Toddlers 'will learn nothing from TV'

[Bruden]

The notion that young children can learn productively by watching television is widely dismissed by scientists who study the developing brain.

The time between the ages of 6 months and 3 years is accepted as a critical phase for learning skills such as language, and research suggests that this is best accomplished by interaction with adults.

A study by Patricia Kuhl, of the University of Washington, in Seattle, for example, has found that children aged 10 months learn sound patterns easily by playing with an adult, but learn nothing at all by watching the same adult performing the same games and exercises on a television screen.

snip

Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, of the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London, said that the best evidence suggested television for toddlers was a waste of time. “There is a body of research showing that, in a variety of contexts, young children learn optimally with another human, rather than with a video of a human,” said Dr Blakemore, the co-author, with Professor Uta Frith, of The Learning Brain.



http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2176928,00.html

[TXDemGal]

1. Hello? I don't let my 2-y.o. watch TV because I think

she'll learn something (although that is frequently a bonus with PBS fare, which in addition to Dora DVDs is the only thing she watches). I let her watch it for up to an hour a day SO I DON'T GO CERTIFIABLY INSANE!!! As my daughter's primary caretaker, I firmly believe this use of television for small children cannot be dismissed. Anyone who blows off the idea of TV for very young children probably does not spend up to 12 hours a day caring for them.

And now I'm off for my beauty sleep so I can do it for another 12 hours tomorrow. ;-)

[progressivebydesign]

2. There goes that TV babysitter...

I'm the stepparent of kids who spent hours of time in front of the tv from the time they were small.. while daddy was at work and mommy wanted to watch tv or nap undisturbed. (before I met them all). Let me tell ya, it's not good for little kids. The effects are apparent even now as they are almost adults.

[EllieGreen]

4. Agreed.

My stepdaughter is almost 3 years old, and her mother (whom she visits on the weekends) lets her watch television the entire time.

For the next week, all we hear from little bit is "I want this, I want that." When we ask how she learned about a certain product, the answer is always the same: "Mama's TV."

It drives both hubby and I insane and we fear that her brain may rot out. It is also very difficult to enforce the "PBS or a DVD that daddy or mamoo (that's me---don't ask) approves of" rule.

GAHHH! I hate the tee-vee.

/rant mode off

[moc]

3. Thank you. Hopefully, we can put all the "Baby Einstein makes

my kid smarter" crap to rest.

TV is an important survival tool for frazzled moms (says someone with two little kids, one going through a particularly wild period right now). But don't fool yourself that you're building brain power or anything.