Subscribe Free | Contact | Ticket Sales | Calendar | Home | Penrith City

In this modern technological age parents are very busy and spend very little time with their children. They are also becoming more protective towards their children as compared to previous generations, because there are increased episodes of violence, crime and child abuse. Parents tend to keep their children inside to feel safe. The question is, are they really safe being at home?

Physically they might be safe but mentally and socially they may experience the same amount of violence and crime (as in real life) without involving themselves in it. This can happen watching the magic box, Television.

Teaching children to watch television wisely is a very low priority at the moment as compared to road safety and fire safety programs.

Television in general is not a bad entertainment tool. The problems emerge when people use or abuse it for their own personal interests, benefits and profits.

Children’s television viewing is a debatable issue. An Australian survey conducted between 1995 – 97 showed that children between the age of 2 – 5 years watch television up to 17 hours per week. However, according to a newspaper article (The Age 23.9.97), by the age of six, children viewed more than 13 000 violent images and absorbed 20 000 advertisements. It is significant to mention that an adolescent, when ready to leave school around the age of 18, spends 14 000 hours in front of television as compared to 12 000 hours in the classroom (Young Media Australia).

These studies and surveys are indicators that television viewing may effect children’s physical, thinking and social – emotional skills. Also how much time they spend playing out doors, with others and exploring the environment in their early stages of learning.

Effects on Physical Development

Vision
Sitting very close to television puts strain on the eyes. Children like to sit very close to the television. There are two reasons for this, first is generally children like to sit close to absorb more. The second reason is their distant vision is not fully developed yet and they are not able to see clearly from a certain distance.

The radiation emissions from television sets, especially old ones that produce higher levels of radiation, can cause further health problems like nervousness, continuous fatigue, headaches and loss of sleep.

Watching television with the lights off and continuously staring at TV screen can damage children’s eyesight. It is also evident from medical researches that heavy viewing weakens eye muscles, and in severe cases it prevents left to right eye movement, which is essential for reading and writing.

Hearing
Children like to turn the volume above the normal speech levels to hear more clearly. This may damage their natural hearing mechanism, which can effect their other learning skills. They may find it difficult to cope in the classroom situation when hearing the teacher and other children is difficult.

Body Posture
According to Young Media Australia, sitting in front of TV for a long period of time may damage children’s body posture as they sometimes sit on the floor without any support to back or lie on the lounge; therefore becoming totally motionless.

Sitting still in front of the TV may effect children’s gross motor and fine motor development. Excessive viewing has negative effects on children’s hand movements, which is necessary for writing, typing, artwork and creative play.

Nutrition - Metabolism
Long segments of television viewing leads to poor eating habits. Generally children eat snacks or other easy foods while watching TV. They burn less energy as compared to calorie intake, which may result in obesity. A study conducted by Memphis State University and The University of Tennessee in USA further proved that television viewing slows down the viewers’ metabolism, which in turn affects the digestive system.

Effects on Cognitive Development

Learning Difficulties
Television programs provide quick, direct and readymade information. In the past children acquired this information through a gradual process of reading and guidance from teachers and parents. This process also includes the steps like trial and error, repetition, initiative, motivation and discussion with others. These steps enlarge the children’s world of experiences as compare to television. These skills are also necessary for systematic learning of reading, writing and mathematics.

Behavioural Problems
Fast paced television programs create ‘sensory overload’ for children, which may result in clinical disorders such as uncontrolled overactivity, prolonged sleep resistance and irritability. Children, who are used to watch a fast paced programs, find it difficult to adopt the slower pace environment in the classroom. This also leads to frustration and behaviour problems.

Effects on Social and Emotional Development

Imitating Behaviour
Television is shifting generational limits by reorganising the adult-child relationships.

Parents and their children are watching the same programs. The children may develop an illusion that they can do adult things and behave like adults.

Children who continuously listen to swearing and watch violence on TV may start to think that this is the only way to solve problems and conflicts.

Self-Esteem and Violence

Families shown on television are always well-dressed, clean and living in well-equipped homes. Children in general are not able to separate fantasy from reality. This can lead to an inferiority complex and low self-esteem. Children may consider their families inadequate in materialistic means.

Children with low self-esteem and those living in violent domestic situations are severely affected by violent programs. They may consider this world as a scary place to live and violence is the only way to solve conflicts.

Isolation
Television viewing creates isolation even when children are watching it in a group.

There is not much interaction between children and they sit immobilised in front of the screen.

Dramatic Play
Children, who are exposed to adult like realities at very young age, are not mentally capable in understanding themes like death. It is evident from studies that children dramatise TV events in their play such as Thredbo incident and the death of Princess Diana.

One important thing is clear - that passive television viewing, certainly effects children’s physical, cognitive and social abilities. This is only one negative aspect.

There are other negative implications as well such as program materials, advertisements, violence and sex.

As a parent you can…

• Set limits about the amount of time children spend in front of TV and about the quality of programs children watch.
• Reinforce the limits.
• Make a rule - no TV at breakfast, lunch or dinnertime. If there is any educational programs at this time, record them and watch them later.
• Set some time for outdoor and indoor play.
• Take children to the park on a regular basis.
• Always sit with children when they watch television. Discuss the program and compare it with daily life situations.
• Take children to your local library, spend some time there, and borrow books for children and for yourself.
• Be a positive role model.