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The Electronic BabysitterJun 10 '01 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line In 21 years of owning my own Daycare, I now truly believe the studies that say violence on TV makes children more aggressive. Kids Watch Way Too Much Television In my licensed Daycare, the state regulations allow children to watch one hour of television for every four hours in care. But I know that many of the little ones I care for watch TV before they come to my home in the morning, and they watch it all evening long when they get home. It seems that many children, sadly, lack quality time with their mom or dad. The television has become the modern day babysitter. What effect does this have on society? Did you know that by the time the average child finishes elementary school, they have viewed as many as 100,000 violent acts on television? That by the time our kids become teenagers, many have watched so many hours of TV that in totality it can equal as many as seven years worth of viewing? You throw in time they spend on the computer and playing video games and it's not hard to see that there is something terribly wrong. In the last 6 years more than 3000 studies have linked real life violence to television violence. An Experiment on the Impact of Television There have been many, many studies done about the impact of television viewing on young children. From congressional studies back in the 50's to today with the implementation of TV guidelines (ratings much like the movie theatres have), it is plain to see that this is a common and widespread concern. A book was written about a study that was done on a small, isolated town in British Columbia, Canada. This town did not have television prior to 1973. They studied school age children before they had television and two years after TV was introduced to their community. What did they find? That children were both verbally and physically more aggressive. That the television viewing damaged the procurement of their reading skills. That creativity was stifled. That participation in other free time activities suffered. All of the effects were negative. Frontline's Study - "Does TV Kill?" The documentary TV show Frontline addressed the question "Does TV Kill?". In a nutshell, their study concluded that children who watched violent TV shows were more aggressive at school. Worse still was the sad fact that the more violent the programming was, the more aggressive their behavior became. Television Can be Confusing to Children It can be argued that television distorts the truth. A child can watch their favorite actor get killed in one TV show, only to show up two weeks later on another TV show, alive and well. This can distort a childs concept of death, and this subject is something they have a hard enough time grasping as it is. Television Can be Frightening to Children I remember my mom and dad letting me watch Alfred Hitchcock when I was young. I had terrible fears about going upstairs in the dark by myself. I remembered those scary shows and thought about them for months on end ... waiting for something to jump out at me from a dark room. I have seen first hand what effects watching horror shows can have on children. Even some seemingly innocent movies have undertones that are frightful to small children. I have had some kids wake up with bad dreams after their parents allowed them to watch horror movies. I have been appalled over the years by what some parents will expose their children to. My 21 years of working with small children have convinced me that what they see on TV and in the movies does effect them, sometimes for months. The "V-chip" Recently introduced is the V-chip. New televisions will have this chip and it will in essence, give control back to the parent concerning what their children can and cannot view. Now that TV guidelines have been established, the V-chip (the V stands for violence), can prevent children from watching inappropriate programming. What are the TV guidelines? TVY is suitable for all children, but more specifically geared to ages 2-6. TVY7 is designed for children ages 7 and up. Some mild violence. TVG is suitable for general or all audiences. TVPG means parental guidance is suggested. TV14 means parents are strongly cautioned to not allow children under 14 to watch these shows. TVM is for mature audiences. Profanity, sexual content, and mature subject matter. What Can Concerned Parent's Do? There are a number of responsible things that parent's can do. (1) Choose non-violent programs (2) Limit television viewing (3) Watch TV with your kids, talk about programs and discuss any controversial subjects (4) Teach children to view that which is productive I know, this topic is about Children's TV Shows, but they are violent in more subtle ways, and this is sometimes worse, because parents are lulled into a false sense of security. The "oh, i't just a cartoon" mentality. I prefer not to name names, but many childrens shows are full of fighting and violence. Children learn that this is how to solve their problems. When was the last time a childrens cartoon showed two people talking out their differences? Conclusion The debate over weather violent TV shows add to the increasing crime rates in our teenage populations is one that will continue for many years to come. There is a lot of evidence showing that there is certainly a correlation between violent programming and behavioral problems in children. I strongly feel that if I allow my child to watch violent television shows, it is going to sabotage and weaken the values I work so diligently to instill in her. She is not going to learn how to maturely and successfully deal with other people, or learn how to handle disputes and disagreements from watching violent TV. I believe that television desensitizes all of us to violence. The first time you see it, it may be shocking. The tenth time you view it a little differently - it's not so bad. By the 3000th time it is acceptable. A Quote from a UCLA Study Several studies conducted by UCLA "have found that children may become ‘immune’ to the horror of violence; gradually accept violence as a way to solve problems; imitate the violence they observe on television; and identify with certain characters, victims and/or victimizers" (http://www.ucla.edu/curree…ne/violence/iiid.htm). I don't know about you, but I certainly do not want my child to end up this way! Our children are precious resources! Don't let television be a substitute for good parenting. The TV does have an off button, don't be afraid to use it.  |
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