food insecurity. Hunt (2018) suggested, “Linking the experience of food hardship to conditions of poverty can address not only immediate food needs but also the interconnected material opportunities and disparities that constitute food (in)security.” We argue the constellation of hunger and other related consequences of food insecurity have direct consequences for classroom relationships and practice.

Purpose and Research Questions

In this study, we sought to explore how pre-service teachers understood food insecurity. As an introduction to food insecurity, and the poverty it often accompanies, we had our students participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Challenge. Acknowledging the limitations of any simulation (e.g., that it is ultimately optional and temporary, and that they can lead to an inflated sense of understanding), our aim was to cultivate empathy and understanding about food insecurity as both an individual and social issue that would likely affect many of their future students. The SNAP Challenge asks people to eat only what they could afford with typical SNAP benefits, assuming empty refrigerators and pantries. Students could spend an average of $4.50 per day; the typical daily allowance for a single individual participating in SNAP at the time of data collection.

Some researchers have explored how the SNAP Challenge can help students better understand the challenges of food insecurity. For instance, De Luca and Benden (2023) found that participating in the SNAP Challenge improved future social workers’ awareness of power and privilege. The SNAP Challenge helped dietetics students (Misyak et al., 2015) and medical students (Schoettler et al., 2015) better understand barriers to healthy eating for low-income populations. However, limited research exists on the SNAP Challenge within teacher education. We address this gap in the extant literature by asking two questions.

Question 1: What do pre-service teachers experience physically, cognitively, and socially when their diets are restricted under SNAP allocation?

Question 2: What do pre-service teachers learn about food insecurity related to themselves and their future students?

Background on Food Security and Insecurity

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines food security as access by all members of a household at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life, whereby 1) there is ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods and 2) there is assured ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (Rabbitt et al., 2023a). Conversely, the USDA defines food insecurity as limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate and safe foods or the ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (Rabbitt et al., 2023a). Fram et al. (2015) further conceptualized food insecurity as a household-level situation that is managed by adults. Per the USDA, 44,200,000 people in the United States live in food-insecure households (~12.8% of households; Rabbitt et al., 2023b). Food insecurity is measured at two levels of severity: low food security and very low food security, as discussed by Rabbitt et al. (2023a). Low food security is defined as conditions under which “households reduced the quality, variety, and desirability of their diets, but the quantity of food intake and normal eating patterns were not substantially disrupted” (para. 10). Very low food security is identifiable when “at times during the year, eating patterns of one or more household members were disrupted and food intake reduced because the household lacked money and other resources for food” (para. 10).

Food Insecurity and Children

The number of children in the United States who faced food insecurity in 2022 is staggering: 7,300,000 (Rabbitt et al., 2023b). The stress associated with food insecurity can have significant consequences that have adverse effects on children’s health and development (de Oliveira et al., 2020). Similarly, Fram et al. (2015) discussed how children experience food insecurity through multiple means, such as hunger, discomfort, tiredness, sadness, and anger.

Unsurprisingly, Leung and Tester (2019) found that food insecurity was associated not only with less caloric intake but also with compromised diet quality. Other researchers have found connections between food insecurity and poor nutrition. For example, Eicher-Miller and Zhao (2018) found that there was a sub-par intake of vegetables among children aged 1-5 years and added sugar consumption in children aged 6-11 years old, and Jun et al. (2021) found that food-insecure children were at higher risk of deficiencies in micronutrients such as vitamin D, magnesium, and calcium.

The association between food insecurity and a range of adverse consequences for ongoing health is well-documented. For example, experiencing food insecurity is associated with reduced life expectancy (Kreider et al., 2012) and poor oral health (i.e., tooth decay; Chi et al., 2014; Jackson & Testa, 2021). Paradoxically, food insecurity might be related to childhood obesity because higher-quality, less calorie-dense foods are typically replaced with less healthful, more calorie-dense foods in order to abate hunger (Morales & Berkowitz, 2016; St. Pierre et al., 2022). There is evidence that these nutritional consequences of food insecurity may also play a role in the timing of adolescent sexual development (Burris & Wiley, 2021; Soliman et al., 2014).

In addition to short- and long-term health consequences, persistent food insecurity also impacts cognition and success in school (Gallegos et al., 2021) such that high food insecurity was associated with developmental risk and poor cognitive outcomes related to vocabulary, reading, and math skills (de Oliveira et al., 2020; Gee, 2018; Howard, 2011; Johnson & Markowitz, 2018). Others have found correlations between food insecurity and deficits in vocabulary, memory, attention, problem-solving, analytical, and academic skills (Hobbs & King, 2018; Johnson & Markowitz, 2018). Household food insecurity is also known to impact verbal communication skills and abilities (Saha et al., 2010). Across developed countries, “even at marginal levels, household food insecurity is associated with children’s behavioral, academic, and emotional problems from infancy to adolescence” (Dunivan & Herbert, 2020, p. 12; see also Encinger et al., 2020; Grineski et al., 2020; Gundersen & Zilliak, 2015; Huang et al., 2018; Johnson & Markowitz, 2018; Ramsey et al., 2011; Shankar et al., 2017). Food insecurity, and related consequences, have been linked to school absenteeism (Bernal et al., 2014; Coughenour et al., 2021), difficulties in concentrating and learning (Pérez-Escamilla & Vianna, 2012), diminished self-control (Gee, 2018; Howard, 2011; Jackson et al., 2018; Johnson & Markowitz, 2018), and hyperactivity/inattention (Melchior et al., 2012). Furthermore, high food insecurity is a risk factor for externalizing behavioral problems (de Oliveira et al., 2020; Gill et al., 2018; Hobbs & King, 2018; Johnson & Markowitz, 2018; King, 2018). Consequently, Hobbs and King (2018) suggested that reducing (the risk of) food insecurity might benefit children with behavior problems such as acting out, aggression, or social withdrawal.

Food insecurity impacts many facets of child development. Food and nutrition security is a fundamental human right (Gallegos et al., 2021). Therefore, food insecurity needs to be addressed for the betterment of everyone, especially children.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

To combat food insecurity, the federal government offers food assistance programs to those who qualify. “Federal nutrition assistance programs and local emergency food pantries contribute to the safety net that strives to reduce hunger in the U.S.” (Mabli & Worthington, 2017, p. 647). The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the United States’ largest federal nutrition assistance program (Jones, 2025). According to the USDA (2025a), “SNAP provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to health and well-being” (para. 1).

Eligibility/Non-Eligibility and Purchasing Power Through SNAP

At the time of this writing, 2025, there were multiple individual and household requirements to be eligible for SNAP benefits. These include, but are not limited to, income, resource access, state allocation of funds, and citizenship status (USDA, 2025b). Accordingly, not all food insecure families or individuals qualify for benefits (USDA, 2025b).

According to the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (2025c), households CAN use SNAP benefits to buy items such as:

• Fruits and vegetables;
• Meats, fish, and poultry;
• Dairy products;
• Breads and cereals;
• Other foods such as snack foods and non-alcoholic beverages; and
• Seeds and plants that produce food for the household to eat.

Additionally, according to the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (2025c), households CANNOT use SNAP benefits to buy:

• Beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes, or tobacco
• Vitamins, medicines, and supplements. If an item has a Supplement Facts label, it is considered a supplement and is not eligible for SNAP purchase.
• Live animals (except shellfish, fish removed from water, and animals slaughtered prior to pick-up from the store).
• Foods that are hot at the point of sale
• Any non-food items such as:
  • Pet foods
  • Cleaning supplies, paper products, and other household supplies.
  • Hygiene items, cosmetics

There are not just individual and household requirements for SNAP. Stores must also meet SNAP requirements to be considered a vendor. For a full list of store requirements, please see the United States Department of Agriculture’s website (USDA, 2024). This is especially important considering not every community has these stores geographically convenient. Even further, the potential scarcity of vendors affects students living with food insecurity beyond the classroom. This incorporates broader individual and social factors, such as lack of resources or living in food deserts, etc.

SNAP’s Impact

Data from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities from 2024 revealed that there are more than 22,000,000 households encompassing more than 41,000,000 people participating in SNAP (Nchako, 2025). SNAP serves many low-income individuals with difficult-to-overcome barriers to gainful employment, low-income working families with children, elderly, disabled people, and others (Schanzenbach, 2023).

Those on SNAP tended to eat less healthily than those in similar income levels not on SNAP, as well as those with higher incomes (Mancino et al., 2018). SNAP participants bought more refined grains and food with empty calories compared to fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and seafood/plant-based protein (Mancino et al., 2018). Gosliner et al. (2017) found that fresh produce tends to be costlier in low-income areas and that convenience stores, which may be readily accessible, offer a limited variety of more expensive, poorer-quality produce. Diet quality tends to be lower and the risk for obesity higher among SNAP participants (Barroso et al., 2016; Kohn et al., 2014; Leung et al., 2013).

Chojnacki et al. (2021) found there was no change in food insecurity while participating in SNAP, but did find that spending on food increased when food costs increased. Other researchers have found that participating in SNAP decreased food insecurity (Gordon et al., 2017; Swann, 2017). Bronchetti et al. (2019) found that a mere ten percent increase in SNAP purchasing power is associated with less absenteeism. A child’s academic achievement in math and reading can be impacted by when SNAP benefits are received (Gassman-Pines & Bellows, 2018). Disciplinary behavior is also connected to the timing of when SNAP benefits are received (Gennetian et al., 2018). Gregory and Deb (2015) found that SNAP has a consistently positive effect on self-assessed health. Overall, SNAP can serve to ameliorate some of the challenges and consequences of food insecurity. At the same time, SNAP benefits are not a panacea, and those with SNAP benefits, particularly children and adolescents, are still in need of social, nutritional, and academic support.

Methods

Recruitment

Students were recruited from any of the three-tier courses taught by the authors of this study. Again, the three courses were Foundation of Education courses, which focused on 1) diverse learners/settings, 2) development, or 3) learning theories, motivation, and assessment. Students in these courses were given a voluntary extra credit assignment where they would participate in the SNAP Challenge and document their experiences.

Participants

Fifteen undergraduate education majors volunteered to participate. These students were all enrolled in a southeastern University in the United States and were sophomores or juniors at the time of the study. Nine female students and six male students participated. Six of those 15 students, including two female students, had a background in agriculture and were more aware of food systems, such as growing and transporting produce. Each student was between 18 and 21 years old, Caucasian, and indicated they had no history of food insecurity.

By happenstance, each student was a Middle Grades/Secondary Education major. Despite having Early Childhood/Elementary Education majors enrolled in the three courses, none volunteered to participate. We have used pseudonyms to protect confidentiality. Below is a list of the participants organized by major.

• Agriculture Education majors: Lawrence (junior, age 20), Arnold (junior, 21), Aaron (junior, 20), Mason (sophomore, 19), Elizabeth (junior, 21), Samantha (junior, 20)
• English Education majors: Sage (sophomore, 18), McKenzie (sophomore, 19)
• Social Studies Education majors: Stella (junior, 21), Rory (junior, 20), Mitch (junior, 20)
• Math Education majors: Abby (sophomore, 19), Riley (junior, 20)
• Science Education majors: Savanna (junior, 21), Harper (junior, 20)

Data Collection

While enrolled in one of the Foundations of Education courses, students were given an optional assignment to live off SNAP benefits for 5 consecutive days, keep a food journal, and answer prompts for the days they were doing the Challenge. In the assignment, our students had to live off $4.50/day or $22.50 for five days. Data were collected from the food journal and prompts that followed the SNAP Challenge. The prompts the students had to address were: 1) What did you buy and how much did it cost? 2) What did you eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? 3) How did you feel at the start and end of the day? 4) What have you sacrificed to continue this Challenge (food, exercise, social outlets, etc.)? 5) What was the biggest thing you learned while engaging in this experience? 6) If food-insecure, how might your students’ learning and motivation be impacted? 7) How did this experience shape the way you think about nutrition? 8) Before this assignment, what was your personal experience with food insecurity? 9) What is your major/concentration? The full assignment can be found after the references.

Data Analysis

After collecting the data, we read through each participant’s food journal. Each of the three researchers read through the data initially. Then, on a second read, themes were generated individually for each prompt using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) method of thematic analysis as a guide. Themes were generated using a priori codes that detailed the physical, cognitive, and social consequences that relate to food insecurity, as previously highlighted when discussing children’s experiences. Following individual thematic coding, we compared themes to evaluate intercoder reliability. Once the final themes were generated, representative quotes were found.

Findings

We organized our findings by prompts 1–7 asked during data collection. Prompts 8 and 9 were referenced in the Participants section above. Within prompts 1–7, we identified relevant themes that allowed us to better understand how students personally experienced the SNAP Challenge. We combined prompts 1 and 2 because we found that what they bought reflected what they ate.

Prompt 1/Prompt 2: What did you buy and how much did it cost? What did you eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?

Students spent an average of $21.19. The most common supplements (five or more students purchased these items) were ground beef, shredded cheese, tortillas, a dozen eggs, peanut butter, frozen mixed vegetables, pasta, and chicken (some frozen thighs, some Tyson’s patties, some breasts). Students’ last nutritional resort, when faced with SNAP budgetary constraints, was chips. The lack of materials or experiences developed into the most frequent component of student reflections. They lacked condiments, additional protein, fresh produce, and coffee.

Prompt 3: How did you feel at the start and end of the day?

For the first two days, more than half of the students shared some variation of feeling fine, feeling normal, not feeling hungry, or not feeling tired. On the third day, we saw a marketable uptick in people feeling hungry and tired. As Arnold said, “I was hungry by lunch and was hungry again by dinner.” On day three, other students expressed feeling bloated and weighed down. For instance, Elizabeth suggested, “I am eating a lot more bread than I am used to and feel a bit more weighed down. I feel very bloated from a lack of fresh vegetables. I also had trouble focusing at work because of low energy.”

On days four and five, students suggested they were tired of eating the same meals, as it was becoming repetitive and dull. The students also mentioned feeling more of the effects of not eating like they normally would. As Rory said, “I am happy it was the last day because I could not have done it another day. I was exhausted from the beginning of the day to the end.” McKenzie said, “As the days went on, I became increasingly aggravated and tired. I struggled to stay awake because I couldn’t rely on coffee.” Acknowledging the impact food has on the body, Stella said, “Today I have a headache in addition to the tired feeling.”

Harper encapsulated well the five days living on SNAP benefits:

The first two days were okay hunger-wise. I was busy and my mind wasn’t focused on eating. On the third day, my hunger started to kick in. My eating habits severely affect my mood, and since I was hungrier than usual, I was in a really bad mood. I went to the gym that night and came home expecting to eat an apple or some snack, but I realized I didn’t budget that in, so I couldn’t eat it. I woke up the next morning with a headache. The fourth day was a weird day for me. I went out with my friends for dinner that night, and only got water while they ate. I had to eat ahead of time, and then watch them eat all this good food, which was also expensive. Part of me was thankful I wasn’t spending money, and the other half was upset because I wanted to eat good food with them. On the final day, I woke up and it was my last day of this Challenge. I felt empty, and I skipped breakfast all five days because I didn’t have enough money. I woke up early on the fifth day, so I was extra hungry. My mood was affected the most. I had energy, but not a good attitude towards anything.

Prompt 4: What have you sacrificed to continue this Challenge (food, exercise, social outlets, etc.)?

Almost every student wrote about sacrificing something. Nutritional, physical, or social sacrifices pervaded almost every narrative. Nutritional sacrifice coding indicated moments when a student mentioned giving up a “staple” of their diet, such as giving up coffee every morning or buying off-brand or non-organic products (nutritional sacrifices appeared within all 15 student reflections). Physical sacrifice coding indicated moments when a student mentioned cutting back on exercise or activity due to lack of energy or changes in mood. Social sacrifice coding indicated moments when a student mentioned eliminating social activities (dining out, going to the movies, going to bars, etc.) to stay within budgetary constraints.

As the sacrifice concept coding progressed, we noticed that codes would overlap within the same narratives, with nutritional and physical codes overlapping most often, appearing in over half the narratives. Samantha said, “I had to cut back on exercise because I was not consuming enough protein each day to be burning the extra calories.” Statements like these exhibited the type of indirect learning we hoped to provide through the immersive experience. We wanted students to make the connection between lack of nutrition and changes to physical, cognitive, and social ability.

Rory tracked a routine progression, wherein the beginning of the week started with mild sacrifice or inconvenience, then shifted to major cognitive and physical impairments.

Sunday: “I did not give up much except things like ice cream.”

Monday: “I also did not give up much. But once again, no sweets.”

Tuesday: “I did not exercise just to save energy. Also, no sweets again.”

Wednesday: “Barely could even focus at work, so I did not exercise again. Sweets were off my mind.”

Thursday: “Barely made it through the day functioning properly. Gave up going to the bar. Focusing normally in class was a huge issue, and people need a substantial amount of nutrition to complete everyday tasks. I did not realize this until it was taken away from me.”

Prompt 5: What was the biggest thing you learned while engaging in this experience?

Aside from the sacrifices, multiple students expressed how difficult it was to live off only $22.50 for the five days, and that their food was taken for granted. Additionally, multiple students suggested that people needed a plan so they could adhere to a strict budget when shopping. Samantha indicated, “We never think about it, but there are people who do not have the luxury of eating a full-course meal, grabbing a quick bite of fast food, or sitting down to a meal at a restaurant.” Sage mentioned, “The stores really limit your options too because healthier/higher quality food is more expensive.”

Learning what to sacrifice, shopping, and lifestyle were reflected in Riley’s quote:

One thing I learned is that $22.50 is not a whole lot of money to live off of. Especially when you have a physically and socially active lifestyle. This past week, I have thought more about food than ever before due to the limited amount that I had. I found myself trying to hold out eating lunch so I wouldn’t be as hungry for dinner and would be satisfied with the small portions. I also had to cut back on my long-distance running because I knew that it would be difficult to run on such a restricted diet and to make up the calories that I had burned. This made me think of the students who must have troubles playing sports in high school due to their restricted diet.

Prompt 6: If food-insecure, how might your students’ learning and motivation be impacted?

These reflections on the nutrition/physical relationship indicated a growth of understanding about why students might not be properly engaging in classes. Mitch said, “A food-insecure student’s learning and motivation will always be lacking unless they are able to acquire food from some other source. They are growing too and need tons of nutrients and calories to thrive.” In that, there is a differentiation between thriving and surviving.

Harper discussed the connection between the mental, physical, and emotional consequences.

A child’s meltdown or disobedience may be from hunger. Everyone carries that hunger in a different way, but if they are like me, they may be disengaged or angry during class…A child’s well-being is the most important thing in a classroom. It all begins where their mental, physical, and emotional health is. When a child suffers in any of these areas, their development and learning is affected.

Harper’s quote showed some beginning to understand how food interplays with the complexities of a developing child.

Prompt 7: How did this experience shape the way you think about nutrition?

For prompt 7, we asked students to think about nutrition. The major theme was the realization of the importance of nutrition, especially when diet changes. We wish to share four quotes that capture what most students expressed.

Abby: “This experience helped shape the way I think about nutrition because I have never been so hungry that I felt sick. Being around people when you haven’t eaten all day makes you mad and hungrier.”

Sage: “I never understood exactly how important nutrition was. People need a substantial amount of nutrition to complete everyday tasks. I did not realize this until it was taken away from me. I will have to keep this experience in the back of my mind if a student ever says they are hungry in my classroom.”

Mason: “Really, it is just like putting gas in a car; if the car does not have gas, then it will not run. If your body does not have the proper nutrition, it will not function in a way where you can get the most of your day.”

Lawrence: “I have a new and improved idea of nutrition after this Challenge. Nutrition isn’t just about feeding your body; you also have to feed your mind. Your mind and body work together to produce your actions and thoughts. When you aren’t fed or aren’t feeding your body and mind things that benefit you, you’re only doing damage.”

Lessons Not Learned as Disconfirming Evidence

Despite the growth that many students experienced, we recognize that students were only tasked to live off SNAP benefits for 5 days. The “Challenge” aspect is not the same as someone who experiences food insecurity long-term. In that, we wish to share disconfirming evidence acknowledging that students still have more to learn about food insecurity. Notably, students rarely connected their personal experience of the SNAP Challenge to the overall student need. We assume the lack of connection stems from two reasons: a lack of personal history with food insecurity and a fundamental misunderstanding of the financial challenges some people face.

First, our sample consisted of 18–21-year-old Caucasian University students who never experienced prior food insecurity. In that, these students had a foundation different than others that made them naïve to the various social and economic factors that play into food insecurity. The students experienced temporary discomfort and reflected in ways that tried to echo someone who experiences prolonged food insecurity.

This plays into the second aspect, that students had a fundamental misunderstanding of financial challenges some people face. Since our students chose to do the SNAP Challenge, they failed to appreciate the various social challenges faced by those who are food insecure.

McKenzie suggested: “$20.00 was all that was needed. If one eliminates extravagances, then those SNAP recipients may have the luxury of saving money.”

Mason suggested, “I think if you take the $22.50 and use it the proper way and buy food that is good for you, you could get away with eating on $22.50. You may have to leave out some condiments and drink of your choice. I will say being educated on nutrition in this situation would help greatly.”

The first quote serves as a reminder that even if someone eliminates extravagance, there are many other forgotten factors that play into financial challenges. For instance, there is a disconnect between the lack of wage increases and the increased cost of living. The second quote reaffirms Mason’s privilege, where he does not realize that healthy options tend to be more expensive. While being educated on nutrition would be useful, if those healthier options cannot be afforded, it becomes a moot point.

Another aspect that arose was students not seeing the importance of food. Six students wrote that they skipped meals to fulfill the Challenge; two students wrote that they usually skip meals in their normal routines, thus switching to the SNAP Challenge was not that difficult. This once again can undermine the various individual and social factors that play into food insecurity. Additionally, a few students failed to connect nutrition and physical/behavioral performance. For instance, Sage wrote, “I will bring snacks once a week for children who are behaving; this will serve as an incentive for children.” This student’s insistence on food as an incentive for good behavior demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of how nutrition and behavior can be connected. They don’t realize hunger could be the reason the student is misbehaving.

Conclusions

In this study, we explored students’ experiences of feeding themselves only what they could afford with SNAP-benefit-equivalent expenditures for five consecutive days. The intention was for students to experience some of the many challenges of food insecurity in a limited timeframe. Food insecurity is defined by the United States Department of Agriculture as lacking consistent access to sufficient and sufficiently nourishing food in order to maintain activity and health (Rabbitt et al., 2023a). Most students discussed how a budget of only $22.50 made it difficult to plan and consume a nutritious diet. Students further discussed the physical, cognitive, and social toll of the dietary restrictions imposed by living only off SNAP benefits. This included changes in mood, a lack in ability to perform at their best, and sacrificing aspects such as going to the gym or hanging out with friends. This research builds off previous research that suggested the SNAP Challenge can help build students’ awareness of the challenges of food insecurity (De Luca & Benden, 2023; Misyak et al., 2015; Schoettler et al., 2015).

Only 15 students across three courses volunteered to change their eating habits. This speaks to the uphill battle we as educators face when trying to have pre-service teachers better understand the needs of their future students. It was a voluntary activity where students experienced food insecurity, but we wanted more students to participate; to experience something their future students might be living through. We discerned that the immersive nature of the experience adequately prompted students to reflect on the connection between nutrition and behavior. However, we should have provided a bit more guidance on the individual and social factors that play into food insecurity to give students a more holistic understanding.

Role for Those in Education Departments

We believe it is essential to expose pre-service teachers to the many complications of living with food insecurity. As such, we posit a three-pronged approach. The first prong involves instructor-driven teaching that facilitates students connecting experience and practice. This prong could connect the individual and social factors, so pre-service teachers become more empathic with things such as socioeconomic status and food insecurity. For example, pre-service teachers could be taught about historical contexts that give rise to the current financial landscape. Discussing food insecurity explicitly, providing readings and videos, and inviting conversation within the classroom are a few ways educators might help illuminate the physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral consequences of food insecurity.

The second prong involves immersive experiences that prompt personal reflection. This approach would ask students to engage in activities like the SNAP Challenge. Other ideas with an immersive element involve having students volunteer at food banks or community gardens. Through this prong, students are given opportunities to reflect deeper on their perspectives and biases. We believe that doing these first two prongs will provide future educators with a more comprehensive understanding of food insecurity and help improve their pedagogical practice.

However, recognizing one course or one experience only provides a snapshot; we suggest a third prong involving ongoing professional development. Even after these students graduate, we encourage the creation of professional development activities that in-service teachers could participate in to further inform their teaching practices. Creating a university-community-school partnership, which includes stakeholders who are well-versed in food insecurity, might provide the most up-to-date information and resources to those wanting to find comprehensive ways to serve students. The third prong is especially important when concepts like food insecurity are no longer in the abstract when an in-service teacher is interacting with a hungry student.

Limitations

One limitation of this research involved the lack of participation by Early Childhood/Elementary Education majors. We did not exclude these individuals from the study, but unfortunately, none participated for extra credit. Food insecurity impacts younger children, so it would be necessary to gain further insights from those pre-service teachers who are eventually going to be teaching younger children.

Further, our research was unable to compare those students who had never experienced food insecurity with those students who did experience food insecurity in P-12 or in college. It would have been helpful to see how past experiences influenced their understanding of food insecurity in the classroom.

We also had limitations given our homogeneous sample. Different populations might understand and experience food insecurity differently. For instance, 18–21-year-old Caucasian college students only feeding themselves is distinct from, say, a low-income African American, away from college, feeding themselves and family members. This example shows many different sociological factors at play when discussing access to food.

Future Research

Further research can dive deeper into the many societal consequences that are associated with food insecurity, i.e., geography, economics, politics, climate, etc. It would be worthwhile to study how students understand these many factors and how they interplay with food insecurity. Another direction for future research involves further exploration of students’ past (and potentially present) experiences of food insecurity. It would be of interest to see if students were even aware of the economics of their families and how college might also cause financial hardship. These consequences could be added to the prompts in the assignment to encourage deep, meaningful reflection; an important skill to learn for any future educator.

Future studies could also build off this study, which again asks students to participate in the immersive nature of the SNAP Challenge. This could especially involve asking Early Childhood/Elementary Education majors to participate. We could also ask students to participate in a longer time frame beyond 5 days to get an even better sense of how food impacts every aspect of life. Regardless, our job as faculty is to train educators about various issues they will see in their classrooms. In doing so, our pre-service and in-service teachers are better prepared to meet the needs of their future P-12 students who are facing a myriad of issues that impact their learning and motivation.

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SNAP Challenge Assignment

Throughout the semester, we have discussed the aspect of food insecurity. Food insecurity is certainly something that impacts learning and motivation from the biological, psychological, and sociological perspectives. You have also worked in gardens picking produce to donate to the community market. This was an attempt to provide fresh food to community members, where some of those community members have children in secondary education.

To better appreciate the impact food has within education, this assignment asks you to live off what would be afforded on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (previously called food stamps). This should be done for 3 (5 or 7) consecutive days. You are tasked to live off $22.50 for the five days, or $4.50 each day, or $1.50 per meal if you only eat three times a day. This means that you must plan your meals accordingly. It also means that anything you have previously bought that is over budget cannot be consumed. This includes most snacks, coffee, etc. The assignment asks you to keep a journal of your experiences. Below, I have provided a way in which you can keep track of this experience. Submit your write-up to Canvas.

After the five days, address these prompts:

• What was the biggest thing you learned while engaging in this experience?
• If food-insecure, how might your students’ learning and motivation be impacted?
• How did this experience shape the way you think about nutrition?
• Before this assignment, what was your personal experience with food insecurity?
• What is your major/concentration?