When do parents stop caring about the educational value of the television shows their children watch?
Parents want the best for their children.
Most would like to interact with their young toddlers in ways which open up windows to the world. Children learn through reading, play and verbal interaction.
It really wasn't until 1969, when Sesame Street debuted on television, that the TV could be seen as a "partner" to parents in promoting reading, playing, singing and verbalizing. It was a prompt for learning. Through a carefully-designed curriculum that promoted co-viewing, the very substantive lessons of Sesame Street -- focusing on letters and numbers, hygiene, respect and so much more -- were able to hold with millions of American kids.
Today, there are over 70 preschool shows on television each day and several 24/7 networks that appeal to our youngest kids -- Sprout, Nick Jr., PBS Kids and soon Disney Junior to name a few. Basically, television programming geared towards preschoolers is always "on," day or night.
Something happens, though, when that child reaches 5 or 6.
At some point, parents stop controlling -- or, perhaps, lose control of -- their children's media consumption. Around first grade, children seize the remote, choose their own programs and parents fall out of the process. This is a problem because most content pays very little attention to the educational needs of children in these age groups and we know that this age is when children are transitioning from learning to read, to reading to learn.
Children today spend nearly as much time watching TV as some parents do at work. The University of Michigan estimates that children ages six to 11 spend 28 hours each week watching television. Additionally, the Kaiser Family Foundation released a report a year ago measuring the media consumption of eight to 18 year olds. The numbers are startling:
- Only 28 percent have limits on the amount of television they can watch -- TV being the least restricted medium that was studied.
Perhaps parents view this as a "battle" they can't win. The television offerings are driven by advertisers who demand ratings to reach more eyeballs. And what delivers ratings? Programs that entertain and excite, first and foremost.
There's much to this story, especially as we now see elementary school children migrating from television to interactive devices, such as video games, web-based applications and mobile platforms. We seem to be repeating a pattern dominated by educational scarcity in content for these addictive platforms.
The question we wrestle with is what will be the game-changer to lead a revolution in learning for 5, 6 and 7-year-olds which will grab them, hold their attention and teach them while having fun.
For our part? A few years ago, we decided to revive The Electric Company's iconic brand. Geared toward encouraging literacy among six to nine-year-olds, the show aims to prove once again that engaging, entertaining content shouldn't be bereft of educational value. (The third season of the show debuts today on PBS KIDS GO!).
Take the clip below, for example. It combines the same type of content which makes for a successfully entertaining show - music and humor in a visually engaging environment - but focuses on literacy:
But The Electric Company, while a step in the right direction, it's also a small one. The educational needs of young students are as vast. There's ample opportunity for innovative media companies to make a difference in these students' lives. We'll be there, but we hope to not be alone.