Point of View — A television activity

Press, 23 November 1987, Page 33

Point of View — A television activity

(This could take the form of * music mini project for senior students.) (1) Select either one type of television programme, e.g., News, pop/rock music, sport, soap operas/ serials Or the way television programmes deal with certain subjects, e.g., children, women, violence. (2) Work out (perhaps with a teacher’s help) a concise topic area. You could use a particular assumption or point of view (e.g., “that television soap operas and serials portray women as unintelligent and passive and, consequently, poor role models for girls growing up.” Or “that violence has no place in programmes intended for family entertainment; that television concentrates on too few sporting codes.” (3) Define your frame of reference by selecting, noting and watching programmes within your chosen category type, over a seveq-week period. (4) Devise and run surveys (ask your family and friends relevant questions, and record results), compile graphs, diagrams and examples based on the programmes selected (e.g., number of times violent deaths are shown on the screen in a selected programme during a certain number of episodes). (5) Using newspapers, magazines and articles from books, collect material that discusses or supports your chosen topic. (6) Reassess your topic (you may find that after doing the research up to this point your original ideas and assumptions will have changed). (7) Write your report and your research data (graphs, diagrams, etc.). (8) Assemble the material compiled from other sources.