Media and Children: Media Literacy: "the ability to access, analyze, evaluate and communicate information in a variety of formats." —David Considine The role of media in imparting education is increasingly on the rise. Media surrounds us and is present in everything. This phenomenon has made learning easier and interesting for children. Television, radio, and computers are gradually entering classrooms and changing the way of learning. With the onset of new technologies and the emerging trends in the
modular house global economy, the present day education is changing. Therefore, there is a need to educate ourselves with the emerging wave of technology. It is well known that by learning to read and write, we can be called literate. Similarly, in the 21st century, by gaining knowledge about the different aspects of media, we can also be called media literate, although there are both positive and negative sides of it. Therefore, as we are adopting the good from it, the bad should be avoided. The negative messages could be avoided by developing the skills of questioning, evaluating and analyzing them. This can be called media literacy or media education.
Media literacy or education does not mean to know about media but to learn something from it. Moreover, we find the subjects that we learn in our curricula are also found in media. They may be related to arts, science, different languages, social sciences and health. It also helps to develop critical thinking skills. The students can get a vast exposure to the pop-cultural references. They can get statistics and data from the news, which can be the basis for math and science learning. The teachers can also incorporate media analysis whenever the Internet, television or video are used in the classroom.
The impact of media is vast on children and even on the adults. The intellectual curiosity of a child is satisfied by media literacy. At present, in order to exist in the competitive market, there is always a need to equip oneself with better knowledge and analytical skill. Apart from books, television also helps to improve the Intelligent Quotient and
container house General Knowledge of every section of the society, particularly the children. Media education skills develop the children's thinking and analyzing power, which in turn, inspires them to make queries and think about the media messages they watch, hear and read. As a child tries to critically analyze the things he reads, likewise he tries to do the same with sounds, actions, moving pictures etc. There are numerous benefits of media on children. The first and foremost effect of media is definitely the accumulation of General knowledge, different dialects and cultures. Television boosts the social awareness of a child to a great extent. Sports channels develop the logical mindset of a child. Cartoon channels keep the children happy. News channels increase the vocabulary of the children and inform them about the positive and negative impacts on the society. It increases the concentration and retention power of a child, which benefits their studies to a great extent.
There are also negative effects of media on children. Children often learn certain things, which change their perspective towards life. For example, if they watch violent scenes on TV, their nature tends to be the same. There are many incidents where children try to imitate the super heroes and it results in death. Studies often get hampered and lapse of concentration occurs due to excessive watching of television. The advertisements shown in the media often captures the mood of the individuals. Generally, girls are very vulnerable and sensitive about their physical image. When an adolescent girl watches the ads that show unless we buy a product or carry the style statement or wash our hair with a specific shampoo and look smart like a slim model, we don't get respect in the society or get a job. These messages attack our self-esteem and create a negative impact on a child. Two Studies conducted by the South Australia's Flinders University have revealed that "television advertising featuring idealised thinness negatively affected both the mood and the body image of adolescent girls, with those in the 13 - 15 year age group being more affected".