Question

Please watch A TV in the Baby Bottle (52:00) from Films on demand. Next post a summary of the video. Finally, can children really learn from targeted entertainment in the same manner as they can from live human beings?

Answer 1

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary.

(Answer) Summary – A TV in the Baby Bottle is a documentary about how the society and child rearing in particular changed so dramatically after the popularity of children’s programming. There was a time when children’s programming began at 4 years of age, as of now, children began watching TV at 4 months of age.

This documentary explores what children are and aren’t actually able to learn from these television programmes. Most of the parents usually substitute a babysitter for convenient television programming. Considering that these programmes did not exist for hundreds of years and parents still managed to look after their children, it can be assumed that this phenomenon has had a quick and huge impact.

Can children really learn from these programmes? – According to several social psychologists like Piaget, Kant and others, children generally learn from observing the people and their immediate environment. Initially, they might just mimic behaviour, but with time, they might understand it and actually comprehend actions.

Firstly, there are things that a child might absorb and some things that they might sieve out. If one looks back at their own childhood, certain animated shows and educational shows might actually be remembered for what they taught us. However, if we begin to watch those same episodes again, we might find that we also did miss out on a lot of the lessons. The rate of absorption and understanding depends on the calmness of the environment; the child’s grasping and understanding abilities and other such factors.

One such theory that might point out the role of children’s programming in a child’s mental development is Bronfenbrenner’s Theory. Bronfenbrenner explained that everything in a child’s environment is likely to affect how they grow and develop. He went on to explain that a child’s inherent qualities affect the social environment and vice-versa.

Bronfenbrenner’s biological model is in the form of concentric circles or levels that influence a child.

The first level – The Microsystem which is the child itself.

The second level – The Mesosystem which comprise of the family, school, playground, peers, religious institutions and healthcare systems.

The third level – The Ecosystem which contains the extended family, neighbours, friends of family, legal services, social welfare services and the mass media.

The fourth level – The Macrosystem is formed by the attitudes and ideologies of the society.

The fifth level – The Chronosystem is formed by all of the events and transitions that occur within a child’s life.

In the second level or the Mesosystem, the television programming could be easily accommodated. This means that if not in a great way, then in some way or the other, television programming does influence a child’s mental development, just like they learn certain things from human beings.