The question that our group decided to write on was “How does television effect children’s social development?” Within that topic we picked four different types of genres children may watch or see on television. The genre I am focusing on is Violence on television. This is an important issue in the world today because too much could lead to social issues in life. Growing up I’m sure for the most part your parents told you one or more of these statements, keep your hands to yourself, don’t hit anyone, no kicking, etc. Violence was not tolerated, but when you watch a children’s carton or show, it’s full of violence. Kids usually get a lot of information from television. I remember growing up watching a lot of television. Being violent at a young age can cause trouble when they are adults. Most violent people don’t just become violent when they become adults, it almost always starts as a child. Children tend to copy what they see, so if all they see is violent acts, guns, blood, etc. they’re going to copy the acts. They could think it’s OK because they see it everywhere. Children in violent homes thing that behavior is normal because that’s all they know.
Shannon Villanueva
Television can affect a child’s development in different ways. Reality tv can affect not only the children reality stars but the children who watch it. This topic is important because it seems to be controversial between some parents in the vox article. One of the articles I read was a couple being interviewed on how their whole family watches Reality Television together.”The Amazing Race can be overly aggressive in shoehorning geography and history into its globe-hopping challenges. But the shtick works! Whenever the racers encounter the extreme poverty of India and Africa, Donna and I take a moment to talk about economic inequality with Archer and Cady Gray.” It gives them a perfect chance to talk about real world things. It is also important for the parent of the child reality stars to take care of their child’s mental health. The competition can really affect a child’s emotional development. ” Benefits in participating are far less compared to the damaging effect that the experience can have.”
This applies in society because some adults aren’t always good at starting up conversations with their children. Having it be on tv can help start the conversation. Television can affect children in both negative and positive ways. I believe it has more plus sides with watching, but when it comes to being apart of the show it can really affect a child’s self-esteem and mental health. Most of the reality television shows are people over the age of 21. There are some shows like Project Runway Kids, Junior Master Chef, and she’s that also feature kids like the X Factor. Children being apart of competition show’s is not the worst thing, it can teach the children to be ok with no winning and being happy for their competitor. Not being a sore loser would benefit them in the future, many kids don’t like loosing and throw tantrums and want everything their way. Their parents can use it as a lesson.
Shannon Villanueva
Cambell, Leah. “Reality Tv can be Unhealthy for Participants as Well as Viewers.”healthline.com, 14 March 2018. https://www.healthline.com/health-news/reality-tv-unhealthy-for-participants-and-viewers#1
Murray,Noel.”Reality Tv offers Valuable Lessons for Children. Really.”, Vox.com.12 April 2018, https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/4/12/17147740/reality-tv-parenting-children-media-literacy-survivor
Tucker, Veena.”Are Reality Tv shows damaging mental well being of participating children?”,Hindustantimes.com, 14 July 2017, https://www.hindustantimes.com/opinion/are-reality-tv-shows-damaging-mental-well-being-of-participating-children/story-IDZJiOJ9vvipuYEAsjxYjM.html
Shannon Villanueva
My name is Shannon Villanueva, I am a Sociology Major.My interest in media is mainly Social Networking sites, but career wise it would be Public Relations. Public Relation’s is somewhat fascinating to me. I use a few different Social Networks and listen to music through my phone everyday. Social networking sites liked Twitter and Facebook come in handy now. Social media has changed so much, I know use it to consume my news and to stay updated with my interests. My phone affects my everyday life in a positive and a negative way. It cause me to be a little more distracted, but I learn a lot through out the day on my phone.
Viridiana Martinez
“Infants, Toddlers and Television.” Urban Child Institute, http://www.urbanchildinstitute.org/articles/policy-briefs/infants-toddlers-and-television.
Tankersley, Jim. “Study: Kids Can Learn as Much from ‘Sesame Street’ as from Preschool.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 7 June 2015, http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/sesame-street-and-its-surprisingly-powerful-effects-on-how-children-learn/2015/06/07/59c73fe4-095c-11e5-9e39-0db921c47b93_story.html?noredirect=on.
Perlmutter, M.D. David. “Brain Development: How Much TV Should Children Watch?” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 25 May 2011, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-david-perlmutter-md/television-and-the-develo_b_786934.html.
Viridiana Martinez
“Infants, Toddlers and Television.” Urban Child Institute, http://www.urbanchildinstitute.org/articles/policy-briefs/infants-toddlers-and-television.
Tankersley, Jim. “Study: Kids Can Learn as Much from ‘Sesame Street’ as from Preschool.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 7 June 2015, http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/sesame-street-and-its-surprisingly-powerful-effects-on-how-children-learn/2015/06/07/59c73fe4-095c-11e5-9e39-0db921c47b93_story.html?noredirect=on.
Perlmutter, M.D. David. “Brain Development: How Much TV Should Children Watch?” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 25 May 2011, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-david-perlmutter-md/television-and-the-develo_b_786934.html.
Viridiana Martinez
Hello! My name is Viridiana Martinez and I am currently majoring in communication studies. I am genuinely interested in all forms of media; however, I tend to use music and the internet more frequently than others. This Media effects project can eventually affect my life because although I currently do not have kids, I do see myself eventually becoming a mother. The use of television consumption is an important topic that I see myself discussing with my future husband because my perspective on children and technology seems pretty strong. I believe that despite what anyone else has to say, my mind will always remain the same. My brother just became a father and him and his wife usually tend to have the baby lay down and watch television. After this project, I will make sure to bring the negative and positive effects to their attention. I believe everyone should take this topic into consideration because despite our age, the vast majority of individuals tend to have children’s around them. In general, mass media benefits every individual because we’re constantly getting informed of what occurs throughout the world. We not only become more educated, but we also begin to create new opinions by allowing new perspectives to challenge “traditional” beliefs.
Viridiana Martinez
Overall, many individuals are conflicted as to whether or not educational programs are beneficial to children. On one hand, researchers have proven that educational programs; such as Sesame Street, help prepare young children for preschool. This specific television shown is known to broadcast learning materials taught in school through a television screen. On another hand, researchers have also proven that educational programs essentially damage a child’s health, leading to complications (such as trouble sleeping and attention disorders) involving their social development. Despite the research that I found, my point of view has remained the same. As I mentioned in the “Topic Introduction”, I firmly believe that the television tends to have a negative effect on children’s social development. My perspective remains the same because a child loses out of physical activity due to the amount of time sitting down watching tv. Television should not be shown to infants; however, a small amount of educational television should be shown to toddlers as a way to better prepare them for preschool.
Viridiana Martinez
Nowadays, the majority of American households obtain a television. It’s practically considered inevitable for a child to not be familiar with a television. Considering the fact that a child’s first five years are crucial to their social development, the television plays a huge role in influencing an infant’s behavior. As I did further research regarding this topic, I began to come across similar findings. Many researchers believe that daily consumption of television can generally result as a negative effect on a child’s behavior, attitude, and health. Other researchers presume that although the use of television consumption has been a very controversial topic, the different television genres can affect children differently. My group and I will further discuss the effects of children tv genres which include: educational, comedy, kids animation, and kids musical.
My main television genre focus will be on educational tv. Educational television provides the viewer with variety of television shows that are aimed to further educate the youth. For instance, these shows include educational programs such as: Sesame Street, Sid the Science Kid, WordGirl, Cyberchase, and many more.
By the title of these television shows, an adult would automatically assume that these shows are solemnly for educational content; in many cases, this is completely true. Many children are becoming prepared for preschool by the simple help of educational television shows. In some studies, some of these shows were considered to have the ability to teach children the same material they would learn at preschool through a television show.
According to The Washington Post, “Sesame Street’s focus on presenting viewers with an academic curriculum, heavy on reading and math…would appear to have helped prepare children for school”. Considering the material taught on Sesame Street, researchers argued that similar content was identical to the one at school. A child is practically receiving education through a television, free of cost. Although similar content is provided, many people believe that children should still attend preschool; but, sesame street should be shown to children prior because it develops “emotional skills that helps kids in social settings” (Tankersley). However, opposers argue that regardless of the television genre, children’s exposure to television at a young age will only further damage their health. According to The Urban Child Institute, exposure to television can delay “language development and kindergarten readiness skills”, cause “attention disorders and sleep problems”, and have “ long-term effects on social development, classroom engagement, and academic achievement”. This quote goes to show that a television cannot serve as a simple replacement for a teacher. Every child learns differently, so this technique would not be effective for every individual.
Viridiana Martinez
With the development of technological advancements, the vast majority of American children are exposed to digital-media on a daily basis. Considering their early ages of media exposure, many children grow up with the misconception that their behavior and actions must meet up to the expectations that the media portrays. In comparison to older generations, the average American child sits at home in front of the television as opposed to reading a book or playing outdoors. Throughout our blog, my teammates and I will discuss our research question, “How does television affect children’s social development” much further. In particular, television consumption tends to leave a positive and negative effect on children, which influences their social development. This topic is absolutely important in today’s mediated world because many parents are completely unaware of the effects that the television tends to leave on their children. Many people are under the impression that the television does not impact a child’s behavior; when in reality, that is not the case. I also believe that this may apply in society because our children are our future. The children of today’s generation must grow up in an effective environment where their social development is allowed to grow to their full potential. Moreover, I believe that in society, this topic is applied on an everyday basis. According to The Huffington Post, “The average American youth spends 900 hours in school each year, but watches 1500 hours of television”. This quote goes to show that not only do American children consume a high amount of television, but their television consumption completely outweighs their time spent at school per year. This is completely unacceptable because their education is being put at risk.
Overall, I strongly believe that this topic affects children’s social development more negatively than positively because a child is exposed to many unethical scenarios at a very young age. When a child is watching television, they usually tend to ignore the rest of the people around them. I believe this is something negative because this creates no room for children to expand their social development. Many kids usually become upset when an individual attempts to have a conversation with them while they’re watching a show; a child practically becomes antisocial for that duration of time. Along with this, many television shows promote violence and influence children to rebel. This particular example affects a child’s social development because they’re completely unaware on how to properly interact with other children. Rather than being playful and generous, the child will eventually become rough and violent. Lastly, with all the chaos occurring throughout the world, nowadays, parents don’t usually think about the effects that the television can leave imprinted on their child. Instead of dealing with children when they cry, many younger parents tend to turn on the television as a form of distraction for the child. Overall, I firmly believe that there is more bad than good with children and their consumption of television.
How does television affect children's social development 