Study: Quality waning for kids' educational TV

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by Anne Ryman -The Arizona Republic

Educational TV may not be so educational after all.

A study released Wednesday found that high-quality educational programming for children is at its lowest level in nearly two decades.

Only one in eight shows billed as educational was rated "highly educational," according to research co-authored by a professor at the University of Arizona.

The findings suggest that commercial broadcasters may be falling short of meeting the educational needs of children. Since 1990, a federal law called the Children's Television Act has required commercial broadcasters to provide at least three hours of weekly children's educational programming in exchange for using the publicly owned airwaves.

The law, however, does not set guidelines for educational quality.

In their analysis, researchers evaluated the content of the shows labeled as educational to determine whether they were highly, moderately or minimally educational.

The yearlong study, paid for by Children Now, a California-based child-advocacy group, found that although broadcasters met the three-hour requirement, the educational quality of shows has declined.

Only 13 percent of TV shows for children were rated highly educational compared with at least 20 percent in 2000.

Most shows, 63 percent, fell in the middle category of moderately educational, while 23 percent were judged to have minimal educational value.

The study did not evaluate individual networks, but it noted that public-broadcast episodes averaged higher educational scores than programs aired on commercial channels. Because the law applies only to commercial airwaves, programming for cable channels was not evaluated.

Researchers judged children's TV programs on several factors, including whether the episode had a primary lesson and how clearly the show conveyed that lesson to children.

Shows that averaged the highest quality included PBS classic Sesame Street, followed by the commercial Beakman's World, PBS' Between the Lions and the commercial 3-2-1 Penguins. Some of the lower-rated programs included PBS' Curious George, the commercial Magi-Nation and the commercial Replacements.

Quality educational television is important because it can have positive effects on a child's social and intellectual development, said Dale Kunkel, a UA communications professor and one of the study's lead authors.

He hopes the study will prompt the Federal Communications Commission, the agency that oversees broadcasting licenses, to devote more time to monitoring compliance with the law.

The FCC has never revoked a license over children's television, but it did issue a $24 million fine in 2007 against Univision Network for not airing enough children's educational programming.

The National Association of Broadcasters, which advocates in behalf of the broadcasting industry, criticized the study for failing to examine cable programming. For example, the digital qubo channel broadcasts 24-hour children's educational programming.

The association's vice president, Dennis Wharton, said in a written statement that local broadcasters have a deep commitment to serving children by offering educational programming, public-service announcements and Amber Alerts for missing children.

Parents have mixed feelings about what is offered on television.

Debbie Akers, 33, a parent in Phoenix, agrees with the study's findings that few TV shows seem highly educational.

She tries to steer her sons, 4 and 8, to Sesame Street whenever possible, although the boys prefer SpongeBob SquarePants.

She limits their viewing time to one to three shows a day, although some days, they skip television.

There are exceptions.

"If they're sick, they get an all-day (TV) marathon," she said.

Other parents, like Lois Griffitts of Gilbert, believe today's families have access to better-quality shows.

The 41-year-old mother of two grew up with four television channels and watching Sesame Street, Electric Co. and Zoom. Today, with cable, families have more choices.

"That is positive," she said.

Her 2-year-old daughter likes Blues Clues, while her 5-year-old son watches older programming like Dirty Jobs and the Food Network.

The TV study is titled "Educationally/Insufficient? An analysis of the Educational Quality & Availability of Children's Educational/Informational Programming."

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/200...vstudy1113.html

[Niels Bohr 72]

Bring back Sesame Street! Fraggle Rock! Bill Nye the Science Guy! Science Court!

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Bring back Sesame Street! Fraggle Rock! Bill Nye the Science Guy! Science Court!

Bill Nye the Science Guy was a great show!

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Eh, you both forgot "Mr. Dressup".

[SteveLaura 0]

'Curious George' is purely for entertainment, I would say, but has little moral lessons in it. For entertainment & education, I would recommend 'Little Einsteins'.

[Jenn! 918]

Remember 3-2-1 Contact!?

Oh, and Square One!

I learned a lot from TV as a kid.

[Heracles 417]

You mean the Jonas brother and hannah montana is not educational.

Anyone looked at MTV lately? In terms of content, just think of the complete opposite of the discovery, science, and nat geo channels.

Edited November 13, 2008 by Aficionado

[Imua 0]

Hey I learned a lot about gravity from watching Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote...

And I learned everything I know today about Russia from Boris and Natasha on the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show and I dare say I know more than Sarah Palin...

Edited November 13, 2008 by Pattu Rani

[MichelleN 0]

Mr. Wizard

And yes Square One rocked too.

But I have to agree that Bill Nye blew them all out of the water. I miss him

[HAL 9000 96]

Things turned totally psychotic with that Barney fellow.

[Peikko 1,575]

I have to thank John Noakes who is directly responsible for everything I now know about the world.

I also loved the Flower Pot Men and the Clangers although I am not sure if either can be classified as 'educational'

[Mononoke28 135]

My three year-old niece loves The Little Mermaid, an Arielholic if you will. But she's learned a lot from it. We think.

Diana