Media Literacy

“TV is called a medium because it is neither rare nor well-done.”

On Tuesday, October 23rd, 2001, we were honored to hear Dr Stephen Schroeder-Davis speak about media literacy, with an emphasis on both the subtle and obvious ways that the entertainment media negatively impacts attitudes about motivated children and academic achievement. Statistics show us that the average school-aged child in America spends 38 hours per week on media (which includes TV, movies, videos, internet, computer games and game machines). Of this, 25 hours per week is TV watching. To put this into perspective, the average school age child spends more time watching TV than any other waking activity. It should also be noted that the brain is more active during sleep than it is when watching TV.

Dr Schroeder-Davis stated, “For a variety of reasons, contemporary American culture sends messages to youth that conflict with the values of concerned parents and educators. Put simply, hard working students run the risk of being labeled ‘nerds’, while students who goof off and party become ‘populars’.”  We learned that at the peer level, students are forced to choose between conformity and individualism, between mediocrity and excellence, athleticism and academics, entertainment and attainment, self-centeredness and service. The popular culture that the peer group expounds is that created by the media. In many cases, the school administration supports this, for example by exemplifying the “heroism” of athletes and showing little cognizance of academic achievement. Bright students “dumb down” in order to feel part of the peer group.

We saw TV clips from popular shows that support the view that students at school do not pay attention, show little respect for teachers and do not do assigned work. The ones who do not do the work are “rewarded” in the TV world. They are the popular students and “luck” is always on their side.

Students are highly resistant to the idea that they are gullible. TV encourages passive, naïve, reactive, uneducated and gullible reactions. Concerned parents would prefer their children to be aware, critical, thoughtful and questioning, in other words, exactly the opposite of what most TV fosters.

The media views kids as a lucrative demographic rather than individuals to be nurtured. Advertising doesn’t just invite us to buy this or that product, it teaches us to buy, period, and to feel dissatisfied unless we have the newest, the latest, the best.

We can help our kids understand the effect that TV has and make them more discerning viewers. We can question, challenge and contradict – or support and reinforce – what we see and hear. If you don’t say anything, your children will assume that what you see and hear must be OK with you. Continue to remind your children and yourselves that what you see on TV is not “real” but has been very cleverly constructed to present a certain image. Special effects and identifiable techniques are used to produce these images. Some people and ideas are given more importance than others–some are glamorized and others treated with contempt. Nothing we read or see in the media, even in the news, is ever completely “objective.”

So, what can we do to inoculate our kids against the impact of the media? Dr Schroeder-Davis tells us that there are things we can and should do. Communities, parents and educators can confront the negative cultural messages of the media by raising expectations, recognizing academic excellence and providing positive role models. For individual students, encourage friendships with peers who have similar interests. If your gifted child has at least one “soul mate”, he/she will not so desperately need the approval of the rest of the peer group. Students must have “ability” peers.

The following quote is from researcher Laurence Steinberg, based on a comprehensive study of academic achievement of high school students:

No curricular overhaul, no instructional innovation, no change in school organization, no toughening of standards, no rethinking of teacher training or compensation will succeed if students do not come to school interested in, and committed to, learning.

As educators and as parents we must work together to negate the “dumbing down” effects our children experience. As they move toward Junior High school age, these effects will become more and more noticeable. If our children are to achieve to the best of their ability, they must first want to achieve.

“TV allows you to be entertained by people you would never allow in your home.” - David Frost