Is Betty Crocker the wrong recipe for today's students? | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com

Is Betty Crocker the wrong recipe for today's students? | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com:

Is Betty Crocker the wrong recipe for today's students?  

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AP Photo/Alex Brandon

The Obamas, who are the first presidential family to employ a Food Initiative Coordinator, have been adamant supporters of healthy and sustainable food.

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By Maureen Downey

Melanie Nelson is a former family and consumer sciences teacher and is founder and CEO of Learning ZoneXpress. 

By Melanie Nelson

It is time to teach survival skills in schools. I don't mean how to survive in the wilderness; I mean how to survive in America.

The decline in home economics curricula since the mid-20th century has produced generations of Americans who can't set a family budget or boil an egg. Family and consumer science courses, founded in traditional home economics, prepare students to grow into adulthood as individuals, families, workers and public citizens making a positive impact on their communities. Bringing more family and consumer sciences courses back to middle and high schools can help address many of today's social and economic challenges, including childhood obesity.

During a recent interview, Michael Moss, author of "Sugar, Salt, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, " explained, "Kids in school used to be taught how to shop, how to cook from scratch, how to