Content and Cognitive Variables
We have been looking at a number of children's television programs, many of them on PBS and some on commercial television, observing whether or not these shows have content material that we deem important for children -- using the cognitive variables displayed on this slide. We’ve done this for “Barney,” “Sesame Street,” “Wiggles,” and “Dora the Explorer.” You just name the show – we’ve been analyzing it.

The only way the programs score a point is if the person on the program labels the concept, describes it, models it. For example, take the word, “nest,” if the character does not tell you that a nest is a little place that a bird sleeps in, made out of twigs or leaves, there is no credit. That means the child has heard the word but doesn't really understand what it means. Another one might be colors. They might say “red.” But if you don’t see a red object on the screen, it's meaningless to the child. In other words, whenever we feel that a concept has to be used, it has to be labeled, modeled, explained.

Emotional Variable

	TV can help children recognize sad, angry, happy and even more subtle emotions.

So in a television program for children emotions must be expressed. In some way you need to be able to convey to your audience that we all have a whole range of human emotions. Children do begin to recognize sad and angry and happy, but they have trouble with some of the other, more subtle emotions. I think TV can do this beautifully, since it's such a visual medium.

Social Constructive Attitudinal Variable
The next area that we are interested in is the social constructive attitudinal variable. Many programs are trying to give children pro-social help. Good programs will emphasize sharing, turn-taking, cooperation. For example, on “Barney,” when the children do the clean-up, there is a tremendous amount of cooperation. When we visit pre-schools, teachers tell us that these modeled behaviors have been very helpful – that the children want to do what the characters do on the show. They're very eager to take sponges and start cleaning tables. The emotional component is extremely important.

Physical and Nutritional Variables
When we look at shows on television, we are also interested in whether or not the characters are portraying any examples of fine as opposed to large motor skills. When children are drawing on television, constructing something using eye-hand motor coordination, this conveys to parent and caregiver, that here is something in our daycare center that we really have to talk about. Give children the opportunity to use their fingers and their hands, as well as the opportunity to climb, to swing, to ride a tricycle.

“I've never found a commercial that says, eat some carrots, they’re delicious, drink some water, that's good for you.”

Nutrition is another facet of the physical that we are interested in. Are you modeling good foods to eat? I'm always fascinated by television commercials, because they are all for the snacks and the potato chips and the candy. I've never found a commercial that says, eat some carrots, they’re delicious, drink some water, that's good for you. I think here is something that PBS and KCEd really can do - show children eating properly and convey its importance to the caregivers. I often notice when we go into caregiver homes the snacks that they are serving – candy and cookies - which is just another way of fostering obesity for the children. So here you have an opportunity to do something about nutrition.

Musical and Multi-Cultural Variables
The fifth variable we look at is music and entertainment. Music is so important to children. They love things that rhyme. They love simple songs that they can sing. Music is a good way of learning, as we know, and certainly “Sesame Street” has done a wonderful job in this. Again, when we score various programs, we look for whether there are songs, whether they show instruments, name them. I was watching an episode of “Wiggles” (a wonderful show) and scoring them for a project. They were using some very interesting musical instruments, but they didn't name them. I thought this was a missed opportunity to tell the child something about the instruments, where they came from, who made them, even though the instruments were played so beautifully.

	“Music is so important to children. They love things that rhyme. They love simple songs that they can sing.”

The last theory that we looked at is multi-cultural exposure. So many of the programs ignore large segments of the population in this country. Questions asked when scoring include: What language is being spoken? Are there any words used from a different country? Are there customs shown from different countries? Do they do any dances of different countries, which are fun to watch? Are there any references, even, to any ethnic groups? Do they ever have ethnic guests? Multi-cultural exposure is important and I know you will be sensitive to these concerns within KCEd.

Federal Guidelines
In 2000 federal guidelines for preschool programs were issued to all daycare centers around the country by the Evaluation and Development part of the Office of Education headed by Alan Ginsberg. Communication skills, using both expressive and receptive language, are high on the list. Other areas of emphasized in this federal guideline booklet include new vocabulary, computer vocabulary, phonics awareness, including the ability to identify words with the same sounds and break the words into syllables, and reading readiness (e.g., understanding that print conveys messages and that there are print conventions such as reading from left to right.) Children are expected to begin to write the letters in their own names and to recognize additional letters. However, to begin to teach children to read below the age of five, or even below the age of six, is difficult. So that's one of the major problems with these guidelines.

The guidelines also don't mention “play” as a medium for learning anywhere. We subsequently sent many materials to Alan Ginsberg indicating how important play is in children's learning. He said this information would be incorporated in the guidelines but it has not been and probably never will be.

Conclusion
I want to end my presentation with just two things. First, I really want to emphasize how important formative research is, that it must be included from the very beginning of this project. Of course, you'll do summative research at the end to see whether or not your program is having an impact on the children you’re trying to reach, but it is necessary to start funding for research early. “Sesame Street” did formative research from the beginning. That is, I think, what led to its success. They were not afraid to change something if it didn't work.

Finally, I'd like to end with some elements that I think are important to keep in mind when you're developing this program.

• Pacing
  Try and keep the pacing at a level the desired audience can understand, whether children or caregivers. If the program is for children, remember that children really need time to reflect and think about the concepts you present.
  
• Present things in context
  You have to be very careful about just presenting something as a close up on the screen. It has to be in context. Think of ground as very important to children. Children need to know that this big thing on the screen is really very little when seen in the context of other objects that are being shown.
  
• Repetition is important
  Children don't get something the first time, which is why you know you can read a story to a child night after night after night. You are sick of it. You got the idea the first time. But a child gets just a little piece the first time he hears it. The next night, he gets a little bit more, until it becomes familiar and then it becomes good and he likes it. The repetition is important. But you don't have to repeat the same segment the same way. Come at it in a different way so it isn't boring.
  
• Live characters are extremely important
  I would not have a program that is all animation. Children really need to identify with the characters. Research tells us that children equate animation with cartoons and fun, not learning. When the same material is presented with a live person, they equate that with learning.
  
• Make the program interactive
  Use questions to draw the audience in and encourage children to try things, allow for mistakes on the program, and have lots of demonstrations and modeling.
  
• Of greatest importance is a good, engaging story
  with a theme
  Your audience will want to tune in again and again, because it's really compelling and has strong human interest.
  

Thank you.

Dorothy Singer
June 13, 2003
KCEd Expert's Convening