I know I like to stir up a little controversy but I have experienced 1st hand the effects of too much media on children. Personally I think that children are bombarded with too much stimulation from all areas. Starting at home, I know it is way easier to just turn the TV on , God only knows how tempted I am to turn on the tube especially when I have been working all day and am drained. My own children are allow 1 thirty minute show a day if possible but I keep them so busy daily that we often have no time for this. To this day I am so anti TV I believe that it allows children to experience sensory overload with the constant changes in pitch & sound and commercial and short cartoons - It is no wonder that kids don't like to read it takes to long and there is no change-its work. In front of the TV they can just take it all in. In school with my student I find my self being a more effective teacher planing my lesson with a variety of different teaching styles for example. Kids will not stay seated for me for 40 minutes, but I ask myself who would. So I plan and break down my lesson in 5- 7 mins increments. I talk to the kids when they walk in about what you spoke about last week for about 3 minutes and then I introduce my lesson for about 5-7 minutes and use technology for no more than 5 -7, united streaming is my new best friend, minutes and then a project for no more than 10 minutes. This plan works like a charm and it keeps the child active and motivated to participates it also lessens discipline problem because I constantly change activities. Aside from this I always find my self changing pitch asking question looking for helpers changing my position in the room and sometimes just jumping out at them. They children get a kick out of it and they constantly come in with hugs and ready to learn-which I love.
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United Streaming and I are also close friends.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say you keep your kids so busy they don't have time for the television, what kinds of things are they doing? How does that compare with watching television, in terms of cognition? Also, with the shorter bursts of activity -- I can definitely see why that works and why they love you. Do you think that makes it difficult for them to stay seated in a more traditional classroom? What happens over time or should happen in terms of attention span and education? How should learning and teaching be changing, or should they?
ReplyDeleteAlso, you need to call the tech support at the university. Whenever I send out email to the class, yours bounces back that there is something wrong with the account. The number is 973 655 7971
Dr. D