In my past blog posts I have discussed antisocial behaviors in the media. However, I believe the media portrays prosocial behavior as well. Prosocial behaviors are those that society values andencourages. According to the book Media Now, they are behaviors we want to encourage children in our society to form such as, cooperation, sharing, love, tolerance and other behaviors along these lines (Davenport et. al. p427).
Starting with younger children around the preschool age there are many television shows that promote education and teach them how to cooperate with other children. The Disney Channel and Nickelodeon are great channels that promote prosocial behavior. I remember when I was growing up Sesame Street and Barney were two television shows that were watched and I think they are both great shows that promote prosocial behaviors. For example, I remember skipping around my house singing songs from Barney that was at the time very educational and I didn't even realize it. Sesame Street always had a letter of the day they focused on to help teach children the different sounds it makes and word associated with the letter. At the early stages of learning it is important to repeat things over to your children to help them not only memorize it but to fully comprehend what it means. Although teachers are a huge help to young children, television shows like these are great for children because not only do they enjoy watching them but they are learning as well. Another great children show that is very popular today is Dora the Explorer. This show emphasizes foreign languages like Spanish. I have heard several young children repeating colors and simple words in Spanish at a young age. This show catches the attention of the child and teaches them something that most adults don’t even know. Children and the youth are media’s dearest. Media as perceived by children is full of excitement and question, because it brings them to a world of reality as well as make believe.
Starting with younger children around the preschool age there are many television shows that promote education and teach them how to cooperate with other children. The Disney Channel and Nickelodeon are great channels that promote prosocial behavior. I remember when I was growing up Sesame Street and Barney were two television shows that were watched and I think they are both great shows that promote prosocial behaviors. For example, I remember skipping around my house singing songs from Barney that was at the time very educational and I didn't even realize it. Sesame Street always had a letter of the day they focused on to help teach children the different sounds it makes and word associated with the letter. At the early stages of learning it is important to repeat things over to your children to help them not only memorize it but to fully comprehend what it means. Although teachers are a huge help to young children, television shows like these are great for children because not only do they enjoy watching them but they are learning as well. Another great children show that is very popular today is Dora the Explorer. This show emphasizes foreign languages like Spanish. I have heard several young children repeating colors and simple words in Spanish at a young age. This show catches the attention of the child and teaches them something that most adults don’t even know. Children and the youth are media’s dearest. Media as perceived by children is full of excitement and question, because it brings them to a world of reality as well as make believe.
This is also the same with older children, prosocial television programs shown in the National Geographic Channel, The Animal Planet and Discovery Channel help them to learn and see what a certain animal looks like, see and explore places that are impossible for human to go to and visit places that are overseas. They use dramatic effects and engaging music to teach older teens and adults about animals, astronomy and historic places. These educational programs help them to visualize places and animals as well as further explain theories that are learned in the classroom. Watching these shows they are learning something whether they simply know it or not.Overall, I think that even though the media does promote a lot of negative behaviors there are many positive ones that are overlooked such as the ones I have talked about above. I think it really depends on the parents and what they let their child watch if they will be negatively or positively affected by the media.
Sources:
Media Now: Understanding Media, Culture, and Technology. 6th edition By Straubharr, LaRose and Davenport
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