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January, 1970
ers and writers who have pandered to
violence are themselves largely respon–
sible for the brutalization of the first
TV generatiou.
And so, the
"predisposition"
myth
bites the dust along with the
"catharsis"
idiocy aud the
"no harm"
nonseuse.
These three phoney, pseudo-scientific–
sounding arguments have lulJed the
public into complacency too long. They
are utterly untrue and completely dis–
credited. They should no longer clutter
our minds
oc
deter our determination to
take charge of our children's education
by controlling
the television C11rriml11m.
You're the School Board
In a "Walter Mitty" sort of way,
nearly every parent has subconsciously
wanted to run the schools. We've al!
dreamed about what we would do if we
were on the school board. We would
straighten this out and change that and
things would be a wholc Jot different in
short arder. But, few of us ever get the
chance.
\'V'ell,
now
is your chance! You're the
PRESIDENT
of the school board! Yes,
you're not only president of the school
board, but you're also the p rincipal of
that one-room school in your own liv–
ing room!
Y
011
can decide on school bours.
Y 011
can select the currículum.
Y
011
can lay
down the rules for classroom behavior.
Yo11
can monitor the clecfronic "school–
marm" and evaluate her teaching any
time. In short,
you
can decide how
yo11r
school will be run. But remember, as
president of the board and principal,
you are also responsible to enforce all
these decisions. You
MUST TAKE
CHARCE
of the TV currículum!
Here's How
First, understand the
absol111e facl
that early childhood experiences make
indelible impressions. They lay the
foundation for character and personality
development. This is a very old truth.
As far back as the 5th century B.C. we
have Plato's observation that, "... the
young are not able to distinguisb what
is and what is not allegory, but whatever
opinions are taken into the mind at that
age [two to seven] are wont to prove
TIJe
PLAIN TRUTH
indelible and unalterable"
(The Repllb–
lic,
Book II).
Then Aristotle carne along at about
the same time and left us sorne advice
about what to do. He said, "On this
account, we ought to make all base
things unfamiliar to the young, and es–
pecially those that involve either deprav–
ity or malignity." His dogmatic recom–
mendation was to "... banish indecent
talk ... for light talk about anything
disgraceful soon passes into action
... banish the seeing of either pic–
tures or representations that are in–
decent ..."
(Po/itics,
Book
VII).
Well, that's pretty up-to-date talk for
the "ancients." And the interesting
thing is that nothing has changed in the
past 2500 years. Modero behavioral rc–
search agrees. Character development is
still determined the same way in
1970.
The lesson herc is to eliminate vio–
lence, lawlessness, indecency, and por–
nography in all forms from your child's
TV cucriculum. And it's simple.
It
only takes the
moral detenni11alion
to
twist a dial or
Rick
a switch.
Second, young children want to re–
spect the school principal and thcy will
imitate his example. But
you'l'e
the prin–
cipal now, remember? That means your
personal TV viewing habits must
be discriminating and selective. lt's a
"monkey see, monkey do" situation and
you are being watched. Don't expect
what you are unwilling to do yoursclf.
Third, effective learning requires in–
teraction betwcen teacher and pupil; and
here is one great weakness of the TV
currículum. There will be no interaction
in your school unless you make an effort
to supply it yourself. The electronic
"schoolmarm" talks,
bttt she 1zever lis–
tem!
You will need to make yourself
available as much as possible to intc.:r–
pret, explain, clarify, correct wrong
ideas, criticize certain content, relate
new facts to past experiences, etc. Only
in this way can you effectively control
what is being learned.
Fourth, cvery school takes reccsscs
and yours should too. As a matter of
fact, the recesses in your school should
be considerably longer than the class
sessions. A single program at a time is
probably a good general rule and then a
recess to engage in sorne other activity.
21
Your school should be teaching balance
in al! things - so encourage a wide va–
riety of physical and intellectual inter–
ests. And rcmember, the principal is
first of all a
leader.
That means you
must get involved in other activities
yourself.
Fifth, establish and enforce some
school policies regarding behavior in
your classroom. Here are some to start
with: (
1)
Good posture is important to
good health, so there should be appro–
priate furniture handy and no sprawling
oc
hunch-backcd, slack-jawed, semi–
conscious viewing permitted. (2) A pro–
gram which has been selected as worthy
of watching should receive undivided
attention for the duration. (
3)
Horse–
play or other behavior which interferes
with the enjoyment of others is out and
should carry a penalty. (
4)
The dining
room is for eating and except for an
occasional snack there should be no eat–
ing in the classroom. The sessions
should be short enough so no one is
likely to starvc anyway.
(5)
And, of
course, school hours must be strictly
observed.
Sixth, the TV currículum should only
be a small part of a youngster's educa–
tion. Each should also be learning Jes–
sons through chores, responsibi lities,
and other obligations. When required,
these must take priority over televiewing
without any quibbling.
And finally, all schools take vacations
for rest and a change of pace. Why not
try closing your one-room school for va–
cation a day or two once in a while. Just
unplug the set and ignore it. You may
discover you were in a rut. You may
also rediscovcr the joys of family con–
versation and companionship which the
TV currículum
ca11110t
provide.
Accentuate the Positive
Yes, the
real
school, the
real
currícu–
lum, the
real
educational force today
iJ
commercial television. And, unfortu–
nately, it is teaching mostly rubbish!
But remember, nobody is rcquiring
COMPUlSORY ATTENDANCE
in
Ibis
school. You still have freedom of
choice. You can stil! take it or leave it,
so it's up to you. Be selective and accen–
tuate the
positit•e
in TV programming.
The mind you save may be your own -
or your child's.
O