‘Just say no to pies’: food pedagogies, health education and governmentality

This chapter interrogates the ways in which food pedagogies, are developed and implemented within school health education spaces. Drawing on governmentality studies, it considers the conditions that make possible a range of different food pedagogies within the context of the school. Additionally, we consider the possibilities that these food pedagogies offer to students in terms of how they might view themselves in relation to food and health and further, the range of practices these pedagogies offer up as ways for students to improve their diets and consequently, their health. The chapter draws on empirical data from two studies undertaken in secondary schools in Victoria, Australia to illustrate some of the food pedagogies that are assembled within health education classrooms. It provides an overview of the theoretical terrain of governmentality studies that informs our analyses. It examines different food pedagogies that seek to shape young people’s food choices.