We hear a lot about parents today using television as a babysitter. However, its hard to determine what the outlasting effects of sitting kids in front of the TV for hour after hour each day does to their development and learning, not to mention what it does to their eyesight. I don’t know about other kids my age, but when I was growing up, I don’t think I watched an obscene amount of television; I know our generation’s “screen time” was significantly less than of children today, because the internet did not become popular until late elementary school.
This article (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-05-24-kids-media_x.htm ) describes the enormous amount of parents who feel the impact of television on their children. Many of them feel guilty about leaving their kids in front of the television, but as one mother plainly states, “In reality, we think no TV is best, but the truth is sometimes it makes a pretty darn good babysitter when you just have to get something done.” And that mindset is alarming. Media begins to influence children from as early as toddlerhood these days. I can only imagine the repercussions—socially and mentally.
Personally, I think the lack of physical activity (leading to obesity), time in solitude watching television, and the types of obnoxious shows and commercials on TV directly lead to the increase in behavioral problems such as ADHD. Parents may justify their electronic “babysitter” by putting on ‘educational’ programs, such as the Baby Einstein series, but in reality, those videos have not been proven to impact a child’s intellect.
Parents, please step up and get your kids away from the screens—computer and television—and get them moving again. That’s the way to keep them healthy and active. They don’t need to feel the media influence before they’ve learned to talk or been to school.
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