Recent research by the independent television commission shows the 98% of households in the UK own at least one television set, 36% of children under the age of four have a TV in their rooms and 14% also have a video recorder or DVD player. 52% of children under the age of 16 have a TV in their bedrooms.
With hundreds of digital television channels available for children to access, how safe are children in the digital age?
What are the effects of television and video and can we safeguard children from them?
Is television a useful learning tool or trigger for ADHD and child hood obesity?
This article aims to look at the positive and negative affects television can have on children, the role TV plays in education andparents worries and concerns about violent content andill effects - this small statment can be linked to that of James Bulger; the 3year old boy which was stoned to death due to the effects of a video game. For more information about this click here.
Children can be safeguarded from the ill effects of TV and whose responibility is it?
The Child:
British children between the ages of five and eleven spend and average of 2.6 Hours a day watching television according to a survey carried out by childwise (a market research agency). The survey also found that 58% of the children watch TV suring their evenining meal, 63% watch Tv regularly before bed and 83% watch TV after school.
The four main concerns about the affects of TV on children are:-
- Watching too much TV in early years can course ADHD. The NHS website suggest that allowing children to watch TV for hours a day could possibly contribute to ADHD in later life.
- Watching too much TV can core obesity in adulthood. The national institue for clinical excllence (NICE) nadvice that although watching vast amounts of TV doesn't directly link to obesity it can be contributing factor and advice it should be limited.
- Watching TV take away children's language skills and ability to play. Limitv believe that increased time spent in front of the TV draws time away from the traditional forms of hand centered play, which can directly affect children's ability to hold a pen.
- Watching violence on TV can lead to actual physical violence, the findings of browne and hamilton (2005) suggest that there is consisten evidence that violent imagery in TV and film may have substantial short-term effects such as arousal, thoughts and emotions, increasing the likelihood of aggressive behaviour especially in boys however they also say there is only weak evidence that links media directly to crime.
As i mentioned early on this theroy was famously debated in the media during the trial of James Bugler in may 1993 report. In trutv liberty writes that one of his killers had been given the chance and opportunity to wach Childs play3 = a film that has similarities to the way in which to boys killed James. From looking at the link i have pasted in futher up in this post by the way the Guardian has said - the murder of James was very brutal and unfair.
this image below is a picture of the two boys who killed James Bugler in 1993, at this age they were only 10 years old.
When looking into the positive effects of TV, i found that although parents and child care professionals like Dr Tanya Bryon and TV programs such as Super Nanny believe that limited and supervised TV watching can help children's imagination, since of worth and knowledge of other cultures and religions. It is also widely known that children learn though play and things they enjoy so limited TV could also help teach numeracy and literacy skills. However i found no soild research to this affect, it all seemed to be focused on the negatives.
The Parent:
According to feeview viewtrition (independent report written by DR Tanya Byron and freeview in which 1,880 parents and online focus group with mumsnet.com where surveyed.)
- 80% of parents surveyed believe TV has positive effects on children (e.g Extended imagination, better vocabulary and numeracy skills)
- 67% believe that TV can have negative effects but are not clear on what these might be.
The national family and parenting institue also carried out two surveys on Parents general worries and concerns (listening to parents and listening minority ethnic parent) they reported that although TV watching was not on the top of the list of worries both sets of parents ranked it as 7 on their list with just 8 and 9% saying it was their main concern.
The Schools:
Whilst looking into the role TV plays in school and children's learning, i stabled across teacher TV a channel and website for teachers. This tool is fully funded by the department for children, schiols and families (DCSF) and provides teachers with information about topic of learning up to date reports on software and teaching materials as well as porgrammes that can be used on white boards as part of lessons.
This resorce has been regularly reviewed since its launch in February 2005. Regular research into viewing of teachers TV was conducted by ipsos MORI and they found that the:
- Measure of TV viewing satisfaction with programmes was 7.03 out of 10 for the third year of broadcasts.
- Just over one third of teachers and teaching assistants reported that the channel has had a positive effect on learning in the classroom.
- The same number aslo stating it has had a genrerally good effect on school standards.
Another example of Teaching TV is during the week - monday to friday during school hours for some of the day are certain programs such as educational programs. I think this is because if children are off of school ill these programs can help them learn as well as have fun.
The conclusion:
In summery TV is a big part of children's lives and although there is some evidence that TV can contribute to ADHD, obesity and have a short term affect of violent behaviour, from excessive watching. Tv itself is not the sole contributor to these childhood disorders. Parents them self's are aware of the negative effectsof the TV and the importance of limitations and supervision. Schools have used TV in their teaching methods since i was a child - and possibly even before i was born and seem to be developing this tool in alliance with the digital age. In responce to the evidence coleected and the advice given to use by various guides e.g Freeview viewtrition and tisscali's guide to safety tip for audiences. I believe the key to safeguarding children from the negative effects of the television is supervision and limitation.
