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Maybe TV's Not Completely Evil After All... Phew!
November 4, 2009 at 7:00 AM by Cafe Sheri - Comments (5)
Photo by JayGirlsMom
The Baby Einstein debate, and Disney's refund — you've probably heard a lot of talking about babies and kids and the "big bad TV" lately.
Well, here's an interesting perspective from Julia Pimsleur Levine. Julia actually makes an educational DVD series for tots, but she's also a mom. And she makes a very valid point about the importance of promoting media literacy rather than "demonizing" the television altogether.
When it comes to toddlers watching TV, it doesn't have to be all or nothing, does it?
Recent Disney Controversy
I am the mother of two young boys under the age of five, and for full disclosure, the creator of an educational DVD series for tots, Little Pim, which introduces babies, toddlers and preschoolers to a second language. Although I have mixed feelings about the Disney refund, I believe the ban-TV-for-tots frenzy that has ensued is misguided.
Let us contemplate the following:
- Studies show that 74% of all kids in the U.S. under two watch SOME videos or DVDs*. So either nearly 3/4 of the parents in this country are bad people, or letting your child watch a show while you make dinner isn't as big a deal as some advocacy groups would have you believe.
- There is a BIG difference between a baby or toddler watching a few minutes of an educational DVD and the 2-3 hours of viewing per day that the American Academy of Pediatrics found to be potentially unsound for young minds and prompted them to issue a warning against ANY screen time kids under the age of two.
- We are now living in a digital era of YouTube, 500 cable channels, and videos on our cell phones. Our kids will be surrounded by media from their earliest days, whether we like it or not. The question we should be considering is “what” and “how much” screen time is right for them? Parents need to make their own decisions about when the right time is to expose their kids to media and then be encouraged to make thoughtful decisions about what that media is. Media literacy should be the issue of the day, not media abstinence.
- Most parents engage with their young children in a variety of ways — reading to them, talking, singing, playing, dancing AND allowing them watch a DVD from time to time. Most of us do it all. I have yet to read a study that shows there are negative side effects of limited screen time, when it's part of a verbally rich environment and healthy family interactions.
So even if the secret is "out" that we sometimes use DVDs as a babysitter, we also know that sometimes we watch WITH our children. We share in their delight at making new puppet friends, learning new words in English, Spanish and Chinese, and acquiring social skills by imitating kids or animated characters on screen. These are moments we can celebrate and cherish; the watching may not make them smarter, but it may help them learn about making healthy viewing choices that will carry over when they are old enough to control the clicker.
- Julia Pimsleur Levine, Mother and President, Little Pim Co.
* source: PBS
What do you think? Can TV play a positive role in our children's lives? Do you have a TV-inclusive balance of activities set up for your kids? What's that balance for you?
Related posts:
Baby Einstein Offers Refund for Not Making Your Tot a Genius
Duh! Study: TV Doesn't Help or Hurt Toddlers
Do You Let Your Toddler Watch Cartoons?
FILED UNDER: activities, language, learning, recalls
Comments:
TV in moderation can play a positive roll in children lives. It should be on all day. There is such thing as second hand tv too where even if children aren't watching it but it is still on they still get the affects of not concentrating as much, etc. We turn our tv off a lot during the day. At night my husband watched tv after work. But I monitor how much tv my child gets and what she watches on the tv. She has learned some things that I never would have thought to teach her. We, of course, do lots of activites during the day as well so she isn't watching the tv too much.
If letting DS watch 30min of Baby Einstein or the Lion King or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so I can shower and not hear him scream because I'm out of the room, makes me a bad mom then by all means, call CPS. They will probably get a good laugh out of your call.
I agree with her wholeheartedly. I dont expect the TV to teach my children.. but we use it to learn TOGETHER. They watch about 1 hour a day in all... but in a 14 hour day, thats nothing! I tivo certain shows. We watch wordworld (pbs) and learn to spell together. We watch Olivia once a day, because they love it and the book is their favorite. They watch a half hour of sprout, as well.. the goodnight show, while I cook or clean. An hour of TV a day isnt going to wreck my kids brain, especially when those shows reinforce everything I teach them. I think the key here is parents find a happy balance. There is a big difference between turning the TV on at 8am, plunking them in front of it, and ignoring them all morning long... versus sitting on the couch with them, engaging them, and teaching them right along with Nina and Star. My son started spelling thanks to word world... PBS rocks. Olivia is a guilty pleasure for them like The Soup is for me.. I think thats a good thing.
I totally agree with her as well. When my 18 month old was taken to the Seattle Center, looked up and said, "Space Needle!", all I could do was just PRAISE the Little Einstiens episodes I let him watch occasionally while I was getting things done around the house.
Could he have been playing with blocks/coloring/curing cancer? SURE! But the TV sure as hell didn't HURT him either.
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Any one who thought a DVD could make your child smarter needs a wake-up slap, but with that said they can be a useful tool. We used a couple of the BE videos to help teach my god-son signs when he was delayed in his speech. My now 8 yo loved his BE video's. Often we watched them together, me pointing out colors, shapes, and what not, but (gasp) also allowing me to go potty by myself, cook dinner, deal with other child or something else.
Should a child be parked there all day? By no means, but will it turn their brains to oatmeal at the first glance, heck no! What I do think is just wrong are the folks who have a TV in their young childs room and play movies for them to sleep to, or just allow them to sleep with the TV on. I have a friend who's 4 yo will not sleep without the TV on, and he watches Family Guy and such. That is wrong IMO. My boys are 14 and 8 and they don't have TVs, heck we only have 1 in the house and all the computers are in the living room so everyone knows what they are looking at. But that is just us!!
littleredpony Nov. 4, 2009 at 8:40 AM