November 17, 2008

STUDIES / ARTICLES: Educational TV for kids often lacking (USA)

Study: Educational TV for kids often lacking

By Evan Pellegrino - Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona - Published: 11.14.2008

If you think your children are watching truly educational TV shows, you might need to tune in for a closer look.

An "E/I" icon appears during some children's TV programs, meant to indicate that the episode is educational and informational, but an analysis of these programs by a team that includes a UA researcher found that only one in eight of the shows was considered by experts as "highly educational."

The study by Children Now, a children's advocacy organization, found that one in four programs that tout an "E/I" icon are rated as "minimally educational," the lowest rating. Most "E/I" programs are classified as "moderately educational."

The Children's Television Act, passed by Congress in 1990, requires that each TV station in the United States air at least three hours of programs classified as "E/I" each week.

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