TELEVISION FOR CHILDREN Family Viewing Matter For Parental Selection

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32359, 27 July 1970, Page 3

TELEVISION FOR CHILDREN Family Viewing Matter For Parental Selection

How good are children’s television programmes? Most of us have seen “Lassie,” “Family Affair,” or “The Wacky Races,” but who has critically examined all the cartoons, comedies, adventures and documentaries screened for a younger audience? Was “Concerned,” in a recent letter to “Viewers’ Views,” justified in wanting to “get rid of all this rotten junk that is fed to children” ?

CHTV 3 starts programmes for younger children round 4.30 p.m. and continues until the headline news about 5.40 p.m. Because many people have their evening meals closer to 6 p.m., this survey

has considered all viewing betwen 4.30 and 6 p.m. Screening after the news includes, programmes such as “The Three Musketeers,” “The Patty Duke Show,” “The Flying Nun,” “Freewheelers,” and “Dr Who,” which are all

aimed at an older audience. Many six and seven year olds watch these, but they cannot be considered as part of children's television unless they occur between the stated times.

During the period from June 29 to July 12 there was roughly eight and a half hours

of programmes screened for children each. week. These consisted mainly of cartoons (36 per cent), family comedies and adventures (35 per cent), and various puppet shows (9 per cent). Most had a strong American flavour, although two of the more popular were Australian.

The criteria for judging the suitability of children's programmes depend on many personal factors. First, programmes should be capable of holding the interest of the viewer. Children like watching something funny, unusual, or imaginative which gives a break from the serious business of school life. The same argument, on the other hand, could be used for reading comics, but research has shown that comics are read less by television viewers and that the reading of books has not been greatly affected.

Some booksellers have found their American comics are no longer popular, whereas the less expensive English comic has far greater appeal. Could this be the result of a constant barrage of American cartoons presented on television?

Second, programmes should include animals or people with whom children can identify themselves. By seeing someone like themselves they can enter fully into the plot and derive enjoyment from the action. Allied to this is the need for something good to be presented as a model for children’s action. This does not presume that ail children’s programmes must be moralistic, but that some positive quality is left in the child’s mind. Most programmes end happily with justice being done, yet the means of achieving good may set a bad example. Research supports the belief that violence has only a short-term effect on a viewer’s behaviour.

The cumulative results of constant viewing is a different matter and is hard to measure. . Observational learning must occuf through continual exposure to patterns of behaviemr similar to, though different from the child’s. This could lead to

changes in attitudes and moral values or to unreal expectations of adolescent and adult conduct. Any lasting effects depend to a great degree on the child’s emotional state, his home background, the family example, and the willingness of his parents to discuss questions arising from television. Parents need to know what is being screened and must be selective in their children’s viewing. They probably read less to their children now that television has taken ovei- as a leisure time activity. This unfortunate result emphasises the import-1 ance of parental involvement ! in what has been viewed by I their child. A factor essential to certain! adventure programmes is the | need for a mild form of ten-[ sion-arousal, to maintain in- 1 terest. This should be re- 1 solved fairly rapidly and not! sustained. When anxietyproducing situations involving children or animals are drawn I out at length, young viewers! can become very upset. | “Lassie” can be severely criti-1 cised for this defect.

Finally, television is an important medium for widening the child’s experience of other people and places. A good programme should provide a greater awareness of the world beyond the child’s own environment. At the same time, it should be presented in language that is not too difficult for the age group. “Playschool” was a good example of a programme designed for the very young but a recent “Carousel.” featuring Japanese children’s inventions, failed because the vocabulary was too hard. “Woodbinda,” “Daktari,” and “Skippy” are acceptable animal adventures because of their convincing portrayal of wild-life. On the other hand, “The Patty Duke Show” probably presents an artificial world that a New Zealand child could well do without.

This is the first of four articles on television programmes for children, written by J. A. DORAN, a lecturer in English at the Christchurch Teachers’ College, primary division.