Effects of media on youth……..
The influence of the
media on development of children is profound. Thus it is important to discuss
with parents about their child’s exposure to media and to provide guidance on
age to ensure the appropriate use of all media including television, radio,
music, video games and the internet as well.
Television.
Television has the
potential to generate both positive and negative effects and many studies have
looked on the impact of television on children and adolescents. Not all
television programs are bad but the showing the negative effects of exposure to
violence, inappropriate and offensive language are convincing. As we all know
that there is a relationship between watching violent television programming
and increase in violent behavior by children.
Learning.
Television and internet
can be a powerful teacher. The internet
has a significant potential for providing children with access to educational
information and can be compared with a huge home library.Programs like ‘My
world’ are an example of how youths can learn valuable lessons about
cooperation and kindness. Moreover, the educational value of ‘Super Spellers’
has been shown to improve the reading, learning and the speaking skills of its
viewers. So at times, healthy television can be a beneficial teaching tool.
Videos games.
Some video games may
help the development of fine motor skills and coordination, but many of the
concern is on the negative effects of it. Violent video games should be
discouraged because they have harmful effects on children’s mental
developments. As they grow up, their behavior would be violent.
Nutrition.
Since media takes away
time from children which they usually spent on play and exercise. Children who
are addicted to media are regarded as less physically fit. Through media,
children learn about tobacco and alcohol use; whereby they tend to try it and
the behavior they depict are violent at the end.
So that is why media
literacy is important in students who usually surf net when they have to
research for their assignments, presentations or when they need to clarify
something. But youths are unaware of their sites they are not supposed to barge
in. media literacy helps us understand how media create culture. Media also act
as a watch dog over government acts.
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