Can TV be a Good Teacher?
Many people today blame television and media in general when something bad happens, for example shootings in the schools. However, should television take all the blame for effects and changes in American youth? Television shows crimes and killing, but television can also teach young children how to behave in the right way.
Television can not influenced all of us, but it can definitely influence young children, who are, “curious and easily influenced. They tend to mimic and repeat what they hear and see on television without knowing of right and wrong” (Simmons 149). These influences depend on what kinds of shows children are watching. Parents are the one controlling theirs children, but without parental supervision children will watch what pleases them; that is were the problem lies.
For example, if a child is watching a movies that contain violent acts, that can have some bad side effects. One of these effects can be carelessness. The child can become less worried about others and what is going to happen to them; they may not recognize it as violence. A study by Cullingford reports, “when people were shown killings and then heavily prompted, most did not think of it as violence. The frightening truth was that ‘objectionable content’ had become so acceptable that it was invisible” (Simmons 150). The other effect can be violent behavior. Child may want to become violent, because then they will be “feared” by every one, just like the people that they see in television. Berkowitz concluded, from his experiment, “ television violence does arouse aggressive behavior, especially if viewers believes that aggression is justified” (Simons 150). Another effect can be revenge. This is probably the biggest message that violent movies are sending to children. In almost all of the movies we see people killing one another just to avenge someone that was either killed or harmed by a “bad buy,” or they themselves were harmed. This may influence children that have been humiliated in schools or molested. At some point, they may explode with rage to get revenge for what had happened to them.
On the other hand, if a child is watching educational channels consisting of historic programs or other kind of educational programs, the child can be influenced in several good ways. First, the child can become smarter. If a child is watching educational programs, they will definitely learn something.
I can see where Karen is coming from. TV does have a negative effect in children's lives but maybe TV can also help educate them in many ways.
...ing our views, but as for children, TV is one of the key things that shape their minds.
For a long time now the debate has been, and continues to be, as to whether or not violence on television makes children more violent. As with all contentious issues there are both proponents and detractors. This argument has been resurrected in the wake of school shootings, most notably Columbine and Erfurt, Germany; and acts of random violence by teenagers, the murders of two Dartmouth professors. Parents, teachers, pediatricians, child psychiatrists, and FCC Chairmen William Kennard and former Vice President Al Gore say violent TV programming contribute in large part to in violence in young people today. However, broadcasters and major cable TV providers like Cox Communication say that it is the parent’s fault for not making it clear to their kids as what they may or may not watch on TV. The major TV networks and cable providers also state it is the TV industry’s fault as well for not regulating what is shown on TV. So who is the guilty party in this argument of whether or not TV violence influences of the behavior young people in today’s society?
Does allowing children to watch violent television and what they see on a daily basis in their lives from peers and adults effect their actions, and thoughts? The answer is simply yes! When it comes down to the facts, children’s behaviors are greatly influenced from what they see going on around them. Children can be taught to be violent or they can be taught to be kind, they can be taught to be confident, or they can be stripped of their self-confidence, they can be taught to be great or they can be taught to fail in life all from observing how adults and peers in their life act.
In Steven Johnson's article "Watching TV Makes You Smarter" he discusses the intellectual merits of television programs. The essence of Johnson's argument is that the complexity of certain current shows can get one to think at a higher cognitive level, and that shows have become more "cognitively demanding"of their viewers over the past few decades. Johnson's argument, that is in favor of watching quality television and the benefits that one can get from it, is reinforced by some good points the author makes. Johnson is effective in his argument and was very convincing. Viewing certain television programs can in fact benefit one's cognitive capacities, especially in children.
Television has become a big part in children’s day-to-day lives especially in the 20th century. Children in this century rely on television to keep them entertained and educated instead of entertaining and educating themselves by participating in activities, which will teach them a lot more in life then the actual television. There is no doubt that children are most easily influenced by television because of the different content that they watch as well as the amount of time consumed watching TV. The television does have an emotional and intellectual development on children but this all depends on the content that they’re watching and the way that they absorb the information that the show is trying to send out. Different programs will portray
Violence and explicit themes on television have been a main benefactor in behavioral problems in children, causing educational issues as well. Studies have shown that “excessive TV viewing can lead to poor grades in school” (Boyse Online). TV has even been shown to affect the mood of the child, usually “TV doesn’t improve their disposition. They’re grouchy and irritable right after they watch” (Winn 19). When violence is included in speech or an action a child’s favorite show or movie it wouldn’t be uncommon if that youth would try to imitate it. “Many shows glamorize violence. TV often promotes violent acts as a fun and effective way to get what you want, without consequences, Even in G rated movies violence is common” (Boyse Online). As children are growing it’s important what parents put in the stomach’s of their child so it’s also important what being fed to their brain. This makes them vulnerable and susce...
The media in today’s society is very influential on children. There are many things that children at a very young age are learning, for example violence. Many children learn violent behavior and they become violent and aggressive children because they are exposed to so much mature content. Many parents are not aware of what their children are watching, and without knowing it, their children are raised by the media. Many television shows contain a lot of violence, for example kids fighting each other, kids bullying other kids and kids yelling and disrespecting their parents. Unfortunately, at a very young age children are learning to be aggressive and violent because they are spending more time watching television than spending it with the family. Now days many kids turn into bullies because they believe it is a way to defend them, a way to gain respect and admiration from their peers. They do not respect their parents and they get out of control at a very young age, and many parents cannot control their behavior. If parents do not monitor what their children are watching, then the media will have a great impact on their children’s life.
On average an American child will see 16,000 murders and 200,000 acts of violence by the age of 18 through the television. Thousands of studies from the 1950s to the present day have all suggested that viewing violent acts will increase violent behavior while only less than 20 have suggested otherwise (Boyse). As our children are exposed to these 16,000 murders and 200,000 violent acts one can only conclude that aggression, crime and violence can only increase in our younger generations from being exposed to the current media.
Concerns about media violence have grown as television has acquired a global audience. While TV violence is not the only cause of aggressive or violent behavior, it is clearly a significant factor. Television can be a powerful influence in developing value systems and shaping behavior. Unfortunately, much of today's television programs include violent images! The impact of TV violence may be immediately evident in the child's behavior or may surface years later. Media is responsible for inciting violence.
... for children. Children are exposed to 20,000 advertisements a year. The average child watches 8,000 televised murders and 100,000 acts of violence before finishing elementary school. By the time children graduate from high school, those numbers more than doubles. Furthermore, television is shown to influence attitudes about race and gender. Pro-social and anti-social behaviors are influenced by television.
In the world we are living in today there are a great many people who
According to Paediatrics & Children’s Health, T.V can teach kids many different things, such as “watching Sesame Street is an example of how toddlers can learn valuable lessons about racial harmony, cooperation, kindness, simple arithmetic, and the alphabet through an educational television format.”(2003) T.V shows can teach very good lessons to children about many important things, that these kids can use in their adult life. Another positive effect of television for kids is that it sort of opens their horizons to different things and people. For example, according to The Raising Children Network, teens and children can benefit from media exposure by developing cultural and political awareness. Television, films, magazines, and social media sites expose teens and children, who might be otherwise be limited to interactions with people from their own cultural and ethnic backgrounds, to an array of different people”. (Mokeyane) Children can really benefit from watching T.V, they can learn many educational things from shows like Sesame Street, Barney, or Caillou. Also, older children can learn about other cultures and political things that might not be talked about at home. Television really helps kids learn more important personal and educational lessons, that the generations,before, never had. Children, nowadays, have a great advantage in learning much more
There are many facts that show how children are affected by television. The most obvious is the effects that television has on the brain. 'Television interferes with the development of intelligence, thinking skill and imagination.';(LimiTv) A huge element of thinking is taking from what you already know and deciding how it applies in different situation. School makes you do this, but television does not. Michael and Sheila Cole, sociologist, say that 'Children socialized to learn from television had lower than normal expectations about the amount of mental effort required to learn from written texts, and tended to read less and perform relatively poorly in school.';(Development of Children 24) Which means that it takes very little effort to follow a television show and kids are raised on television believe that it takes less effort to learn from television rather than books because they have been 'spoon-fed'; information by television. 'Opportunities for a child's imagination to develop are also denied by habitual viewing.'; (Neural Activity and the Growth of the Brain) Children need some unstructured time to allow imagination skills to form by thinking about a book or story, a conversation, or an event.
When it comes to the topic of television, most of us would readily agree that watching television is a waste of time. Where the agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of “are there shows that increase our intelligence?” and what pleasure do some television show bring to us? I would say there are some great shows that increase our intelligence. Shows like “Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?” this kind of show puts the brain to work; thinking. There are some other shows that tend to convince us that watching television seduces our mind. I find Johnson’s argument about his article “watching television makes you smarter” confusing because he was not actually picking sides in the article and Steven’s “Thinking Outside The Idiot Box” argument about how “it’s really good at teaching you to think… about the future episode” (Steven, 296). Although I agree with the author of “Watching Television Makes you Smarter” Johnson to an extent, I cannot accept that he overlooks how much time people spends each day watching television.