In the second to last chapter in Amusing Ourselves To Death, Postman discusses how programs such as "Sesame Street" and "The Electric Company" are perceived as educational shows but are actually a waste of time. Instead of teaching kids educational information, it instead serves as a distraction for the child. According to Postman, programs are not able to serve the same kind of educational product as school. Because kids are able to watch episodes out of order, their learning is not required to have previous knowledge of what happened before. Though at school, kids are required to have previous knowledge of what has happened in previous lessons in order to advance into higher levels of education. In order for Postman to further claim his point, he also includes a study taken place on adults who watched the news and were asked what they had watched after a certain amount of time has passed. The results showed that 51% of adults forgot what they had previously watched after a couple of minutes after the show concluded.
Personally, I can't see the point that Postman is trying to convey. First of all, his study was taken on adults who have way more responsibilities than a child. The more responsibilities one has, the more likely they are to forget what they were planning and what has already happened. Because kids have so little responsibilities, they are able to put more focus into what they are learning/ watching. In addition, the way television is used is different for varying ages. For kids, television is used as a way to pass time so more attention is put into it while adults most likely watch television for a break where they are relaxing instead of playing close attention. Furthermore, kids are able to soak up and remember more information; hence why its easier for a kid to learn another language when compared to an adult. Lastly, speaking from experience, when I was younger, I actually learned a lot from watching shows off of PBS. The thing that I remember most of all among the shows I watched, was a "Electric Company" episode where there was a song that talked about what made a "G" sound like a "J" and it has stuck with me ever since.
~Justin Bou
In some instances throughout the book, Postman does indeed over-exaggerates the detriments of televised media. As you've mentioned, children's shows can be significant in helping them learn at a young age. In his book The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell provides an interesting insight into the amount of work put into making each episode of Sesame Street. The producers of the show test each episode on a group of toddlers with an emphasis on what they focus their attention on and what the toddlers learn. If an episode fails the test run, it is either scrapped or improved upon.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I will have to agree with Postman in that entertainment shrouds television's educational potential. It is easy for children and adults to get distracted by the vivid imagery and quick scene transitions. Entertainment will still be at the core of televised media as directors are always seeking ways to maximize viewer attention. Television is rather a supplement to educating children and shouldn't be relied on as its main source.
I can agree with your valid points that adults have boundless responsibilities unlike a kid. Their lives have important daily tasks and any other jobs that are taken during the day have a chance to be forgotten due to an adult's busy life. I too also wonder why they would study adults when the effects of television education on young children are much more logical to study. Children's minds as you said are able to soak up information like a sponge so it would be more resourceful to study a developing mind. As a child I watched many PBS shows, and I didn't only remember the entertainment aspect of them but also remembered valuable lessons that furthered my understanding in school.
ReplyDeleteHowever parents shouldn't turn on the TV to let a child learn because in my opinion there are better ways to help a child's growing mind like books. With books you're able to learn at the speed you want and ask about subject you don't understand fully.